Ghaith Taha’s life has been about the journeys.
The long one he took from his home country of Jordan to the United States when he was young, traveling with his triplet younger siblings and mother in search of a brighter future.
“The best decision we ever made,” Taha said.
The one from Virginia to Lincoln to play sports and get an education at Nebraska Wesleyan, a place he didn’t know existed until he started excelling in track and football field as a teenager.
And the one he’s taken in his time at NWU, culminating this spring in a data analytics degree.
“When people ask ‘Why here?’ I know why. It’s because there are great people here. It’s a great community. People care for you,” Taha said. “You’re not just a student-athlete or just an athlete. You’re a person here, and that’s something I really appreciate.”
To be certain, Taha is a standout athlete, in two sports. He’s excelled as a receiver and kick returner on NWU’s football team and has hopes of playing at the Football Championship Subdivision level next season as a graduate transfer.
On the track he might be the fastest Prairie Wolf on campus, ranking second on NWU’s all-time indoor charts in the 60 meters and earning all-region honors this spring.
But for Taha, who speaks Arabic and English fluently, a full college experience has always been the goal. And he’s made it a point to get invested in classes outside his major.
There have been sociology classes. Health classes. History of Art Museums. And last semester, perhaps the most impactful course: Give to Learn, in which Taha and his classmates researched and worked with local nonprofits before awarding a $10,000 grant to Lincoln’s Good Neighbor Community Center.
Taha served as the unofficial spokesperson for the class during the grant ceremony.
“I’ve just tried to get out of my shell. Put myself in a position where I’ve got to learn, and I’ve got to do more,” Taha said. “Maybe I’ve got to write 20-page papers. But the thing is, I’m going to find a way to get that done, and I’m going to find a way to do it well.”
The motivation to do as much as he can at NWU comes from his mother, who raised him and his siblings on her own in the Washington, D.C., area while adjusting to a new country and a new way of life, and attending her own college classes.
“She managed so much, and that means there’s no excuse for me not to learn more; because seeing her do it makes me want to keep going,” Taha said. “She was getting up in the morning, making sure all of us were ready for school, coming back, having a meal cooked at night. Just so much.
“That means I can’t slack off one day. That’s just the respect I have for her, and the work ethic she instilled in me.”
The journey continues. Full speed ahead.