Terryl Ferrell ’16

After enrolling at Milton Hershey School in seventh grade from Philadelphia, Terryl Ferrell ’16 was excited for the chance to get involved at school—an opportunity he didn’t have at home.

“Our financial situation was pretty bad. I wanted to do a bunch of after-school activities and I wanted to be involved in sports, but we couldn’t afford football equipment and transportation was an issue,” he said. “I was really limited to what I could do.”

When he enrolled at MHS, Terryl quickly joined the football team and remembers how much he enjoyed playing pick-up games with his peers. Although he loved football, he discovered he was a strong distance runner in ninth grade. That fall, Terryl made the difficult decision to join the cross country team instead of playing football.

“It was hard because football was fun, and [originally] cross country was just to help me train for track and field in the spring,” Terryl said. “But I realized it would help me become a better runner in the long run.”

Terryl fully committed to the MHS cross country and track and field teams and began pushing himself to achieve his personal best.

“I don’t think there’s ever been a point where I’ve wanted to settle for mediocrity,” he said. “I’ve always wanted to be first. Whatever I do, I want to be the best at it.”

After graduating from MHS in 2016, Terryl’s passion for running led him to join the Division I track and field team at Bucknell University. He continues to run distance events, including the mile, 3000-meter, and steeplechase.

“The hardest part about [transitioning to the college level] was the training. It’s more of a time commitment,” Terryl explained. “We’re running longer, we’re running harder, and we’re running more consistently.”

In addition to athletics, Terryl is committed to his academics. He majors in global management, minors in legal studies, and is a member of the university’s mock trial team—just like he was at MHS.

Thanks to the independence he gained at MHS, Terryl thrives as a college student and athlete with big dreams for the future.

“[College] almost feels like an extension of MHS. It gave me an idea of what to expect and how to manage my time and do my work,” he said.

Pictured above (from left to right):  Kaleb Waiwada ’15, Vinnie Caroselli ’16, Terryl Ferrell ’16, and Yanibel Collado ’15.