Jacob Hardin has not decided what he plans to do with the Sport and Leisure Service Administration degree he will earn from UTC this time next year.
But a national program he recently was selected for looks a lot like the goal.
Last month, Hardin was named to the inaugural class of Merrell/Outdoor Nation college ambassadors, a group of 13 students across the country who will receive grants and gear to help move millennials away from computer screens and into the outdoors.
Jacob Hardin, 20, works at his post in the UTC Outdoors program. Hardin can be found on the ground floor of the UTC Aquatic and Recreation Center at 4th and Mabel Streets.
Jacob Hardin, right, 20, works at his post in the UTC Outdoors program. Vivian Klauenberg, left, returns a semester bike rental to Hardin Monday on the ground floor of the UTC Aquatic and Recreation Center at 4th and Mabel Streets."It's like a dream job, for sure," Hardin said Monday afternoon while taking a break from his work as an assistant in the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Outdoors office. "I've always pictured myself pursuing something like this."
Hardin, a 20-year-old junior from Morristown, Tenn., will be tasked during the spring semester with planning two on-campus clinics that connect students to the outdoors and two outdoor outings. It's an assignment that should mesh well with the concentration on outdoor recreation that he's chosen in his major.
The Merrell/Outdoor Nation program will contribute $2,000 and arm him with gear.
Outdoor Nation is a nonprofit working to get millennials outdoors. Merrell is an outdoor outfitter specializing in footwear.
The goal of the program is for each ambassador to "motivate, mobilize and engage at least 200 peers, especially outdoor novices, in regular outdoor recreation experiences," according to the application.
Outdoor Nation and Merrell cite statistics indicating college students spend an average eight hours a day in front of a screen and only eight minutes outside and active.
"The community here for outdoors is huge," said Hardin, an avid mountain biker and hiker. "So I don't think it'll be hard to get people involved."
UTC Outdoors coordinator Allison Hughes pointed Hardin to the program.
"As soon as I heard about it, I knew I wanted to do it," he said.
The application consisted of six essay questions and a video. So Hardin enlisted the help of his fiancee, Kelly Rozell, who just happens to be a filmmaker.
The result?
"The video was gorgeous," said Hughes, who has worked with Hardin throughout the semester - his first at UTC since transferring from Middle Tennessee State. "He's got really high drive. He has had no problem taking on every opportunity that I've had, whether it's extra shifts, trying something new, scouting for new trips; he'll do it. I think that plays into his positively manic personality."
Hardin wants to organize a rafting trip on the Ocoee River, and he's planning an on-campus rock climbing competition for February.
That's in addition to the winter break photo contest he is organizing in which students upload photos of themselves exploring a new outdoor location. The winners will get free Merrell gear.
Of the 13 college ambassadors, one will be crowned the top ambassador, which comes with opportunities to intern for Merrell.
"That would be a dream job," Hardin said, "to work for an outdoor company like that."
Contact staff writer David Cobb at dcobb@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6249.