For Matthew, Tomorrow Doesn't Wait—He's Diving Right In
SALISBURY, MD---Step into Salisbury University’s Medical Simulation Center, and you’ll find Matthew Trickle already at work: gloves on, focused, practicing the skills he’ll need in a real hospital someday.
Matthew didn’t come to SU to wait his turn. He never wanted to sit in a classroom or spend hours in his dorm pouring over textbooks. He wanted to get hands-on with his future right away. From his first semester as a nursing major, he’s been gaining experience that makes him feel as if his future is already here.
Nothing could be more exciting.
“The technology here is amazing,” Matthew said. “Even in my lower-level classes I’ve had so much hands-on learning. I felt like I could get right into it.”
That spark ignited before classes even began. As soon as he toured the Sim Center on campus, knew he’d found the right fit. It was the moment everything clicked.
For Matthew, SU feels like a place built for curiosity. From high-tech nursing labs to immersive simulations, he’s had the chance to explore, practice, and learn by doing from the very beginning—opportunities students at other universities may not get until their junior year.
“Here, you don’t have to wait to get started,” he said. “You just go for it,”
When he’s not in the labs, you’ll probably find him studying in the library—“which is DOPE,” he added with a grin. Or he might be outside hanging in a hammock, enjoying the beauty of campus, headphones on, cycling through R&B, rap, country, and Post Malone. Other nights, he’s out with friends or at another campus event: bingo, paint nights, roller skating, comedy shows, hypnotists, and concerts.
He’s also a tour guide, an RA, in the Student Nurses Association, part of Honors, and active in community service. He loves talking with students and families and helping them picture themselves at SU: pointing out student research on display, art exhibits curated by peers, and the endless ways to plug in.
“There’s seriously so much opportunity here,” he said. “SU really is a students’ playground.”
Matthew is proud of all the people he’s met and the connections he’s made. Walking across campus, he might wave to half a dozen people who know his name and believe in his dream. Only after he sees how fully he’s immersed in his experiences as a student does his “why” come into focus.
“I love health sciences,” he said. “I had health issues as a kid, and I want to pay it back. As a nurse, I’ll be able to work with people from all different backgrounds.”
That purpose, meeting people where they are and helping them through, pushes him to keep sharpening his skills and believing in his future as if it’s already here.
For Matthew, tomorrow isn’t abstract. It looks like a checklist on a whiteboard, a steady pulse on a monitor, a patient who feels seen. It sounds like laughter at a campus event and the quiet focus of a late night at the library. It feels like stepping into a room ready to help.
He’s not waiting for the future to arrive. He’s building it every day. And at SU, he’s already exactly where he wants to be.