A love for both playing soccer and being outdoors, helped to guide Lindsey Daml across the country to continue her education at the University of Minnesota Crookston. Daml is pursuing a degree in Natural Resources Management while also playing for the University of Minnesota Crookston Women's Soccer team.
Along with some similarities, the senior from North Pole, Alaska, has certainly noticed a few differences between her home and Crookston. The lack of both trees and mountains has been a big change while little things such as the Minnesotan way of saying snowmobiling as compared to snow machining, have also come into play.
“Farming isn’t as big back home as it is here. There's a lot of small hobby farms but that's about it. Living in Crookston has really helped me learn more about the farm to table aspect of growing crops,” stated Daml.
Back home, Daml enjoys playing soccer, riding her horse, spending time on the lake either jet skiing or fishing, going to live bands, and enjoying time outside. Here at Crookston most of her time is spent at school, playing soccer or with being with her friends.
Daml was recruited to play soccer at here at the University of Minnesota Crookston, by the previous head soccer coach Joe Alianiello. The opportunity to receive an athletic scholarship while continuing her education was one of the deciding factors that came with her decision to attend UMN Crookston.
“Coming from North Pole, Alaska it is really rare for students to be collegiate athletes. I was the first women’s soccer player to go play at the NCAA Division II level,” noted Daml.
Daml has been named team captain of the UMN Crookston Women's Soccer team for the last two years. She is also a member of the Student Athletic Advisory Committee. Daml had to medical redshirt this last fall season due to a hip injury, so she will be returning for a fifth year to finish her soccer career.
“I love how soccer has connected me to UMN Crookston. If I decided to not play soccer I would’ve never had the opportunity to meet a lot of the people here,” explained Daml.
Daml’s favorite aspect of studying at the University of Minnesota Crookston has been the people who live and work here. She now enjoys being on such a small campus as everyone tends to know everyone. Daml also notes that having an environment that thrives on people being successful helps make going to school more comfortable.
“At first I didn’t like the idea of a small campus. I thought I was missing out on the “college” experience. I came here because I wanted to be a collegiate athlete and Crookston gave me that opportunity. Once I got comfortable from being away from home I realized I am exactly where I am meant to be. Having the small campus has enhanced my education by so much,” stated Daml.
Daml came to the University of Minnesota as a freshman who wanted to study biology. After the fall 2018 semester, she decided to change her major to Natural Resource Management.
“A big reason as to why I decided to change majors was that I took the Mammalogy class with Dr. Loegering and found it to be really interesting. I then realized I would only new a few courses to complete a biology minor as well,” explained Daml.
Since switching majors, Daml has found all of the professors in the Natural Resource department to be excellent. She especially appreciates the effort they put in to looking out for all of their students.
“I think it's really important to take advantage of the opportunities around campus that are presented as they can help you to develop new skills that will prepare you for your future, and my professors also really encourage that,” explained Daml.
This past summer, Daml had the opportunity to do a forestry internship with the State of Alaska Division of Forestry.
“This internship allowed me to work with foresters to do timber sale layouts and inventory surveys while under the guidance and expertise of experienced foresters,” explained Daml.
Her plans for this summer are similar to the last, as she has applied for an internship with the US Army Corps of Engineers as a park ranger in the St. Paul district.
Future plans for Daml include working for a state or federal natural resource agency. She would also like to continue her involvement with soccer by coaching youth soccer to inspire young athletes.
Daml is undecided on whether or not she will stay in the Minnesota area or move back to Alaska, however, she knows that wherever she ends up, she will always have the strong education and valuable connections that she made at the University of Minnesota Crookston to support her.
About UMN Crookston
One of five campuses in the University of Minnesota System, the University of Minnesota Crookston cultivates curiosity by engaging students in hands-on learning connecting theory to practice. As the experienced leader in delivering education online, the Crookston campus offers a distinctive learning environment providing personal attention and mentorship to develop leaders, lifelong learners, and engaged citizens. Visit Crookston at umcrookston.edu
About UMN
The University of Minnesota System, with campuses in Crookston, Duluth, Morris, Rochester, and the Twin Cities, is driven by a singular vision of excellence. We are proud of our land-grant mission of world-class education, groundbreaking research, and community-engaged outreach, and we are unified in our drive to serve Minnesota. Learn more at system.umn.edu
