Related:
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Scholarships & Grants Program
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All-Time CSC Honorees
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CSC Digital Honors and Awards Database (CSCommunicators.com/Rocket)
2023-24 CSC Scholarship and Grants Award Winners Announced
by Jeff Griesch – University of Nebraska, Senior Associate Communications Director - Operations
CSC Scholarship Committee
College Sports Communicators announced its newest class of scholarship and grant winners for the 2024-25 academic year on Thursday, May 30, as the organization will distribute more than $50,000 to deserving students and schools in the coming year.
CSC Scholarship Committee members chose a pair of $6,000 postgraduate scholarship recipients, two more $2,000 undergraduate scholarship winners, two new $1,000 scholarship winners among the children of CSC members, while selecting two schools to receive $15,000 graduate internship grants.
The scholarship and grant winners will be recognized during CSC’s Special Awards Luncheon during the #CSCUnite24 Convention in Las Vegas, June 9-12.
Since presenting the first Wylie Smith Graduate Scholarship in 1981, CSC has provided nearly $1 million in grants to students working in athletic communication offices at member institutions and conferences.
To be eligible for either the Postgraduate or Undergraduate Scholarships, candidates must maintain a 3.0 cumulative grade-point average as full-time students and express an interest in pursuing a career in athletic communications.
The winner of the 2024 Wylie Smith Postgraduate Scholarship is Coreyon Chester, who is pursuing a master’s degree in sports management at Texas Woman’s University. Chester, who earned his bachelor’s degree in broadcast journalism from North Texas in May of 2022, served as a student volunteer in the North Texas Athletic Communications Office from November 2021 to May 2022, before serving as an intern in the Lindsey Wilson College Athletic Communications Office in 2022-23. Chester, who has a 4.0 GPA, began pursuing his master’s degree from Texas Woman’s University in August of 2023, while serving as a graduate assistant for athletics. Morgan Lair is the Assistant Athletic Director for Communications at TWU.
The Wylie Smith Postgraduate Scholarship is named in honor of the former CSC Scholarships Committee chairman and long-time sports information director at Northern Arizona University.
Paige Trutna claimed the Langston Rogers Postgraduate Scholarship ($6,000). Trutna, who earned her bachelor’s degree as a dual major in journalism and sports media and communications with a 3.92 GPA from Nebraska in May of 2024, spent the past three years in the Nebraska Athletic Communications Office as a student assistant working for Associate Athletic Director for Communications Keith Mann. She was the primary communications contact for the Nebraska women’s gymnastics team in 2024, and has spent three seasons as the primary contact for Nebraska’s nationally prominent rifle program. She plans to pursue a master’s degree in integrated media communications while serving as a graduate student in the Nebraska Athletic Communications Office.
The Langston Rogers Postgraduate Scholarship is named in honor of former College Sports Communicators President, Hall of Famer, Mary Jo Haverbeck Trailblazer and Lifetime Achievement Award recipient Langston Rogers, who served as the sports information director at Ole Miss from 1981 until his retirement in 2010. The Langston Rogers Postgraduate Scholarship is designed to assist a rising minority or female student working in athletics communications offices who have expressed an interest in pursuing a career in athletics communications and require financial assistance for their education.
The Phil Langan Graduate Internship Grants have been awarded since 1999, when CSC expanded its scholarship program in order to foster interest in the athletic communications field.
The 2024-25 Phil Langan Graduate Internship Grants ($15,000) will be awarded to Coppin State and the University of Sioux Falls. Coppin State is a one-person NCAA Division I shop under Athletic Communications Director Steven Kramer, who has led the Coppin State program since 2017. He promotes 13 sports in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference and a baseball program in the Northeast Conference at the HBCU in Baltimore.
Madie Brink, who is the assistant athletic director for communications at the University of Sioux Falls, leads a one-person shop covering 19 NCAA Division II sports with more than 500 student-athletes. Brink has helped drive a more than 300 percent increase in social media following for the Cougars over the past two years.
The Phil Langan Graduate Internship Grant provides funds for a sports information office to hire a graduate intern on a one-year basis, hoping the success of the program can help the school demonstrate the need for additional assistance in the future.
Phil Langan was a College Sports Communicators Hall of Famer who worked at Ithaca, Princeton and Brown. He passed away in November of 2009. He served CSC as secretary-treasurer and Digest editor from 1972 to 1977.
The Fred Nuesch Undergraduate Scholarship award ($2,000) was awarded to Teagan Schreiber from the University of Colorado and the Dave Wohlhueter Undergraduate Scholarship ($2,000) was awarded to Payton McClowry from Wheaton College.
Schreiber, the granddaughter of CSC Hall of Famer Steve Roe (retired Iowa Associate AD of Athletic Communications), has spent two years as a student intern in the Iowa Athletic Communications Office while attending Kirkwood Community College, produced a 3.9 GPA. She will attend the University of Colorado in the fall of 2024 and pursue a degree in media studies. Schreiber managed the social media accounts for the Iowa men’s and women’s wrestling programs and the women’s tennis team. She also served as a girls’ wrestling coach at Clear Creek Amana Middle School, while assisting with the high school program.
McClowry claimed the Wohlhueter Scholarship to assist in completing his bachelor’s degree as a business economics major at Wheaton. McClowry, who carries a 3.71 GPA, has served as a sports information department assistant since August of 2022, while competing as a member of the Wheaton varsity baseball team. McClowry also has served on Wheaton’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.
The 2024-25 CSC Member-Child Scholarships were awarded to Grady White and Tanner Caudill. White, who is the son of CSC Director of Communications and Brand Strategy Beau White, plans to major in mechanical engineering at Colorado State in the fall of 2024. Beau White has been a member of the CSC national staff since 2017, after previously serving as a full-time communications assistant and graphic designer at the University of Kansas.
Caudill, who was a senior at John Glenn High School in New Concord, Ohio in 2023-24, plans to major in exercise science at Muskingum in the fall of 2024. Tom Caudill is the assistant athletic director and assistant professor for communications at Muskingum, where he has served since 2001.
The CSC Member-Child Scholarship program began in 2014. Member-Child scholarships are renewable for up to four years.
All-Time CSC Honorees
Postgraduate Scholarship (Langston Rogers Scholarship and Wylie Smith Scholarship)
1981 Craig Bohnert, Evansville
1982 John Lashway, Oregon
1983 Jay Hill, Michigan
1984 Jonathan Dukes, Georgia Southern
1985 Brian Teter, Illinois State
1986 Mark Berger, Ohio
1987 Chris McMurry, Northern Arizona
1988 Angela Hultman, Mankato State
1989 Beth Haag, Iowa State
1990 Stephanie Grimes, Boise State
1991 Lana Bandy, Purdue
1992 Amy Stabley, Central Michigan / Robert Hester, Northern Illinois
1993 Will Roleson, Miami (Ohio)
1994 Randy Hayson, Illinois State
1995 Stuart McFarland, Missouri / Sally Krauss, Western Kentucky
1996 Jeff Griesch, Nebraska
1997 Chris Ambrose, Purdue / Jeff Griesch, Nebraska
1998 Chris Ambrose, Purdue / Brian Gunning, Marshall
1999 Brian Gunning, Marshall / Heidi Roth, Syracuse
2000 Mark Fratto, Maryland / Andy Knappick, Illinois State
2001 Brad Caudill, Eastern Michigan / Susan Seabrook, Alabama-Birmingham
2002 Michelle Kelley, Colgate / Sean Wright, Westminster (Mo.)
2003 Brad Fischer, Wisconsin-La Crosse / Lainie Guiddy, West Virginia
2004 Eric Braley, Northern Iowa / Kristopher Sears, Indiana
2005 Michael Potter, Ball State / Erin Whiteside, Penn State
2006 Chris Yandle, Marshall / Jessica Calderone, Southeast Louisiana
2007 Caroline Domecq, Georgia / Kyle Chilton, Southern Virginia
2008 Jared Verner, Northwest Missouri State / Kendra Lee, Ohio State
2009 Laurie Wild, Northern Iowa / Britney Wright, Florida State
2010 Grant Abston, Texas / Mariel Brady, St. John’s
2011 Andrew Lentz, Tennessee / Britney Reddick, Kutztown
2012 Carli Todd, DePaul / Joelle Milholm, Cal State Bakersfield
2013 Kim Carper, Vanderbilt / Joelle Milholm, Cal State Bakersfield
2014 Kati Morse, Southeastern Louisiana / Kyle Skene, Millsaps
2015 Andrew Forhan, Whitworth / Akilah Laster, Oklahoma
2016 James Hajek, Nebraska / Lorie Garnett, Nebraska
2017 Nicole Praga, Arizona State / Andrea Beene, Oklahoma
2018 Lauren Simpson, Illinois State / McKenzie Pavacich, Arizona State / Scott Vander Sloot, Ashland University
2019 Jordyn Ballard, Black Hills State / Tyler Roper, Utah Valley / Shaylee Souza, Arizona State
2020 Amber Dubois, North Florida / Tim Heiduk, Concordina (Calif.) / Mary Murray, Fairleigh Dickinson - Florham
2021 Nicole Remedios, Illinois State / Morgan Turner, Northeast Conference
2022 Amanda Scott, Lander / Grant Cook, Grace College
2023 Nick Schmieg, Slippery Rock / Brandon Wirth, Ferris State
2024 Paige Trutna, University of Nebraska / Coreyon Chester, Texas Woman's University
Undergraduate Scholarship (Dave Wolhueter Scholarship and Fred Neusch Scholarship)
1999 Kate Adams, Iowa State / Michelle La Scola, Northern Illinois / Casey Taylor, Christopher Newport
2000 Daniel Dykstra, Wheaton (Ill.) / Kimberly Frederick, Manhattan / Bobbie Horstman, Iowa State
2001 Bobbie Horstman, Iowa State / Shayla Reiff, Mt. Vernon Nazarene / Dustin Roberts, Oklahoma
2002 Branie Davidson, Northwest Missouri State / Shante Gree, Fayetteville State / Teri LaJeunesse, Michigan Tech
2003 Kimberly Gray Folkes, Virginia Tech / Adam Holtz, Bethany Lutheran / Laura Schoenberger, Pittsburg State
2004 Cassie Chance, Mississippi State / Nick Kiger, Colorado State
2005 John Vogel, Youngstown State / Monique Bowman, Capital University
2006 Todd Zeidler, Bemidji / Amy Robertson, Mississippi State
2007 Caleb Hawley, Oregon State / Christina Marshall, James Madison
2008 Andrew Middleman, Baldwin-Wallace / Kevin Flora, University of the Cumberlands
2009 Carli Todd, Tampa / David Bodman, La Salle
2010 Michael Benson, Southern Illinois-Carbondale / James Rodriguez, Baldwin-Wallace
2011 Adam K. Moussa, Memphis / Erica LaBranche, Stonehill
2012 Jake Faber, Pittsburg State / Ashley Goettl, Wisconsin-River Falls
2013 Casey Bonk, Pittsburgh / Lucy Montgomery, Washington-St. Louis
2014 Mike Mulcahy, New Mexico / Kourtney Freiburger, Purdue
2015 Nathan Edwards, San Jose State / Marisa Lombardo, Alvernia
2016 Morgan Romans, Eastern Kentucky / Christy Effendie, UC Davis
2017 Christopher Lawrence, Alaska Anchorage / Bailey Knecht, Northeastern
2018 Victoria Mills, Fort Wayne / Chelsea Lombardo, Adelphi / Liam Pickhardt, Linfield College
2019 Joseph Haueter, Mount Union / Kai Henson, St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) / Gabriel Vegas-Valente, Nebraska
2020 Noah Syverson, Berry College / Hannah Dumaine, Bryant / Miles Whitling, Idaho
2021 Hannah Dumaine, Bryant / Noah Roleson, Indianapolis
2022 Maddie Peterson, Nebraska / Anna Fox, North Central
2023 Abbey Curtis, College of Charleston
2024 Payton McClowry, Wheaton College / Teagan Schreiber, University of Colorado
Phil Langan Graduate Internship Grant
1999 Alabama A&M, Wright State
2000 Central Oklahoma, Urbana (Ohio)
2001 Central State (Ohio), Cheyney
2002 Eckerd College, Hardin-Simmons
2003 St. Francis (N.Y.), Tennessee Tech
2004 Carroll College
2005 Wesleyan University
2006 Bellarmine
2007 Central College of Iowa
2008 Grand Canyon University
2009 Lake Erie College
2010 Illinois Wesleyan
2011 Ursinus
2012 DePauw
2013 Chicago State
2014 Gallaudet
2015 Elmhurst College
2016 Post University
2017 Connecticut College
2018 Wright State / The Sage Colleges
2019 Benedict College / Westminster College (Mo.)
2020 St. Francis (Ill.) / Chicago State
2021 Adams State / Coppin State
2022 Northern Iowa / Cornerstone
2023 Ashland University / Wartburg College
2024 Coppin State / Sioux Falls
Member-Child Scholarship
2014 Grace Neely (Kentucky)/Tony Neely (Kentucky)
Dakota Hawkins (Winthrop)/Michael Hawkins (Francis Marion)
2015 Brinley Lowe (North Carolina)/Bob Lowe (Berry College)
Lauren Dickerson (William & Mary)/Drew Dickerson (Atlantic 10 Conference)
2016 Fiona Lefresne (Missouri State)/Pete Lefresne (Saint Leo)
Daniel Ruple (Baldwin Wallace)/Kevin Ruple (Baldwin Wallace)
2017 Lauren Dickerson (William & Mary)/Drew Dickerson (Atlantic 10)
Kevin Mobley (Georgia)/Mike Mobley (Georgia)
2018 Peter Hartrick (Scranton)/John Hartrick (Binghamton)
Karlee Bird (Linfield College)/Kelly Bird (Linfield College)
2019 Sam Sadowski (Tufts)/Chuck Sadowski (Bridgeport)
Solomon Serba-Davis (North Carolina Wilmington)/Kyle Serba (North Carolina Central)
2020 McKenna DiCamillo (St. John Fisher)/Tom DiCamillo (State University of New York Athletic Conference)
Hailey Yellin (Maryland)/Jason Yellin (Maryland)
2021 Hollan Griesch (Nebraska)/Jeff Griesch (Nebraska)
Gavin Thor (Seton Hall)/Ira Thor (New Jersey City)
2022 Haylee Stancil (Lincoln Memorial))/Jay Stancil (Union (Ky.))
Shelby Kindhart (Missouri State)/Rick Kindhart (Missouri State)
2023 Abigail Henry (Worcester Polytechnic Institute))/Brian Henry (West Florida)
Tessa Wallington (UNLV)/Mark Wallington (UNLV)
2024 Tanner Caudill (Muskingum)/Tom Caudill (Muskingum)
Grady White (Colorado State)/Beau White (CSC)