Upmeyer has been lifting since the fifth grade and is currently training to qualify for a team composed of the top 10 men ages 18 to 21 in the U.S.
George Upmeyer
Not attending college
George Upmeyer, senior, is not going to college. Instead, he has decided to continue lifting, practice woodworking and shadow real estate agents.
“I hate school,” Upmeyer said. “I can’t stand it, so I figured I would get experience doing something hands-on. If I don’t like that, then I’ll find another career path or I might go to college later. But, as of now, I’m not going to college.”
I hate school. I can’t stand it, so I figured I would get experience doing something hands-on. If I don’t like that, then I’ll find another career path or I might go to college later. — George Upmeyer
Upmeyer has been lifting since the fifth grade and is currently training to qualify for a team composed of the top 10 men ages 18 to 21 in the U.S. The team will go and compete in an international competition, which Upmeyer said is his ultimate goal.
“Right now I’m trying to qualify for a world team,” Upmeyer said. “That’s one step down from the Olympics. A normal day [of training] will consist of one of my Olympic lifts, two strength accessories and other accessories that work on my back muscles. The entire goal is to build up my snatch and clean jerk, which are my two Olympic lifts.”
Adam Bauer, senior, has been friends with Upmeyer since first grade and used to lift together with him. He said Upmeyer had to train hard to get to the level he is at today due to a back injury he had a few years ago.
“He was really good and then lost everything because he couldn’t lift for a year,” Bauer said. “Now he’s training to get on a worlds team and go [compete] internationally. It’s crazy.”
The duo attend St. Louis Center for Advanced Professional Studies (CAPS) together on the business and professional studies track, carpooling often. Their CAPS teacher, Mallori Green, said the program’s goal is to take a student and expose them to the life of a professional through job shadowing meetings, network events and internships. Green said she has been helping Upmeyer explore his options in both real estate or turning his woodworking hobby into a business model. She said employers are now hiring based off of skill certification more than they are a college degree.
“College is not the difference maker, it’s the person and how they apply professional skills,” Green said. “Now that it has become easier for everyone to get into college, it is diminishing the value of a degree to employers.”