Jun 18, 2010 7:37:23 AM

Former NCAA President Myles Brand has been chosen as the 2010 recipient of the National Federation of State High School Associations Award of Merit.

Brand, who championed academic reform during his seven years as president of the NCAA, died September 16, 2009, after a nine-month battle with pancreatic cancer. His wife, Peg Brand, will accept the Award of Merit on his behalf July 9 during the luncheon at the 91st annual NFHS summer meeting in San Diego.

The Award of Merit, which has been presented to 39 individuals, is one of the highest honors an individual can receive from the NFHS. Previous recipients include Walter Byers, the first NCAA executive director; former President Gerald Ford; and former Major League Baseball Commissioner Bowie Kuhn.

After serving as president of the University of Oregon for five years and Indiana University for eight, Brand began his seven-year tenure as NCAA president in January 2003. Brand was the first academician selected as president of the NCAA and was revered for his ability to stress the educational component of intercollegiate athletics