Nov. 4, 2010
CHICAGO - UIC senior volleyball player Taylor Szatkowski was recently named a recipient of the Academic Momentum Award bestowed by the Scholar-Baller program and the National Consortium for Academics and Sports.
Szatkowski, who boasts a cumulative 2.74 GPA, was selected as the female winner for the Midwest, one of ten NCAS regions throughout the country. In all, 20 student-athletes from around the country were recognized for their academic improvement.
After a rocky start to her college career in the classroom, the Cary-Grove High School graduate, turned it around and has maintained a 3.32 GPA since the spring semester of 2009. She is a two-time UIC Academic Honor Roll selection, including in the spring of 2010 when she achieved a 3.77 GPA. Szatkowski is on track to graduate in the spring, at which time she plans to continue her education toward becoming a nurse.
"It's a great honor and it's awesome to be recognized," said Szatkowski. "I want to thank Sam [Rush] and Katie [Schumacher-Cawley] because they really helped a lot along the way."
Szatkowski, a sociology major, was nominated for the award by UIC Assistant Athletic Director of Academic Services Sam Rush.
"From a non-recruited walk-on to becoming a contributing scholarship student-athlete, from a near-academic casualty to becoming a two-time Honor Roll member who will complete her degree in four years, Taylor Szatkowski embodies all that the Academic Momentum Award stands for," said Rush.
"I'm very proud and excited for Taylor," said UIC head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley. "She has worked very hard in the classroom and is more than deserving of this award. She is a wonderful example of what it means to be a student-athlete."
On the court Szatkowski has been a key member of the Flames this season, leading her team with 294 digs. She currently ranks in the top ten in the Horizon League with 3.23 digs per set. She has made her mark on the career record book, as well.; with three regular season matches remaining, the libero has recorded 1,334 digs and ranks fifth on UIC's all-time list in that category.
About the NCAS: The NCAS is an ever-growing organization of colleges and universities that provides opportunities for current and former student-athletes to continue their pursuit of higher education, while working in the community with children to address social issues. Established in 1985, the overall mission of the NCAS is "to create a better society by focusing on educational attainment and using the power appeal of sport to positively affect social change."
About Scholar-Baller: Established in 1995, the Scholar-Baller® movement evolved in response to concerns that the student-athlete's athletics role increasingly superseded the student role. In order to address this issue, the founding members of Scholar-Baller® developed a groundbreaking program to bridge the gap between education and sport utilizing student-athletes' passion for entertainment and athletics. As a result, the Scholar-Baller® program has produced unprecedented outcomes in student retention and academic achievement.
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