National Collegiate Athletic Association

NCAA News Archive - 2010

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May 27, 2010 8:51:32 AM

Bridget McKee, a water polo student-athlete who will graduate from San Jose State on Saturday, will be recognized as one of the institution's two Outstanding Graduating Seniors in the class of 2010. The award honors McKee for her academic achievements and contributions to the community.

McKee, who will graduate with honors in anthropology, consistently posted one of the top-five student-athlete grade-point averages throughout her career with the Spartans. She received university, conference and national honors for her achievements in the classroom while earning a top-three placement on the university's all-time scoring list.

"Student-athletes have a unique role in the university," said McKee. "Everyone who goes to school represents the university. We do so in a bigger way, a more public way. When we go places and do things, we are representatives of the university. Everyone takes on that role with a lot of pride."

McKee has a passion for reading, especially Native American mysteries and North American and Central American Indian tribal mythology. She has shared her love of reading with local elementary school students.

After graduation, McKee will travel to Belize to investigate the Mayan remains through a UCLA archeology field program. After the field program, McKee will spend 27 months in the Peace Corps, possibly in Central America.

Towson honors fallen Virginia student-athlete: Two weeks after Virginia women's lacrosse student-athlete Yeardley Love was found dead in her off-campus apartment, her teammates took the field in the opening round of the Division I Women's Lacrosse Championship, besting Towson, 14-12.

The Virginia student-athletes wore black patches on their jerseys with the word "Love" in white. They paid tribute to their fallen teammate by holding up her jersey number after their victory.

The Towson student-athletes paid tribute to Love as well. They all wore orange wristbands with Love's initials in blue (Virginia school colors). At the end of the game, the Towson players gave the Virginia players pins of an angel holding a lacrosse stick.

"It was hard coming in here knowing that everyone was kind of rooting against us, and I think in respect to the Virginia team, it was our duty to play as hard as we could against them," Towson senior Jacie Kendall told reporters after the game. "That's what everyone would have wanted, and on the field, that's where all that drama goes away. I think it was our job to give them a really good game, and we definitely did that."

MAC hosts diversity and inclusion forum: The Mid American Conference hosted a Diversity and Inclusion Intercollegiate Forum in Cleveland May 22-23 to raise awareness of the need for diversity and inclusion in athletics. The event was aimed at helping member institutions improve diversity and share concerns and best practices.

The forum featured George Cunningham, associate professor of sport management at Ohio State and author of a textbook on diversity in sports; Pat Griffin, former director of the "It Takes A Team!" education campaign for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender issues in sport (part of the Women's Sports Foundation); and Jenny Withycombe, a provider of the NCAA's advanced diversity education workshops.

Ashley Baker, interim director of student-athlete services at Bowling Green, said her campus is paying major attention to diversity and inclusion.

"There were a lot of great ideas," Baker said. "The presenters have been awesome. giving specific ideas and specific plans that we can take back as administrators and say here, as a staff, here is how we are going to educate ourselves, here are polices that we can implement and teach our student-athletes."

Eastern Washington renames field for former player: Eastern Washington will rename Woodward Field for donors Michael and Katherine Roos. The Roos gave $500,000 to help install red synthetic turf on the football field.

The field will be renamed "Roos Field" this fall. Officials expect the turf installation project to get underway this summer after fund-raising is complete.

Michael Roos plays left offensive tackle for the Tennessee Titans and holds degrees in finance and economics from Eastern Washington.

The field had been named for Arthur C. Woodward, head coach at Eastern in 1927-28. He headed the school's physical education department from 1927-1950, and the field was named in his honor in 1937. A plaque commemorating Woodward Field will be placed on the wall of the donor suites and media center at the stadium.

"We are thrilled to be able to acknowledge in this manner the incredible contributions Michael and Katherine have made to Eastern Washington University," said Athletics Director Bill Chaves. "We felt this was the most appropriate honor we could give them, but at the same time, we regard highly the legacy left by Mr. Woodward. Regardless of the name change, we will permanently remember the Woodward family at our stadium."

Holy Cross senior earns Fulbright award: Holy Cross track and field student-athlete Olivia Pruszko received a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship to Bulgaria. Pruszko will teach English at English Language High School in Dobrich, Bulgaria.

Pruszko holds four individual Holy Cross school records and one relay record and is a three-time member of the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll. A first-generation American and Spanish major, Pruszko has long held an interest in language and education. Her parents emigrated from Poland before she was born and Polish was her first language.

In addition to her work on the track and in the classroom, Pruszko also tutors middle-school and elementary school students and served as a fall orientation leader for incoming freshmen and transfer students. She plans to complete a graduate degree in education and Spanish, with a goal of working in education administration.

Pruszko is one of about 1,000 college students awarded grants through the Fulbright program annually. The program is an international educational exchange sponsored by the U.S. government. Students are chosen to observe other political, economic and cultural institutions after demonstrating their leadership potential.