INDIANAPOLIS — There aren’t many students with a resume like Jackson Hoover.
This year, the University of Indianapolis junior competed in a national wrestling competition, studied for a test to get into medical school and flew to Vietnam to study cavefish.
'I don't know if we get very many Jackson Hoovers'
Hoover started wrestling at the age of 5 after some encouragement from his dad.
“He kind of got me into it at a young age. I didn’t really like it in middle school so much, but as I got older it turned into more of hanging out with my friends and once I got into college, I really fell in love with it,” Hoover said.
Hoover came to UIndy from the town of Edwardsburg in southwest Michigan.
“When he is at his best, he’s letting it go. He’s pretty easy to coach. Very hard-working,” said his coach Jason Warthan.
Last spring, Hoover qualified for the Division II wrestling national championships. He was one of 18 athletes selected across the nation in his weight class.
He lost to the runner-up, but came back with something just as valuable: the NCAA Elite 90 Award. It’s given the person with the highest grade point average at the national tournament.
“For him to be that many semesters in and pre-med and a 4.0, he is one of a kind for sure. I don’t know if we get very many Jackson Hoovers that come through our program. We are lucky,” Warthan said.
Jackson credits a lot of hard work and encouragement from his teammates.
“Even when you don’t have the motivation to do it, they are always just pushing you to be the best version of yourself and that’s ultimately what got me there,” Hoover said.
His goal next season is to be an All-American.
‘Best students I have ever had’
Hoover is a pre-med, biology and honors student at UIndy. This year, he became Dr. Dean Wiseman’s first student to request an honors-level biology class as a sophomore. Wiseman said he usually only admits juniors and seniors.
“He is one of the very best students I have ever had,” he said.
For Hoover’s honor project, the two took the lesson outside of the classroom and traveled to the jungles and caves of Vietnam.
“All of a sudden he just has this moment of ‘I am swimming underground in this cave in Vietnam.’ You could just see it on his face,” Wiseman said.
The two believe they discovered a new species of blind cavefish. The process will take months to determine, but either way, they contributed to the research of knowing the range of existing species.
Wiseman has been to central Vietnam many times as part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. He said it’s important to safely and responsibly transform the area to a sustainable tourist economy with conservation at the forefront from subsistence-level poverty.
“It’s still hard for me to wrap my head around, learning all this new stuff, but it’s so exciting for me to dive into this different part of biology than what I was originally interested in,” Hoover said.
During all this, Hoover was also studying for the Medical College Admission Test. He took it in April and is now waiting for his score.
“I couldn’t be more glad that part's over. On to the next,” he said.
'He really is one of my main sources of motivation'
During each win and triumph, Hoover said there was one person he wished he could celebrate with.
“We were just having the time of our lives together in college and then he passed away last summer in an unfortunate car accident,” Hoover said.
Hoover is talking about his best friend Tabor Lock. The two celebrated almost every milestone together from sixth grade to college.
“We hit it off immediately. When we were younger, we would spend the night at each other’s houses every day. I think our record was a week. We always kept track to see how far we could go without your parents getting too annoyed at us,” Hoover said.
In high school, it was their dream to go to college together. During freshman year, Tabor stayed back in Michigan and did a semester at a community college. He then came to UIndy to study nursing. He also joined the wrestling team.
“I think about Tabor all the time. He really is one of my main sources of motivation. I always wanted to make him proud when he was here, but even more so now. I just think about him every day," Hoover said.
Now, the goals Hoover sets aren’t just for him, but for a best friend who always believed in him.