By Carlee Berkenkemper
Elm Staff Writer
If you have ever come across a WC student enjoying his time on a hammock strung between trees near Kent Crossing, you have probably met Alex Kincaid, a graduating senior involved in various aspects of campus life.
A coxswain on the rowing team, Peer Mentor, and George’s General, Kincaid is a philosophy major with a double minor in business management and marketing.
On choosing to attend WC, Kincaid said, “It felt like home. I kept coming back here and kept having this feeling that was really unique and different from any other place I went. I felt comfortable and I felt like I was cared about here.”
A Peer Mentor since the spring semester of his freshman year, Kincaid developed leadership skills he was able to transfer to coxing on the rowing team and to managing the Visitor’s Center front desk as a George’s General.
“Alex developed strong working relationships with the students, evidencing his ability to work well with diverse groups. He participates in many leadership roles on campus and is able to guide and inform first-year students with helpful information. His leadership style is quiet but confident,” said Laura Johnstone-Wilson, peer mentor coordinator for the Explore Program.
Head men’s rowing Coach Scott Wisniewski also praised Kincaid’s ability to connect with and lead his fellow students.
“Alex is a decorated four-year veteran of the team. Last year’s Bo Blanchard Award winner, M.V.P., and two-year Captain of the team, Alex has won his awards by showing genuine caring and compassion for his teammates, coxing one of the better boats in [WC] history at the 2016 IRA National Championships,” he said.
Kincaid has shown dedication not only to the team, but to the sport, spending his summers since freshman year training his high school’s rowing team before their fall season.
Rowing also played a part in Kincaid’s Senior Capstone Experience. His philosophy thesis is entitled “Sport as a Means, not an End: Aristotelean Virtue Ethics Applied to Athletics”.
“Compassion needs to be a center point in the team’s culture,” he said. “I am writing about how sports should be used as a tool to develop moral character. As a society, we should approach sports with a holistic view, looking at how we can develop the individual.”
Kincaid hopes to continue working with students through his career. After graduation, he plans to return to his high school, DeMatha Catholic High School, to take on an internship advising and teaching students through the guidance department.
“I think there’s something really unique about the impact you can have in the educational setting on students,” he said.