NCAA Winter Postgraduate Scholarship Winners |
Atlantic 10 Postgraduate Scholarship Release
Bronx, N.Y. - Fordham University swimmer
Steve Sholdra was recognized this week for his exploits both in the pool and in the classroom as he was awarded not one but two postgraduate scholarships.
The first award for Sholdra was the prestigious NCAA Postgraduate Award for winter sports. He was one of 29 men to receive the honor. Additionally, Sholdra was named one of 14 recipients of the annual A-10 Postgraduate Scholarship.
Sholdra, the Atlantic 10 Conference record holder in the 200-yard butterfly, holds the school record in all distance freestyle events and the 200-yard butterfly and 400-yard IM. A three-time First Team All-Conference member, he was an AT&T Winter Nationals Finalist in the 200-yard butterfly. As a freshman, he earned A-10 Rookie Performer of the Week honors a conference record seven times. Sholdra was a three-time Academic All-Conference Team member and seven-time Commissioner's Honor Roll recipient. A four-year University Dean's List student, he was awarded the 2015-16 Breakfast of Champions Highest Academic Award for Swimming. He also was a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society, Alpha Sigma Nu Honor Society and Sigma Iota Rhu Honor Society. Sholdra was a member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and was a driving force behind the "It's On Us" campaign in the A-10. Among his many volunteer activities are tutoring physics and statistics and being a BronxWorks Swim Instructor. He also was a member of the Fordham Leadership Academy and the Arabic Club, where he served as Vice President. Sholdra also served as the USA Swimming Athlete Convention Chair and was a speaker at the A-10 Presidents Council and Athletic Directors Joint Meeting.
Earlier this month, Sholdra, who graduated on May 21 with an International Political Economy and Middle Eastern Studies degree (with minors in Arabic and Marketing), was named recipient of the 2016 Kieran Award, presented to the Fordham College senior athlete who has made significant academic and athletic contributions. The award honors the memory of John Kieran, Fordham College Class of 1912, and a famous radio broadcaster, sports editor of the New York Times and a member of Baseball's Hall of Fame.
The NCAA awards up to 174 postgraduate scholarships annually. The scholarships are awarded to student-athletes who excel academically and athletically and who are at least in their final year of intercollegiate athletics competition.
The one-time non-renewable scholarships of $7,500 are awarded three times a year corresponding to each sport season (fall, winter and spring). Each sports season there are 29 scholarships available for men and 29 scholarships available for women for use in an accredited graduate program.
Designed to provide graduating student-athletes the opportunity to continue their college education, the Atlantic 10 Postgraduate Scholarship program awards $70,000 in scholarship funding to former A-10 student-athletes. All 14 honorees will receive $5,000 to contribute towards full-time enrollment in a graduate or professional program.
"This is one of the most prestigious honors the A-10 bestows," stated A-10 Commissioner Bernadette V. McGlade. Providing this opportunity to student-athletes who are dedicated to their academic and athletic success is an important part of the Atlantic 10's commitment to our student-athletes. I congratulate each of these deserving individuals and wish them luck as they pursue their advanced degrees."
This year's recipients, which are listed below, represent nine sports. The class is comprised of seven female student-athletes and seven males and the average GPA of the 14 individuals is 3.74. The selection process involved the league's athletic directors, senior woman administrators and faculty athletic representatives.
"The A-10 Postgraduate Scholarship is an amazing chance to further my education through a Master's degree. It was a huge honor to receive this prestigious award, I know there were a lot of great candidates so I'm still in shock that I was selected for this award," said Fordham swimmer and A-10 SAAC member
Steve Sholdra. "I want to thank Fordham, and the Atlantic 10 for this scholarship. It will be put to good use, and I will always be grateful for this award."
The Atlantic 10 Postgraduate Scholarship Program is part of the conference's broad-based commitment to student-athlete opportunities and academics. The conference consistently ranks at the top amongst all Division I Conferences in both Graduation Success Rate (GSR) and the Academic Progress Rate (APR) data released by the NCAA.
The program, which began honoring two student-athletes in 1991, has been so successful and well-received by both the recipients and the A-10 member institutions that it has expanded several times. The most recent expansion, which was adopted in January, 2015 and implemented that spring, now includes one representative from each A-10 school. To be considered for the Postgraduate Scholarship, student-athletes must have performed with distinction both in the classroom and in their respective sports throughout their career, while demonstrating exemplary conduct in the community. The postgraduate program, which began in 1991 honoring one male and one female student-athlete, first expanded to four recipients in 1997 and then to 10 in 2014.
About the Atlantic 10 Conference
The Atlantic 10 Conference was founded in 1975 and consists of 14 diverse members across eight states and Washington, D.C. The mission of the Atlantic 10 is to provide an enhanced student-athlete experience through 21 nationally competitive championship sports. The basketball-centric conference is committed to integrity, educational excellence and providing quality equitable championship experiences for its student-athletes, coaches, and support staff. The membership consists of Davidson College, the University of Dayton, Duquesne University, Fordham University, George Mason University, The George Washington University, La Salle University, the University of Massachusetts, the University of Rhode Island, University of Richmond, St. Bonaventure University, Saint Joseph's University, Saint Louis University and Virginia Commonwealth University. For more information, visit www.atlantic10.com.
