Finalists for the Ninth Annual Sears Directors' Cup Postgraduate Scholarship Awards Announced

Cleveland, Ohio -- Forty-six finalists for the ninth annual Sears Directors' Cup Postgraduate Scholarship Awards were announced today by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) and Sears, Roebuck and Co.

There are 16 finalists from the NCAA Division I and 10 finalists each from the NCAA Division II, Division III and the NAIA. They will now be reviewed by the Finalist Committees, which will select the final four winners per division (16 total) who will each receive a $5,000 grant to be used toward postgraduate studies. In addition, a fifth $5,000 scholarship per division will be awarded to a student from each of the four institutions (one per division) that win the 2001-02 Sears Directors' Cup trophies. Sears funds the annual total of $100,000 in scholarships.

The winners will receive their awards at NACDA's 37th Annual Convention, June 16-19 at the Wyndham Anatole Hotel in Dallas, Texas. The NACDA Scholarship Awards Luncheon, presented by Sears, will take place on Tuesday, June 18.

Members of the athletics support staff are eligible for these prestigious scholarships. This includes students from the categories of academic support, athletics trainers, band members, equipment room managers, facility managers, sports information assistants and student coaches. Students were required to have a minimum grade point average of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale, have senior status, have demonstrated leadership qualities on an institutional or community level and have played an active role in one of the support categories.

Members of the Sears Directors' Cup Committee were responsible for selecting the finalists. The list of committee members can be found on NACDA's web site at www.nacda.com.

The Sears commitment to collegiate athletics stems from its sponsorship of the Sears Collegiate Champions Program, which includes the Sears Directors' Cup Program, administered by NACDA. The Sears Directors' Cup Award, developed as a joint effort between NACDA and USA Today, honors the "all-sports" champion in each of the NCAA's three divisions -- I, II and III -- and the NAIA, and includes both men and women's sports. To determine the champion, points are awarded based on each institution's finish in a predetermined number of sports. Previous winners have included -- Division I -- University of North Carolina (1994) and Stanford University (1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001), Division II -- University of California-Davis (1996, 1997, 2000, 2001), California State University-Bakersfield (1998) and Adams State College (1999); Division III -- Williams College (Mass.) (1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001) and the University of California-San Diego (1998); and NAIA -- Pacific Lutheran University (Wash.) (1996) and Simon Fraser University (BC, Canada) (1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001).