[ad_1]
Penn Hills middle school students tasted what it was like to work out like a pro football player on Wednesday morning.
Los Angeles Rams defensive lineman and Penn native Aaron Donald Donald made a special visit to exercise and interact with students on the Yuhas-McGinley Stadium field. The special workout is part of the “Go Pro” summer program held by the Penn Hills School District throughout the summer.
Superintendent Nancy Hines said the program aims to compensate for the loss of learning during the pandemic. Alumni from a variety of backgrounds will visit the schools to talk about their careers and what skills have helped them to be successful, to help inspire students.
Matt Herdman, the middle school’s advocate for the summer program, said it’s exciting to have the opportunity for alumni to return.
“We value our alumni, and we hope they give students inspiration and motivation to do things in life and work toward their future,” Herdman said.
Donald and his trainer Dewayne Brown, along with his 2 / 10s Speed+ Agility training team, led the voluntary workout. More than half of the 120 middle school students participated in an hour-long workout, doing a warm-up, foot drills and agility drills.
The students who participated said it was true.
Amazcha Prater, a seventh grader, said she didn’t expect Donald to lead the workout.
“I was surprised. He even said that I did a good job while doing it, ”she said.
Zylon Patterson, another seventh grader, joked about how good it would be to see a player remove his favorite quarterback, retired Saints player Drew Brees.
“The workout was great and felt the same as the football workouts I do,” Patterson said.
Gabrielle West interacted one-on-one with Donald while drilling. Seventh graders said it seemed like a one in a billion chance to work out with Donald.
“Training with a major league athlete is great,” he said.
Donald said he enjoyed working out with the students. He wrapped up the session focusing on everyone to close it saying, “1, 2, 3, work!”
“Any time I get a chance to teach the kids and have fun is always a good day,” he said.
The “Go Pro” program will run on weekdays until July 2 and continue Aug. 2-13.
Tanisha Thomas is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Tanisha at 412-480-7306, [email protected] or via Twitter.
[ad_2]
picture credit