Tuesday afternoon, two vans left campus loaded with seniors headed to Cincinnati for a baseball game.
Four years ago, these students selected “For the [outcome] of the Game,” as their freshman tutorial, a data analytics look into baseball taught by Economics Professor Eric Dunaway. One of their first assignments was to attend a baseball game in Cincinnati that fall.
“The topic was so much fun,” remembered Justin Santiago ’25, a financial economics major from Westfield, Indiana. “First class in college, going to a baseball game, the fun conversations, and the cool books we read, it was such a fun class.”
This road trip was a full-circle moment for these 13 students who shared the tutorial class in the Fall of 2021—a moment that celebrated the friends they had become and the goodbyes that will follow Saturday’s Commencement ceremonies.
Eric Dunaway, assistant professor of economics; Jacob White, and Sam Benedict.
“We all had something in common that helped us grow stronger as a class, to build relationships on,” said mathematics major Antonio Hernandez ’25, a native of Phoenix. “When you look back on it, you really appreciate what we’ve been through together. After graduation, I’m going back to Arizona and may not see some of these guys again. This is the last time I get to spend some quality time with these dudes.”
This group forged some exceptional friendships. You can see it in the way they laugh, the inside jokes, the busting of chops, the smiles. Through the entire trip—the two-hour rain delay at the start, the extra inning—there was never a time where these guys weren’t talking and laughing together.
“That’s the fun and the energy we brought each day,” said Evan Neukam ’25, a financial economics major from Carmel, Indiana. “There was always a new joke going around or some little memory that we made together. We support each other and try to push each other to be a little bit better. I’ve made some of my best friends through this class.”
It wasn’t uncommon for these guys to get together and study for exams in subsequent years. What began as a collective freshman experience continued throughout their college careers.
“It’s not just that I know these guys, it’s that I’ve spent class time, afternoons, nights, study sessions, and parties hanging together,” said economics major Jacob White ’25 of Peoria, Illinois. “It started with a shared experience as freshman that continued for four years.”
White understands better than most the unique environment Dunaway creates in his classrooms. He’s taken eight classes taught by the professor.
“It’s a testament to him, both as a professor and a person,” White said. “He’s someone you want to take more classes with, so I sought out every opportunity I had to learn more from him. I’m indebted to him in a way that I will never be able to repay.”
Freshman tutorial is often the introduction to college for a Wabash student, but for Dunaway and this group, it’s about the lasting impacts that college provides.
“The transition from student to alumni gets anchored in a memory,” Dunaway said. “Part of this for me is to give them a proper send off. At the same time, it’s creating one more experience these guys associate with their time at Wabash. They will remember this and want to make sure other students get those same opportunities. Not only are we in the business of educating, but so much of what we do is anchored in good memories.”
Neukam agrees.
“I had no idea that a tutorial would be this important to me and kind of set my circle from the get-go,” he said. “I feel very lucky. I don’t think my Wabash experience would have been the same if I had chosen a different one. This set me up for the success I wanted at Wabash.”
