Related Story:
•
#CoSIDA17 Day 1 Highlighted By Mentoring, Professional Development and Leadership
•
Academic All-America® Hall of Fame
ORLANDO —
Another year has brought another incredible night of recognition, stories, remembrances and thanks as the four members of the Academic All-America® Hall of Fame Class and the Dick Enberg Award winner. All were honored Sunday night (June 11) in front of a crowd of 500-plus and a livestream audience of nearly 3,000 as the Academic All-America Hall of Fame ceremony took place during the CoSIDA convention in Orlando.
Annually, the Academic All-America® Hall of Fame recognizes individuals who have set a high standard for excellence in the classroom, in competition and in the community.
This year, CoSIDA welcomed its first all-female class into this exclusive club: volleyball standout Rachel Price Bell (University of North Alabama); legendary international fencing star Dr. Stacey R. Johnson (San Jose State); NCAA, Olympic and World Cup soccer champion Heather O’Reilly (University of North Carolina); and NCAA basketball champion Stephanie White (Purdue University).
The 2017 event was made that more special as it marked the 30
th anniversary of the first Academic All-America® Hall of Fame class which was enshrined in 1988.
Joining the four female honorees was the annual Dick Enberg Award winner, Dr. Robert C. Khayat, former Ole Miss chancellor. This award was created in part to recognize Enberg's passion and support of the Academic All-America program, and more importantly, his dedication to education for more than four decades. Tonight’s winner was Robert C. Khayat, former chancellor of Old Miss. who is renowned for his work on the Mississippi campus and his unwavering support to education. Chancellor Khayat's memoir,
The Education of a Lifetime, was published on September 10, 2013.
Photos courtesy of CoSIDA Secretary Jeff Hodges and The SkyBoat of Orlando, Fla.