JAMAL HYPOLITE
Special to The Leader
Did you know that between the years of 1981- 1999, SUNY Fredonia served as the Buffalo Bills’ training camp?
Not many of today’s students do. Many also don’t know that one of their Bills returned: David White.
White played 12 years of professional football, retiring with the Buffalo Bills. He is also the head of the Educational Development Program at Fredonia, also known as EDP, and he brings the same pride and passion from the field to his workplace.
EDP is a need-based academic support program for incoming freshmen who are financially challenged or students deficient in academic preparation. As head of EDP, White recruits incoming students from all over who match this criteria.
He has background in recruitment from working five years in the office of admissions. He was the coordinator of minority recruitment and also coordinated multicultural weekend.
White said when he chose Fredonia he was, “taking advantage of an opportunity.” While looking for his second career after football, he almost went to the University of Buffalo as an athletics advisor.
Instead, with the help of his wife, Monica White, who was assistant vice president at Fredonia at the time, he took his resume to administrators and, what was supposed to be an emergency hire due to a shortage of employees, later became a permanent position.
White has been EDP director for eight years now, with retirement nowhere in sight. After almost a decade, he still very much enjoys the work that he does.
“Seeing the day-to-day impact … [the] positive impact that I and this program are able to have [is what I enjoy most],” he said. “Assisting a student in being as successful as they want to be, that’s what I signed up to do.”
It is clear that the students’ success is also his. He said that he is always looking forward to commencement.
“Seeing students ultimately be successful, that’s what it’s about,” he said.
Each summer, a new EDP class is introduced, and White spends a few weeks getting to know these students. He said that EDP is a need-based program so, first and foremost, these students come from a common place of need.
“When students get here, everyone wants to do well, but not everyone wants to put in the work to succeed,” he said.
White finds that seeing these students find a balance between capability and accountability is common. He claims that some students find this balance quicker than others, partly because some fail to take advantage of the school’s resources.
“Everyone in this program is certainly capable, it’s just a matter of how accountable [they are],” he said.
One of his EPD students, Bradys DelVillar, said White taught him that “success is your decision.”
“The number one thing is that they can be as successful as they want to be, despite all the obstacles that are in their way … and the key to that is utilizing the resources at your disposal,” said White. “Last but not least, at some point, turn around and give something back … give something back to someone.”
Most EDP students discover that White is a former Bills player by their second semester. It is quite evident that he brings traits from his time on the field to his current position. Work ethic is one of them.
“I was never the fastest guy on the team, I was never the strongest guy on the team, sometimes I think I might have been the smartest … but no one on any team I ever played on outworked me,” he said. “Being able to work as a team is something I brought from football … and being able to problem solve and the value of preparation.”
White spoke of his former coach for the Bills, Marv Levy, and what he taught them about preparation.
“If we have a good practice, and we prepare, good things are probably going to happen, not guaranteed, but the chances of us winning certainly increase,” he said. “And that’s a life lesson.”
One of the qualities that Daniel Smith, an EDP advisor, stated that Mr. White possesses is determination.
“He is very goal oriented,” said Smith. “EDP is circled around goals.”
White is still involved with football today. He is active in the Bills Alumni Association and also coaches little league.
Anthony Hunter is one of the kids that White coached on the Pop Warner Youth Football team.
“He wouldn’t let me quit at all, he kept pushing me,” said Hunter. “He would even run with me to help me lose weight.”
While White takes a new position on the field, he said that the only “playing” of football he does is on the Xbox and PlayStation.
In his free time, he enjoys cooking and eating. He keeps up to date with sporting events and does community service.
White sets a great example for his students and truly shows that hard work and dedication can take you beyond any goals you set for yourself.