BURNSVILLE, Minn. - Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) Commissioner Erin Lind is excited to announce the 14th annual NSIC Myles Brand All-Academic with Distinction Award winners. Northern State University is represented by 12 student-athletes from seven different programs.
 
The honor, named for the late NCAA President Dr. Myles Brand, is bestowed to NSIC student-athletes who have a cumulative grade point average of 3.75 or higher, are exhausting their eligibility and are on track to graduate (student-athletes can only earn the award once). Each student-athlete will be recognized by the NSIC with a certificate of achievement and a wristwatch.
 
Honorees from NSU included Brian Baker, Taite Hensley, Austin Portner, Laurie Rogers, Victoria Kolbinger, Lauren Forsyth, Hannah Kiernan, Delaney Ryken, Mayson Sheldon, Taylor Hoelscher, Kelby Hawkins, and Trey King.

"We continue to increase the number of student-athletes that have earned the Myles Brand All-Academic with Distinction Award, which is a testament to the dedication of the student-athletes, coaches and administrators in our league," said Lind. "I am filled with pride on how our student-athletes in the NSIC continue to excel in the classroom, in the community and on the playing field. These are characteristics in which Dr. Myles Brand emphasized. I am extremely proud of all these student-athletes for their devotion to their universities, the NSIC and to their personal academic and athletic goals. I have no doubt these student-athletes will continue to achieve success in life well beyond the classroom and the competition venues."


About Myles Brand
Dr. Myles N. Brand, visionary leader, educator and reformer, served as the President of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) from 2003-2009. He passed away in September 2009 at the age of 67 after a battle with pancreatic cancer. Brand presided over passage of the most comprehensive academic reform package for intercollegiate athletics in recent history - a package that refocused the attention of student-athletes, coaches and administrators on the education of student-athletes. Brand also changed the national dialog on college sports to emphasize the educational value of athletics participation and the integration of intercollegiate athletics with the academic mission of higher education. His impact on Division II ran deep by implementing an identity campaign and a strategic-positioning platform tied to specific divisional attributes. He challenged Division II to continue its game environment and community engagement focus, and improve academic success rates.