With a skill for learning and passion for teaching, Bland took on a new sport and new language
11/11/2019 9:37:00 AM | Women's Cross Country, Features
MILLERSVILLE, Pa. - Emily Bland beats the sun out of bed most mornings. Her day, fittingly, is structured as a race against time.
Rain or shine, Bland is outside running–or "slamming" as she put it--six to eight miles to start her day, beginning around 6:30 a.m. From there, she lifts, tutors, goes to class, student-teaches, builds a lesson plan and studies.
"A typical day for me is stressful, hectic, chaos," said Bland, a senior on the cross country team at Millersville University. "But I could not see myself doing anything else."
This wasn't always the life Bland saw for herself. A graduate of Greencastle-Antrim High School in Franklin County, Pa., Bland was an All-Mid-Penn Colonial First Team field hockey player as a junior and senior. Her aspirations of playing collegiate field hockey is part of the reason she chose Millersville.
But field hockey wasn't in her deck of cards. Instead, Bland took to distance running. What started as a way to keep off the dreaded "freshmen 15" turned into an opportunity.
While running around the indoor track, Bland was approached by a gym teacher who started asking her about her running habits. Eventually, she was introduced to Andy Young, head coach for the Millersville cross country and track and field programs. She decided to give it a try with one stipulation: she would have to miss her junior track and field season because she wanted to study abroad in Spain.
Young agreed. And so began Bland's collegiate athletic career.
"The first day of practice I was told I was going to run three miles with an assistant coach," said Bland. "I was like, three miles? I thought I was going to die. I was going around a 10-minute pace up and down those Lancaster County hills. They are no joke."
"She wasn't very fit coming in," added Young, laughing. "We probably spent about a year getting her to understand what racing was and training was and everything like that."
But anyone who has come across Bland knew those 10-minute miles wouldn't last. Her background wouldn't allow it.
"I'm an extremely competitive person, I get that from my dad," said Bland, who notes that she gets her academic aspirations from her mom. "I'm competitive with myself. I'm a perfectionist."
The competitive fix Bland was seeking when she graduated high school was being fulfilled through distance running, something she picked up only as a hobby to stay fit. Suddenly, she was obsessed. Her days were spent training and improving, soaking up as much information as she could through coaches and teammates.
Field hockey wasn't on her mind any longer. Instead, Bland was aiming to be a perfectionist in a sport where perfectionists and self-determined runners succeed the most.
"Field hockey is a team-oriented sport," she said. "You're out there with 11 other people wearing the Millersville logo. In cross country, yes, your team does accumulate points, but at the end of the day it really is an individual sport. You run because you want to get on the podium stand."
Bland's first year as a cross country runner, her sophomore year, was full of ups and downs, remembers Young. There would be moments where she would flash ability and others where it looked like it would never click for her.
Those bumps are to be expected with a new runner, Young said. You take the good with the not-so-good. Bland's athletic background made her a good fit for the team because she understood what it meant to practice hard, remain discipline and take to coaching.
"She's a coach's dream," said Young. "She's a sponge with training. She's a worker. All coaches want that kind of athlete."
But Bland isn't like that just while running. The same traits that helped her pick up cross country is what leads her to excel in the classroom.
Bland is a Spanish education major with aspirations of becoming a teacher. She was recently recognized by Millersville's Imagine the Possible campaign due to her success as a student-athlete, study abroad trip and excellence in the classroom.
Bland only picked up Spanish because it was the one subject in which she struggled. She thought mathematics might be her specialty until high school, where she received her first B grade.
"From that point on I said, 'You know what, I want to be a Spanish teacher,'" she said. "I want to teach kids that you can communicate in more than one way. I want to teach kids that it's so hard but so fulfilling once you get it."
Bland spent January through July 2019 in Burgos, Spain, a city about two hours north of Madrid. Her study abroad trip included two classes a day, four days a week.
The true experience was becoming immersed in the culture, Bland said. There's a difference between taking Spanish classes and going to a foreign country. The dialect and speed is different. There's no safety net–you have to jump in and figure it out.
"It was the best experience of my life so far," she said. "You learn a type of independence that a lot of people could never understand."
And of course, Bland managed to participate in a half-marathon while studying abroad.
The culture has Bland itching to return. The biggest difference between Spain and the United States isn't the language, it's the culture, she said. Her time in Spain was full of extended lunch breaks so people could socialize. When the work day was over, it was over. Work wasn't taken home so there was quality time spent with families and friends.
Bland, who roomed with a friend also studying abroad, made a special connection while in Spain. Her landlord, affectionately nicknamed "abuela" for grandma, paid for their Wi-Fi while they taught her two grandsons, ages 5 and 3, English.
"Those little boys became our family," Bland said. "We still exchange letters and cards."
Upon returning, Bland picked up a student-teaching job at McCaskey East High School every week from Wednesday through Friday. She teaches two Spanish IV classes and four Spanish II classes.
It's been a rewarding experience, Bland said. She considers the students her kids. When they have a bad day, she begins to have a bad day. When they succeed, she feels like she's succeeding with them.
"You have to turn on the creative mode in your brain and almost manipulate this language into something they know and understand and practically use without actually changing it," she said. "It made me creative, and I never considered myself a creative person."
After graduating, Bland wants to teach full-time but is still undecided about teaching English in Spain on Spanish in the United States.
"I would imagine school districts, a lot of them are going to want her as soon as they meet her and understand what she's all about," Young said. "She's got a little bit of an edge to her but I think that'll make her an amazing teacher."
But before moving on to teaching, Bland has a senior year to finish. That includes running, running and running more. She recently ran as Millersville's No. 2 runner at the NCAA Atlantic Regional and posted a career-best time.
It's been an unexpectedly productive career for someone who never ran cross country before getting to college. As a junior, she was named PSAC Women's Cross Country Athlete of the Week once.
"The week before the regional meet at the PSAC Championships, she ran probably the worst race of her life," said Young. "She trained so hard that summer, really improved and it just wasn't her day. I remember she was so angry and didn't want to talk to anyone. It was like fuel for her. It was like, 'That wasn't good enough, I know I'm better than that.' That's who she is at her core. She's driven to get better."
Bland now transitions to track and field. This year, she hopes to place at the PSAC Championship in the vaunted 10K race, something no Millersville athlete has done with Young as coach.
"It's surreal. I never thought I would be a runner," Bland said. "Beyond that, it's finding this love and passion I never knew I had. I'm so proud to wear the MU logo."
Rain or shine, Bland is outside running–or "slamming" as she put it--six to eight miles to start her day, beginning around 6:30 a.m. From there, she lifts, tutors, goes to class, student-teaches, builds a lesson plan and studies.
"A typical day for me is stressful, hectic, chaos," said Bland, a senior on the cross country team at Millersville University. "But I could not see myself doing anything else."
This wasn't always the life Bland saw for herself. A graduate of Greencastle-Antrim High School in Franklin County, Pa., Bland was an All-Mid-Penn Colonial First Team field hockey player as a junior and senior. Her aspirations of playing collegiate field hockey is part of the reason she chose Millersville.
But field hockey wasn't in her deck of cards. Instead, Bland took to distance running. What started as a way to keep off the dreaded "freshmen 15" turned into an opportunity.
While running around the indoor track, Bland was approached by a gym teacher who started asking her about her running habits. Eventually, she was introduced to Andy Young, head coach for the Millersville cross country and track and field programs. She decided to give it a try with one stipulation: she would have to miss her junior track and field season because she wanted to study abroad in Spain.
Young agreed. And so began Bland's collegiate athletic career.
"The first day of practice I was told I was going to run three miles with an assistant coach," said Bland. "I was like, three miles? I thought I was going to die. I was going around a 10-minute pace up and down those Lancaster County hills. They are no joke."
"She wasn't very fit coming in," added Young, laughing. "We probably spent about a year getting her to understand what racing was and training was and everything like that."
But anyone who has come across Bland knew those 10-minute miles wouldn't last. Her background wouldn't allow it."I'm an extremely competitive person, I get that from my dad," said Bland, who notes that she gets her academic aspirations from her mom. "I'm competitive with myself. I'm a perfectionist."
The competitive fix Bland was seeking when she graduated high school was being fulfilled through distance running, something she picked up only as a hobby to stay fit. Suddenly, she was obsessed. Her days were spent training and improving, soaking up as much information as she could through coaches and teammates.
Field hockey wasn't on her mind any longer. Instead, Bland was aiming to be a perfectionist in a sport where perfectionists and self-determined runners succeed the most.
"Field hockey is a team-oriented sport," she said. "You're out there with 11 other people wearing the Millersville logo. In cross country, yes, your team does accumulate points, but at the end of the day it really is an individual sport. You run because you want to get on the podium stand."
Bland's first year as a cross country runner, her sophomore year, was full of ups and downs, remembers Young. There would be moments where she would flash ability and others where it looked like it would never click for her.
Those bumps are to be expected with a new runner, Young said. You take the good with the not-so-good. Bland's athletic background made her a good fit for the team because she understood what it meant to practice hard, remain discipline and take to coaching.
"She's a coach's dream," said Young. "She's a sponge with training. She's a worker. All coaches want that kind of athlete."
But Bland isn't like that just while running. The same traits that helped her pick up cross country is what leads her to excel in the classroom.
Bland is a Spanish education major with aspirations of becoming a teacher. She was recently recognized by Millersville's Imagine the Possible campaign due to her success as a student-athlete, study abroad trip and excellence in the classroom.
Bland only picked up Spanish because it was the one subject in which she struggled. She thought mathematics might be her specialty until high school, where she received her first B grade.
"From that point on I said, 'You know what, I want to be a Spanish teacher,'" she said. "I want to teach kids that you can communicate in more than one way. I want to teach kids that it's so hard but so fulfilling once you get it."
Bland spent January through July 2019 in Burgos, Spain, a city about two hours north of Madrid. Her study abroad trip included two classes a day, four days a week.
The true experience was becoming immersed in the culture, Bland said. There's a difference between taking Spanish classes and going to a foreign country. The dialect and speed is different. There's no safety net–you have to jump in and figure it out.
"It was the best experience of my life so far," she said. "You learn a type of independence that a lot of people could never understand."
And of course, Bland managed to participate in a half-marathon while studying abroad.
The culture has Bland itching to return. The biggest difference between Spain and the United States isn't the language, it's the culture, she said. Her time in Spain was full of extended lunch breaks so people could socialize. When the work day was over, it was over. Work wasn't taken home so there was quality time spent with families and friends.
Bland, who roomed with a friend also studying abroad, made a special connection while in Spain. Her landlord, affectionately nicknamed "abuela" for grandma, paid for their Wi-Fi while they taught her two grandsons, ages 5 and 3, English.
"Those little boys became our family," Bland said. "We still exchange letters and cards."
Upon returning, Bland picked up a student-teaching job at McCaskey East High School every week from Wednesday through Friday. She teaches two Spanish IV classes and four Spanish II classes.
It's been a rewarding experience, Bland said. She considers the students her kids. When they have a bad day, she begins to have a bad day. When they succeed, she feels like she's succeeding with them.
"You have to turn on the creative mode in your brain and almost manipulate this language into something they know and understand and practically use without actually changing it," she said. "It made me creative, and I never considered myself a creative person."
After graduating, Bland wants to teach full-time but is still undecided about teaching English in Spain on Spanish in the United States.
"I would imagine school districts, a lot of them are going to want her as soon as they meet her and understand what she's all about," Young said. "She's got a little bit of an edge to her but I think that'll make her an amazing teacher."
But before moving on to teaching, Bland has a senior year to finish. That includes running, running and running more. She recently ran as Millersville's No. 2 runner at the NCAA Atlantic Regional and posted a career-best time.
It's been an unexpectedly productive career for someone who never ran cross country before getting to college. As a junior, she was named PSAC Women's Cross Country Athlete of the Week once.
"The week before the regional meet at the PSAC Championships, she ran probably the worst race of her life," said Young. "She trained so hard that summer, really improved and it just wasn't her day. I remember she was so angry and didn't want to talk to anyone. It was like fuel for her. It was like, 'That wasn't good enough, I know I'm better than that.' That's who she is at her core. She's driven to get better."
Bland now transitions to track and field. This year, she hopes to place at the PSAC Championship in the vaunted 10K race, something no Millersville athlete has done with Young as coach.
"It's surreal. I never thought I would be a runner," Bland said. "Beyond that, it's finding this love and passion I never knew I had. I'm so proud to wear the MU logo."
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