Where Are They Now: Lauren Talbot driven in the classroom and on the field

Lauren Talbot, a 2018 Windham
High School graduate, played
softball as a freshman and field
hockey during her sophomore
year at the University of
Massachusetts Dartmouth.
COURTESY PHOTO

By Matt Pascarella

Positive. Hardworking. Dedicated. Upbeat. These were just some of the words used to describe Lauren Talbot, a current junior at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth and a Windham High School alumna, class of 2018. She is a political science major with a sustainability minor and an international relations concentration.

Talbot was a star on and off the field while at Windham, becoming a member of television station WCSH’s Varsity Club and winning the Bruce Glasier Memorial Scholarship in her senior year. Talbot continued to excel while playing softball her freshman year and field hockey her sophomore year at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth.

In fall and spring 2020, Talbot made the Chancellor’s list by attaining a grade point average of 3.8 or better. It can be very hard to balance school and sports, but for her, school always comes first. She strives to be the best and always do her best.

“The first thing I noted about Lauren is that she is a determined and dedicated athlete,” said University of Massachusetts Dartmouth field hockey Coach Linee Mello-Frost. “She constantly has (a) ... positive attitude from the minute you first see her until she’s leaving. I believe this clearly shows in the way she progressed so quickly on our team in her first season with us and also how well she performs in the classroom.”

Talbot recently found out she has Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). This revelation has been difficult, but it makes her more motivated to be the best student and person she can be.

“I want to prove to myself and others that this does not hinder me from being able to excel as a student and as an individual. It may make life more challenging, but it’s that much sweeter when achieving something like Chancellor’s List,” she said.

Through her first couple years in college, she visited the Student Transition and Achievement Resource Center, which helped students navigate college. Talbot would occasionally help students who came in. She quickly developed a love for helping others navigate college and became a peer mentor.

This semester, as a peer mentor, Talbot is gathering research regarding peer mentorship in colleges and is putting together research on ADHD in college students.

When Talbot looks back on her time at Windham High School, she is most thankful for her softball coaches Travis Demmons and Fred Wilcox. They took the time to support the team and individual players. They were all family in every sense of the word. The connection she had on the field with her teammates is something Talbot misses.

Talbot’s advice for current high school players who may be struggling because of the pandemic is to: manage your time wisely, be open to change and work as hard as possible on and off the field. It’s tough being out of normal routines. Talbot said the most important thing you can do is to prioritize your mental health. She said it’s hard, especially now with online school and being away from friends, but the more you can do things that add to your wellbeing, like physical activity, the better.

After college she would like to get her graduate degree abroad, maybe in the Netherlands, and use her knowledge to help others through teaching, researching and/or working in a non-governmental organization.

Whenever Talbot has downtime, she likes to read, do Pilates, hang out with her parents or friends at school as well as watch Netflix. <