Does this gentleman look familiar to you? If not, perhaps you should familiarize yourself with him.

His message to the UMB community: “More usage of the gym! Especially the female population outside of the two weeks before spring break!”

So why does he want to see you in the gym? Because he cares about your health. After all, Hasan Bailey is the Health and Fitness Program Manager at the Beacon Fitness Center right here at UMB.

In addition to being full time professional staff at UMB, Bailey is also working on getting his Masters in Business Administration. This semester, he is enrolled in three classes and expects to complete his MA in August of 2006.

Bailey completed his undergraduate degree at UMB in 2001 with a Bachelor of Sciences in the Human Performance and Fitness Program (Exercise Science and Phys/Ed) under the College of Nursing.

Upon completing his BS, Bailey recollected, “Someone had just resigned as the Health and Fitness Specialist so I applied for the position and got it as the interim specialist.” He was eventually hired as full time staff.

“The thing that I like the most about fitness,” told Bailey, “is to watch people reap the benefits of the hard work they put in.” He continued, “If you see somebody who has only been thinking about training but then actually gathers the courage to come in and work on themselves and witness them achieving their goals-it’s a fulfilling feeling.”

Newark, NJ is Bailey’s original home. When he was a sophomore in High School, he and his mother moved up north to Cape Cod. “After going to a diverse city school to a predominantly white suburban school, moving was a huge transition.”

When looking back at his school experience in Newark, Bailey remembered that “teachers would get a bad class where they wouldn’t get any work in from the kids, but they’d pass you anyway because they didn’t want to deal with you.”

His mother “always pushed me to do better, but I was just a creature of my environment and didn’t always push myself as hard as I should have because I wanted to fit in.”

His new environment in the Cape “made it comfortable to succeed in school.” However, most athletes were looked down upon and seen as “the dumb athlete.”

“Most of the guidance counselors didn’t see me as a college prospect,” recalled Bailey.

Bailey expressed that he “always had an interest in sports and sports related activity.” However, it was when his family members grew older and Bailey observed their physical capabilities deteriorate that he implemented fitness into every aspect of his life. As opposed to short term solutions, like surgery, Bailey said he wants to give people “long term solutions and teach them ways to improve their lives, adding longevity-people can improve their lives with a little bit of fitness.”

Little did his guidance counselors know that they had before them an individual who would not only succeed in college, but would go on to get his MA and would further use his knowledge to bring innovation to a highly competitive field.

Today, Bailey is certified through accredited institutions like the American College of Sports Medicine, and the National Strength and Conditioning Association. With his knowledge of business administration, he has the ability to “use what I learn right away” as Beacon Fitness Center manager.

Bailey has now started up his own business as a Personal Trainer where he brings exercise equipment to his client’s doorsteps. “There has been a huge interest in it,” especially in our busy world where people don’t have the time to exercise. “I bring cardiovascular stuff like jump ropes, steps,” Bailey said as he laughed. “I’ve even gone as far as bringing exercise bikes. I try to make it as functional as possible for them.”

When asked what he’d say to his guidance counselors from high school if saw them today, Bailey responded without any bitterness, “I probably wouldn’t say anything to them because I wouldn’t want to stoop to their level.” Furthermore, Bailey acknowledges, “If I didn’t move to the Cape, I seriously don’t know where I’d be today.”

“[His mother] is really proud of me-she doesn’t tell me that much-but she really is.” Bailey then laughed as he remembered, “As soon as I finished my BS, she asked me when I was going back to school!”

Bailey’s business is called Home Made Health and can be looked up on the web at www.homemadehealth.com.