You may know him from last year’s campaign to get a homeless couple off of the streets, you might recognize him from this year’s efforts to land an internship at the Ellen Show, or maybe you’ve just seeing his bubbly-self cheering along at football games and other sporting events around campus! Who is he? Mike Funkhouser, a sophomore Communications major, passionate about giving back and moving forward. Her Campus sat down with Mike to learn more about who he is and where he’s going.
Her Campus: What makes you tick?
Mike Funkhouser: I love this question only because I love trying to figure what makes people tick when I talk to them. I try and learn something from everyone I meet. Some people teach me to love in a different way; some people teach me to be more patient. Sometimes people teach me to be more careful. I try to grow and to learn everyday, and I think that’s really what makes me tick.
HC: So you used to play football in high school, how did you transition from that to Cheerleading and making videos?
MF: When I was in 6th grade I took a picture and my grandma told me, “You should take pictures for money this is so good!” After football I decided to take her advice, and I bought a new camera and a computer with the profit I got from that. I was asked to be a keynote speaker at an event, and it didn’t fit with my schedule, so I sent them a video of me speaking instead. I thought it was kind of fun and it’s grown from there. As for cheer? When I was playing football I would do toe-touches with the cheerleaders when I wasn’t on the field, and I would grab their pom poms and try and dance with them. I like to make people smile. I guess you could say the transition wasn’t too hard.
HC: What’s it like going from barely being able to do a handstand to being on the University of Michigan Cheer Team?
MF: I remember doing handstands in the hallway of Alice Lloyd trying to prepare for the tryout. I was so nervous. Now I can do a back tuck and a back handspring. If you asked me 4 years ago if I would ever be able to do a back handspring, I would have laughed. It just goes to show, you have to keep dreaming big, and if you underestimate yourself, you’re going to cut yourself short.
HC: Your latest goal is to be an intern for Ellen, what makes you qualified? Why do you want to work for her?
MF: I want to work for Ellen because I’ll never have to explain to her why I want to help someone, I’ll just have to explain how. I can’t say I’m qualified to work for the Ellen show, I don’t know a whole lot about Hollywood or how the TV industry works. I can say that I wasn’t exactly qualified to do anything else I’ve done either, though. I just work really hard and I don’t give up until the job is done.
HC: Is there anything you’re scared to try?
MF: I’m not sure I can say I’m afraid to try anything. Life would be really boring if we didn’t go after our dreams.
HC: Now for some fun stuff: perfect date?
MF: I would love to go on an adventure. Try out a new restaurant or go people watching and create stories for everyone that passes. So many of my conversations these days have to do with school or homework. I’d love to just sit and hear about that embarrassing moment in kindergarten and what your dream job would be. Ice cream wouldn’t hurt either.
HC: What would you want to tell yourself in 10 years?
MF: I’d want to tell my future self to never lose sight of who you are. If you’ve lost the enthusiasm, find it. If you’ve forgotten why you started, remember. If you’ve stopped dreaming, dream again.