Winners for the Fourth Annual John McLendon Memorial Minority Postgraduate Scholarships Awards Announced

Cleveland, Ohio - The five winners for the fourth annual John McLendon Memorial Minority Postgraduate Scholarship Awards were announced today by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA).

The winners will each receive a $10,000 grant to be used toward postgraduate studies in athletics administration. Funding for the scholarship program has been provided in part by adidas America; American Football Coaches Association (AFCA); Host Communications; Major League Baseball (MLB); National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC); National Basketball Association (NBA); Sears, Roebuck and Co.; and NACDA.

Minorities (as defined by federal guidelines) who intend to pursue a postgraduate degree in athletics administration are eligible for these scholarships. Students were required to have a minimum grade point average of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale, have senior status and have demonstrated leadership qualities on an institutional or community level.

The winners are:

Members of the John McLendon Memorial Minority Blue Ribbon Committee were responsible for selecting the finalists. Completing this task were Daniel Boggan, senior vice president, NCAA; Kofi Bonner, vice president/chief administrative officer; Cleveland Browns; Greg Gumbel, CBS Sports; Wayne Embry, chief executive officer - retired, Cleveland Cavaliers; Curt Hamakawa, director of international relations, U.S. Olympic Committee; Jim Host, chief executive officer, Host Communications; Tom Mercer, director of team sales, adidas America; Robin Roberts, ESPN/ABC Sports; Grant Teaff, executive director, American Football Coaches Association; Claire Van Ummerson, director, Office of Women in Higher Education, American Council on Education; and Gene Washington, director of football development, NFL.

John McLendon Memorial Minority Postgraduate Scholarship Recipients

Alisse Ali-Christie, University of California-Davis, Division II
Alisse Ali-Christie will graduate in December with a GPA of 3.46 from UC-Davis with a degree in Native American studies and a minor in anthropology. She plans on becoming an athletics director at a Division II or III school that has a high percentage of minority students.Ali-Christie will work as an assistant tennis coach at UC-Davis in 2003-04, and will begin graduate school in the fall of 2004. She then intends to pursue a doctorate in American Indian Studies. She was a two-year co-captain of the tennis team, was second-team All-California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) in 2001-02, CCAA Tennis Player of the Week in 2001 and participated in the 2001 NCAA Foundation Leadership Conference. She also received the 2003 UC-Davis Outstanding Senior Leadership Award. The recipient of numerous scholarships, Ali-Christie served as a Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) officer, tutored other Native American students and is a member of the Native American Student Union. She has participated in the Student-Athlete Dance, Adopt-A-Family program, holiday food and clothing drives, Shriner's Hospital and was chair of the Native American Culture Days.

Paige Benjamin, University of Washington, Division I
Paige Benjamin led the University of Washington women's volleyball team to its best finish since 1997. The Huskies posted a 20-11 record and reached the second-round of the NCAA tournament. She earned a 3.84 GPA in accounting with a minor in information systems and finance. She received Beta Gamma Sigma honors for being in the top five percent of the Junior Business School students. She was named second-team Academic All-American; first-team Academic All-District 8; second-team Academic All-District 8 two times; first-team Academic All-Pac-10 three times; and to the Dean's List three times. The volleyball team captain also received an NCAA postgraduate scholarship. Benjamin concluded her career ranked among the school's top 10 in numerous categories, including career hitting percentage, attacks, blocks and block assists. She was involved with youth and coaches clinics, the Curtis Williams Foundation, Salvation Army, Union Gospel Mission and the Children's Hospital. She is currently training with the U.S. National Volleyball team and is competed in the Mexicali Centenarian Women's Volleyball Cup.

Brian Moore, University of Georgia, Division I
Brian Moore graduated from the University of Georgia with a GPA of 3.40 in sports studies. He served as an intern in the athletics academic unit, was a student building manager for the Tate Center and student assistant in the development and sports communication offices. He was a Presidential and Hope scholar, on the Dean's List, and belonged to the Order of Omega Honor Society, which recognizes the top three percent of the university's Greek population. He was a member of the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Scholars Club and was president, secretary, historian and assistant membership intake chair for the Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity. Moore was the vice president and public relations chair of the Sports Business Club and participated in the Minority Business Student Association and University Round Table. He also was on the Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl Classic For Kids ACCSEC Shootout marketing committee, volunteered for the Athens Clarke County Leisure Services and participated in the Relay for Life Fight Against Cancer. He was an elementary school mentor/tutor and coordinated a fund raising project for an underprivileged Athens youth kidney transplant.

Renee Sudduth, Baker University, NAIA
Renee Sudduth was a four-year letter winner and All-Heart of America Athletic Conference (HAAC) selection in volleyball and track and field at Baker University. She was named to the regional and HAAC All-Tournament teams in volleyball three times. In 2001, she was the school's indoor track and field Most Valuable Athlete, HAAC champion in the women's hammer throw and won the NAIA, Region V and HAAC Scholar-Athlete Awards. In 2000, Sudduth was the HAAC champion in the women's shot put. She won the Mildred Hunt Riddle Departmental Scholarship and was on the Dean's Honor Roll all four years. Sudduth graduated in December with a GPA of 3.61 in physical education with a minor in sports administration. She was a member of the University Champions of Character Committee, student intramural director, hall staff resident assistant and served on several committees for Alpha Chi Omega National Fraternity. Sudduth was a Special Olympics volunteer and worked the Special Populations Track Meet and the Tennis and Aquatics Competitions. She served an internship with Kansas Speedway in the ticketing office, and is currently working for the KC Jazz.

Brandon Taylor, North Carolina A&T State University, Division I
Brandon Taylor graduated from North Carolina A&T State University with a degree in health and physical education. He posted a GPA of 3.84 and was named to the Honor Roll and Dean's List. Taylor's was a member of Kappa Delta Pi International Teacher Education Honor Society, the school's Health and Physical Education Majors Club and Honor Society; American Alliance of Physical and Health Education, Recreation and Dance and the North Carolina American Alliance of Physical and Health Education, Recreation and Dance. Taylor plans to attend graduate school at Ohio State University.