CU Honors Its Academic Best
April 08, 2022 | General, Herbst Academic Center
Annual awards include 49 who earned 4.0 GPA's in the 2021 calendar year.
BOULDER — Nearly 70 University of Colorado student-athletes, including 49 with perfect 4.00 grade point averages for one or both semesters last year, were honored for a variety of outstanding academic accomplishments Thursday morning at the school's 30th Annual Student-Athlete Academic Recognition.
After two years of the popular event being held virtually on-line due to the COVID pandemic, this year's celebration returned to an in-person event with over 300 in attendance at the Arrow Touchdown Club in the Dal Ward Athletic Center, including university faculty and staff, coaches and student-athletes.
The Clancy A. Herbst, Jr., Student-Athlete Achievement Award were presented to a pair of fifth-year seniors, football player Guy Thomas and women's lacrosse performer Aine Williams, and to junior footballer Jaylen Striker. The award is given to athletes who overcome personal, academic or emotional challenges difficulties to succeed both academically and athletically.
Thomas, who is earning his master's in Organizational Leadership, overcame a challenging childhood to earn his A.A. degree from Coahoma Community College after he first attended the University of Nebraska. But he found a home at CU, where he graduated in December with a bachelor's degree in Sociology.
Williams, a Political Science major who is minoring in Business and Leadership Studies, arrived at CU as a freshman in the fall of 2017, but suffered an illness that forced her to be placed in an induced coma for a month. She had to learn all the simple basics in life all over again, and missed the entire 2018, 2019 and 2020 seasons. But she rallied to play in 12 games in 2021 and in four so far this year, and in the classroom earned her way on to the Dean's List.
Striker, an Ethnic Studies major, has had ups and downs in his journey in Boulder, in his sport, including surgery, and in his studies, but has shown resolve and has never given up. When he first started at CU, like many he didn't think he needed or wanted any academic help, but now he fully embraces all of the academic support that is offered to him. He has persevered and shown great effort and determination to finish what he started and will earn his degree this year.
Four students were presented with the Morgan Family Buff Club Scholar-Athlete Award, as the recipients include a member of the sophomore and junior classes and male and female members from the senior class who have accumulated the highest cumulative grade point average in their respective class (and are awarded by academic year, not eligibility class). The winners were:
After two years of the popular event being held virtually on-line due to the COVID pandemic, this year's celebration returned to an in-person event with over 300 in attendance at the Arrow Touchdown Club in the Dal Ward Athletic Center, including university faculty and staff, coaches and student-athletes.
The Clancy A. Herbst, Jr., Student-Athlete Achievement Award were presented to a pair of fifth-year seniors, football player Guy Thomas and women's lacrosse performer Aine Williams, and to junior footballer Jaylen Striker. The award is given to athletes who overcome personal, academic or emotional challenges difficulties to succeed both academically and athletically.
Thomas, who is earning his master's in Organizational Leadership, overcame a challenging childhood to earn his A.A. degree from Coahoma Community College after he first attended the University of Nebraska. But he found a home at CU, where he graduated in December with a bachelor's degree in Sociology.
Williams, a Political Science major who is minoring in Business and Leadership Studies, arrived at CU as a freshman in the fall of 2017, but suffered an illness that forced her to be placed in an induced coma for a month. She had to learn all the simple basics in life all over again, and missed the entire 2018, 2019 and 2020 seasons. But she rallied to play in 12 games in 2021 and in four so far this year, and in the classroom earned her way on to the Dean's List.
Striker, an Ethnic Studies major, has had ups and downs in his journey in Boulder, in his sport, including surgery, and in his studies, but has shown resolve and has never given up. When he first started at CU, like many he didn't think he needed or wanted any academic help, but now he fully embraces all of the academic support that is offered to him. He has persevered and shown great effort and determination to finish what he started and will earn his degree this year.
Four students were presented with the Morgan Family Buff Club Scholar-Athlete Award, as the recipients include a member of the sophomore and junior classes and male and female members from the senior class who have accumulated the highest cumulative grade point average in their respective class (and are awarded by academic year, not eligibility class). The winners were:
- Hannah Cardenas, Sr., Soccer (3.950 GPA, Integrative Physiology and Psychology majors)
- Skyler Kelsey, Sr., Alpine Skiing (3.888 GPA, Political Science and Media Production majors)
- Alisa Meraz-Fishbein, Jr, Cross County & Track (3.988 GPA, Journalism major, Business and Creative Writing minors)
- Frida Formann, Soph., Women's Basketball (4.0 GPA, Environmental Studies major)
Meraz-Fishbein was also the recipient for her sophomore year.
Academic team winners for grade point average were the women's cross country team for the ninth straight year (and 18th time in 30 years) for a sport with its championship normally in the fall semester (3.484) and the men's ski team, winning for the first time since 2017, for those who compete in the spring semester (3.536). The men's cross country team was honored for the most improved honor, as its cumulative GPA rose an impressive .203 (from 3.013 after the fall of 2020 to 3.216 through last fall), one of the highest increases since the award was created.
There were five recipients of the Byron R. White Leadership and Initiative Award, named for CU's legendary football All-American, Rhodes Scholar and U.S. Supreme Court Justice. It is awarded annually to those student-athletes who have exhibited outstanding initiative and demonstrate a strong commitment to service to the CU and Boulder communities. Recognized this year were two seniors Hannah Sharts (soccer, earning her master's in Organizational Leadership) and Josh Torres (cross country and track; he is an Integrative Physiology major), along with two-time recipient, junior Taylor deProsse (volleyball, majoring in Integrative Physiology and a minoring in Business); and sophomores Montana Lemonious-Craig (football, as Communication major and Sports Media minor) and Jaylyn Sherrod (women's basketball, a Sociology major and Philosophy minor).
The grade point average for the recently completed fall 2021 semester for 385 CU student-athletes was 3.117, the second-best fall semester GPA on record. That helped to boost the cumulative grade point average to 3.110, the fourth straight semester above a 3.0. And also for the fourth straight semester, 13 of CU's 15 programs (indoor and outdoor track count as one) owned cumulative GPA's of 3.0 or higher. The academic staff started charting these numbers in the spring of 1996.
Of the 385 student-athletes overall, 238 athletes came in at 3.0 or better and overall (62 percent) with 80 percent (309) logged in at 2.5 or higher. Cumulatively speaking, the second-highest percentage was recorded for those with grade points of 3.5-plus (119, or 31 percent) and the third-highest for those at the 3.0 level (236, 61 percent) and for those at 2.5 or better (324, or 84 percent). It marked the 15th straight semester dating back to the fall '14 term for the grade point to exceed 2.9 (which had happened just once prior). The men's track and field team members recorded their best grade point for a semester, spring or fall, with a 3.111 mark; three other teams logged their best-ever averages for a fall term: men's cross country (3.354), men's golf (3.194) and football (2.833).
Four claimed this year's Most Improved Student-Athlete Awards: Brendon Lewis (football; a sophomore majoring in Psychology with a minor in Communication), Charlotte Whittaker (women's basketball; a junior Sociology major who earned a 4.0 GPA award); Alex Fontenot (football, who graduated with a degree in Sociology with a minor in Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences and Geology and is now earning his master's in Outdoor Recreation & Economy) and Wyatt Gebhardt (skiing, a senior in Environmental Studies and minor in Geography).
The Student Support Services Academic Award was presented to Ben Altschuler, a senior Political Science and Business Management major who worked the last four years for the department's fueling station, located in the Crawford Club in the Champions Center. He received a resounding round of applause from the athletes who recognized his hard work to help fill their nutritional needs. This award is presented to a student worker or volunteer who maintains a 3.0 GPA while demonstrating strong commitment and leadership to CU athletics.
The 49 student-athletes who posted 4.0 grade point averages had some very impressive majors; many were already taking graduate courses and several also had minors, and in some cases, multiple minors and certificates. Here's the roll call of the 49 who had 4.0 semesters for either the Fall or Spring '21 terms, listed by sport; their majors and minors follow:
Women's Basketball
Frida Formann, Environmental Studies
Kindyll Wetta, Exploratory Studies
Charlotte Whittaker, Sociology
Cross Country/Track & Field
Karina Andersen, Mechanical Engineering
Hunter Appleton, Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
Jace Aschbrenner, Mechanical Engineering
Kaitlyn Barthell, Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
Davis Butte, Mechanical Engineering
Micaela Degenero, Master's in Technology, Cybersecurity and Policy
Brendan Fraser, Master's in Organizational Leadership
Sage Hurta, Chemical & Biological Engineering (minor: Statistics; certificate: Public Health)
Aaron McCoy, Master's in Strategic Communication Design
Alisa Meraz-Fishbein, Journalism (minors: Business and Creative Writing)
Abby Nichols, Master's in Organizational Leadership
Gabrielle Orie, Master's in Integrative Physiology
Caleb Penner, Master's in Applied Mathematics
Charlie Robertson, Integrative Physiology
Ronald Sayles, Master's in Telecommunications
Paxton Smith, Master's in Educational Foundations, Policy & Practice
Charlie Sweeney, Master's in Organizational Leadership
Charlie Welch, majors in Psychology and Neuroscience (minors: Philosophy and Business)
Valerie Welch, Mechanical Engineering with minor in Creative Technology & Design
Dom Williams, Master's in Organizational Leadership
Football
Camden Dempsey, Finance (minor: Leadership Studies)
Matthew Lynch, Master's in Organizational Leadership
Geno Macias, Management
Lacrosse
Eliza Cahill, Finance (minor: Political Science; certificate: Global Business)
Zoe Lawless, Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
Samantha Mcgee, Master's in Organizational Leadership
Charlie Rudy, Strategic Communication (minor: Information Studies)
Skiing
Max Bervy III, Psychology
Isabelle Fidjeland, Master's in Strategic Communication Design
Stef Fleckenstein, Communication (minors: Education and Sports Media)
Øyvind Haugan, Finance
Ryan Jackson, Geography (minors: Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, Education, Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages)
Will Koch, Psychology (minor: Philosophy)
Joey Young, Master's in Finance
Soccer
Hannah Cardenas, Integrative Physiology and Psychology
Gabbi Chapa, Master's in Organizational Leadership
Libby Geraghty, Master's in Integrative Physiology
Filippa Graneld, Environmental Studies and Economics
Holly Hunter, Political Science
Emma Miller, Journalism (minors: Ethnic Studies, Leadership Studies, and Sports Media; certificate: Critical Sport Studies)
Jayden Newkirk, Integrative Physiology
Hannah Sharts, Master's in Organizational Leadership
Sofia Weiner, Master's in Organizational Leadership
Tennis
Caroline Pozo, Master's in Strategic Communication Design
Volleyball
Sterling Parker, Psychology (minors: Sociology and Sports Media; certificate: Critical Sport Studies)
Morgan Riddle, Integrative Physiology
Cardenas was honored for a fifth consecutive year: third-time honorees included Appleton and Sharts.
Ky Ecton, a senior on the women's tennis team and a Mechanical Engineering major (and Biomedical Engineering minor) scheduled to graduate in May who is lettering for the fourth time this spring, closed the event by speaking on behalf of the senior class. The transcript of the bulk of her speech that echoed what most of her peers experienced included:
"These past four years have not been easy, from getting thrown into engineering classes my freshman year, to classes being moved online and moving home sophomore year, unsure of what the future held. Then competing and getting an education during a pandemic over the past two y ears, I've learned a lot. I've learned that athletics has prepared me for life after college. I know how to be resilient when there are challenges, how to balance my time, find solutions to problems, speak up, and most important, be a leader. I've learned that tennis and academics are very similar: not every player or math problem I encounter are the same. I need to give 100 percent every day and never give up. I need to be open-minded and use all the tools that I have in order to be successful.
"The Herbst (Academic Center staff) has been a big part of building these tools off the court. From having a tutor whenever I needed, the space to study with peers and ask questions, to the support of my academic advisor. I knew I was never alone. I've learned to lean on the people around me, my peers, my teammates, my coaches, my mentors, all the Herbst staff. I know I had a very hard time during the pandemic, from trying to learn over Zoom, balancing my time, to losing a season. It was not easy, but it made the comeback even sweeter.
"The drives to the airport, the early morning lifts and practices, the ranked wins, the heartbreaking losses, the laughs over lunch at Champs (the Champions Center), the long days where you feel you have nothing left in the tank, and the unbelievable trips and places we are lucky enough to go. I've learned it surely isn't always going to be pretty or easy, but to always cherish and enjoy every moment. Being able to compete for my home state, in the conference of champions, has been a dream come true. I could not have asked for a better place to spend the last four years. I will bleed black and gold my whole life, and I am so proud to be a Buff. Congratulations to all the graduates and all student-athletes for their accomplishments. As always, 'sko Buffs!"
Academic team winners for grade point average were the women's cross country team for the ninth straight year (and 18th time in 30 years) for a sport with its championship normally in the fall semester (3.484) and the men's ski team, winning for the first time since 2017, for those who compete in the spring semester (3.536). The men's cross country team was honored for the most improved honor, as its cumulative GPA rose an impressive .203 (from 3.013 after the fall of 2020 to 3.216 through last fall), one of the highest increases since the award was created.
There were five recipients of the Byron R. White Leadership and Initiative Award, named for CU's legendary football All-American, Rhodes Scholar and U.S. Supreme Court Justice. It is awarded annually to those student-athletes who have exhibited outstanding initiative and demonstrate a strong commitment to service to the CU and Boulder communities. Recognized this year were two seniors Hannah Sharts (soccer, earning her master's in Organizational Leadership) and Josh Torres (cross country and track; he is an Integrative Physiology major), along with two-time recipient, junior Taylor deProsse (volleyball, majoring in Integrative Physiology and a minoring in Business); and sophomores Montana Lemonious-Craig (football, as Communication major and Sports Media minor) and Jaylyn Sherrod (women's basketball, a Sociology major and Philosophy minor).
The grade point average for the recently completed fall 2021 semester for 385 CU student-athletes was 3.117, the second-best fall semester GPA on record. That helped to boost the cumulative grade point average to 3.110, the fourth straight semester above a 3.0. And also for the fourth straight semester, 13 of CU's 15 programs (indoor and outdoor track count as one) owned cumulative GPA's of 3.0 or higher. The academic staff started charting these numbers in the spring of 1996.
Of the 385 student-athletes overall, 238 athletes came in at 3.0 or better and overall (62 percent) with 80 percent (309) logged in at 2.5 or higher. Cumulatively speaking, the second-highest percentage was recorded for those with grade points of 3.5-plus (119, or 31 percent) and the third-highest for those at the 3.0 level (236, 61 percent) and for those at 2.5 or better (324, or 84 percent). It marked the 15th straight semester dating back to the fall '14 term for the grade point to exceed 2.9 (which had happened just once prior). The men's track and field team members recorded their best grade point for a semester, spring or fall, with a 3.111 mark; three other teams logged their best-ever averages for a fall term: men's cross country (3.354), men's golf (3.194) and football (2.833).
Four claimed this year's Most Improved Student-Athlete Awards: Brendon Lewis (football; a sophomore majoring in Psychology with a minor in Communication), Charlotte Whittaker (women's basketball; a junior Sociology major who earned a 4.0 GPA award); Alex Fontenot (football, who graduated with a degree in Sociology with a minor in Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences and Geology and is now earning his master's in Outdoor Recreation & Economy) and Wyatt Gebhardt (skiing, a senior in Environmental Studies and minor in Geography).
The Student Support Services Academic Award was presented to Ben Altschuler, a senior Political Science and Business Management major who worked the last four years for the department's fueling station, located in the Crawford Club in the Champions Center. He received a resounding round of applause from the athletes who recognized his hard work to help fill their nutritional needs. This award is presented to a student worker or volunteer who maintains a 3.0 GPA while demonstrating strong commitment and leadership to CU athletics.
The 49 student-athletes who posted 4.0 grade point averages had some very impressive majors; many were already taking graduate courses and several also had minors, and in some cases, multiple minors and certificates. Here's the roll call of the 49 who had 4.0 semesters for either the Fall or Spring '21 terms, listed by sport; their majors and minors follow:
Women's Basketball
Frida Formann, Environmental Studies
Kindyll Wetta, Exploratory Studies
Charlotte Whittaker, Sociology
Cross Country/Track & Field
Karina Andersen, Mechanical Engineering
Hunter Appleton, Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
Jace Aschbrenner, Mechanical Engineering
Kaitlyn Barthell, Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
Davis Butte, Mechanical Engineering
Micaela Degenero, Master's in Technology, Cybersecurity and Policy
Brendan Fraser, Master's in Organizational Leadership
Sage Hurta, Chemical & Biological Engineering (minor: Statistics; certificate: Public Health)
Aaron McCoy, Master's in Strategic Communication Design
Alisa Meraz-Fishbein, Journalism (minors: Business and Creative Writing)
Abby Nichols, Master's in Organizational Leadership
Gabrielle Orie, Master's in Integrative Physiology
Caleb Penner, Master's in Applied Mathematics
Charlie Robertson, Integrative Physiology
Ronald Sayles, Master's in Telecommunications
Paxton Smith, Master's in Educational Foundations, Policy & Practice
Charlie Sweeney, Master's in Organizational Leadership
Charlie Welch, majors in Psychology and Neuroscience (minors: Philosophy and Business)
Valerie Welch, Mechanical Engineering with minor in Creative Technology & Design
Dom Williams, Master's in Organizational Leadership
Football
Camden Dempsey, Finance (minor: Leadership Studies)
Matthew Lynch, Master's in Organizational Leadership
Geno Macias, Management
Lacrosse
Eliza Cahill, Finance (minor: Political Science; certificate: Global Business)
Zoe Lawless, Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
Samantha Mcgee, Master's in Organizational Leadership
Charlie Rudy, Strategic Communication (minor: Information Studies)
Skiing
Max Bervy III, Psychology
Isabelle Fidjeland, Master's in Strategic Communication Design
Stef Fleckenstein, Communication (minors: Education and Sports Media)
Øyvind Haugan, Finance
Ryan Jackson, Geography (minors: Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, Education, Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages)
Will Koch, Psychology (minor: Philosophy)
Joey Young, Master's in Finance
Soccer
Hannah Cardenas, Integrative Physiology and Psychology
Gabbi Chapa, Master's in Organizational Leadership
Libby Geraghty, Master's in Integrative Physiology
Filippa Graneld, Environmental Studies and Economics
Holly Hunter, Political Science
Emma Miller, Journalism (minors: Ethnic Studies, Leadership Studies, and Sports Media; certificate: Critical Sport Studies)
Jayden Newkirk, Integrative Physiology
Hannah Sharts, Master's in Organizational Leadership
Sofia Weiner, Master's in Organizational Leadership
Tennis
Caroline Pozo, Master's in Strategic Communication Design
Volleyball
Sterling Parker, Psychology (minors: Sociology and Sports Media; certificate: Critical Sport Studies)
Morgan Riddle, Integrative Physiology
Cardenas was honored for a fifth consecutive year: third-time honorees included Appleton and Sharts.
Ky Ecton, a senior on the women's tennis team and a Mechanical Engineering major (and Biomedical Engineering minor) scheduled to graduate in May who is lettering for the fourth time this spring, closed the event by speaking on behalf of the senior class. The transcript of the bulk of her speech that echoed what most of her peers experienced included:
"These past four years have not been easy, from getting thrown into engineering classes my freshman year, to classes being moved online and moving home sophomore year, unsure of what the future held. Then competing and getting an education during a pandemic over the past two y ears, I've learned a lot. I've learned that athletics has prepared me for life after college. I know how to be resilient when there are challenges, how to balance my time, find solutions to problems, speak up, and most important, be a leader. I've learned that tennis and academics are very similar: not every player or math problem I encounter are the same. I need to give 100 percent every day and never give up. I need to be open-minded and use all the tools that I have in order to be successful.
"The Herbst (Academic Center staff) has been a big part of building these tools off the court. From having a tutor whenever I needed, the space to study with peers and ask questions, to the support of my academic advisor. I knew I was never alone. I've learned to lean on the people around me, my peers, my teammates, my coaches, my mentors, all the Herbst staff. I know I had a very hard time during the pandemic, from trying to learn over Zoom, balancing my time, to losing a season. It was not easy, but it made the comeback even sweeter.
"The drives to the airport, the early morning lifts and practices, the ranked wins, the heartbreaking losses, the laughs over lunch at Champs (the Champions Center), the long days where you feel you have nothing left in the tank, and the unbelievable trips and places we are lucky enough to go. I've learned it surely isn't always going to be pretty or easy, but to always cherish and enjoy every moment. Being able to compete for my home state, in the conference of champions, has been a dream come true. I could not have asked for a better place to spend the last four years. I will bleed black and gold my whole life, and I am so proud to be a Buff. Congratulations to all the graduates and all student-athletes for their accomplishments. As always, 'sko Buffs!"