Montco Native, Student-Athlete, Thriving At UC Berkley

LAFAYETTE HILL, PA — A Montgomery County native and current Division 1 student-athlete is making big strides on the other side of the country.

Reece Whitley, a 2018 Penn Charter graduate who was raised in Lafayette Hill, is now swimming for UC Berkley. He was recently named scholar-athlete of the week by the university.

Berkley's Athletic Student Center released an announcement pointing to Whitley's record of “cultivating accountability for diversity, inclusivity, and advocacy within and outside the Cal community."

Whitley has been prominent on the national swimming scene since he began breaking records at age 12. He was named "SportsKid of the Year" by Sports Illustrated in 2015, and has been a vocal advocate for Black swimmers during his time at Berkley.

He then finished as a semifinalist in the 2016 Olympic Trials, and went on to break the Pac-12 championship record in the 200-meter breaststroke at Berkley. He wrote an article on Berkley's website last summer reacting to George Floyd's death and the turmoil across the nation. Specifically, he was reacting to the way the swimming world, which was such a crucial part of his life, handled the crisis.

"In the wake of a neutral statement from USA Swimming regarding George Floyd's death, I found myself in a very low place emotionally," he wrote. "As a Black man with passion in a sport that is roughly 1.5% Black, it's safe to say that I felt isolated. To read a statement that lacked even the word 'black' brought me deep disappointment. Seeing others show neutrality in the face of injustice made me feel neglected. To me, it seemed that the organization I've worked hard to represent was not acknowledging the Black perspective. In doing so, it additionally refused to see the stories of my people about our experiences with outright and implicit racism. Was the organization truly indifferent to my experiences, or did it just miss the point?"

Berkley's Athletic Study Center praised Whitley for standing up to make his voice heard.

"He has leaned on actively sharing his own lived experiences, while simultaneously listening to various voices and perspectives,” the Center said. “His dedication to empowering others via social change is truly inspiring."

He will compete this June in the trials in an attempt to qualify for the 2021 Tokyo Games.