Immersing yourself in something new is often challenging and brings nervousness and fear. But these leaps of faith into new experiences can lead to new passions we had no idea were there.
Nathan Ladehoff was going into his Sophomore year of high school and had the opportunity to run the camera for one of his school’s volleyball games. Immediately hooked, Nathan saw the need for a commentator on his Striv team.
With a 25-dollar headset and some technical intuition, Nathan filled the role of a commentator on his team, and the rest is history.
Importance of Support and Empowerment
High school is the time in our lives when we need the most motivation and support. Luckily, Nathan received unending support from his parents and staff at Sutton High School to pursue his passion.
Nathan credits two teachers who pushed him and gave him every chance to succeed with his passion for commentating.
“Mr. Parrish was in charge of our Striv program at Sutton in the beginning and pushed me to make the program my own. As well as, Mrs. Ohrt, who is now in charge of the Sutton Striv program, was a big help during high school. She gave me the opportunity to troubleshoot technology issues around the school.”
Allowing students to be in charge and take ownership of their team is one of the essential things a Striv teacher can do for their students.
Nathan exemplified how the freedom and responsibility he had given made him feel empowered and boosted his self-confidence.
“If anything went wrong, or something wasn’t working, it was on me and my responsibility. I think it was really empowering, just knowing that I was trusted with responsibility and could maintain that throughout my three years of broadcasting at Sutton.”
It can be unnerving to let students take the lead and run their Striv team, but that is the time when students grow significantly.
Throughout Nathan’s three years of commentating games for Sutton High School, he called many big plays with a lot on the line for Sutton’s sports teams. But the big moments are not what Nathan loves the most about commentating.
“Yes, it’s cool to call big moments and big games, but my main objective is to help people understand the game more and explain what is going on so that anyone can watch the game and follow along without being left out.”
Striv Student → College Student → Full-Time Team Member
Nathan graduated from Sutton High School in 2021 and decided to pursue a degree at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. After Nathan’s first year in college, he decided he didn’t want to wait any longer to pursue his passions for commentating and technology.
So Nathan went back to where he discovered these passions, Striv.
“Striv has also allowed me to follow a path of getting a job without a college degree. Being on the Striv Support team and helping with the broadcasts for Striv Sports is empowering and impactful. I’m spending less time doing ‘textbook’ learning and doing more learning by doing, which is what I prefer.”
Nathan is the new School Support and Productions Specialist at Striv. He is excited about many things with his position, but the one he is most excited about is being able to help students and teachers.
“I look forward to using the knowledge I’ve gained over the past few years by passing it on to other students who might be in the same situation I found myself in. I also look forward to helping teachers provide a good broadcast experience to their students and ensure that technical issues don’t take up their valuable time.”
Having Striv present in his school, Nathan could learn digital media education through real-world experiences.
Nathan is a shining example of why students need to experience hands-on learning compared to a traditional classroom setting.
“Both Striv and digital media education provided me with the type of learning I am most comfortable with, hands-on learning. When I discovered hands-on learning that produced public results, not just a test score, is when I became really engaged, and it just took my learning to that next level.”
When Nathan first sat behind the microphone and took that leap of faith, he unraveled his passion for commentating and all things broadcasting. Every student should have the same opportunity that Nathan had.
Striv made it possible for Nathan to discover his career path while still in high school and the opportunity to land a full-time job doing what he loves most without a degree.
There are students exactly like Nathan at every single school. For students that need the chance to discover their passion, it is crucial as educators that we give students these opportunities.
Striv TV provides all you need in a streaming platform with the training, resources, and support to produce a high-quality broadcast that helps schools connect with their community and fans while empowering students. Click here to join and get started streaming on Striv TV today.
