Scholar Athletes Set School Record
Thirty-seven student athletes from Northwestern University’s School of Education and Social Policy earned Big Ten Distinguished Scholar recognition in 2023-24, setting a new School record.
The award, which highlights exceptional academic and athletic achievements, is given to students who maintain a grade point average of 3.70 or higher and earned Academic All-Big Ten recognition in the previous academic year. Thirteen of the 15 Distinguished Scholars on the 2023 Las Vegas Bowl Champion football team are SESP students, including ten who study learning and organizational change.
This interdisciplinary concentration is popular among those who pursue leadership-oriented careers — including coaching, consulting, advising, entrepreneurship, and teaching — and prepares students to anticipate and respond to change and solve organizational problems.
Overall, the Wildcats had 132 Big Ten Distinguished Scholars in 2023-24, the second-most in school history behind the mark of 142 Distinguished Scholar recipients set in 2021-22.
The Distinguished Scholar program supplements the Academic All-Big Ten program. In addition to distinguished scholars, SESP had 71 Academic All-Big Ten scholars in 2023-24. These students maintained a GPA of 3.0 or better and were in at least their second year at Northwestern.
2023-24 Big Ten Distinguished Scholars (3.70 or better)
Baseball:
- Marty Kaplan, sophomore, Santa Monica, California
- Matt McClure, senior, Rancho Santa Margarita, California
Fencing
Julia Yoon, senior, Belle Mead, New Jersey
Football
- Luke Akers, senior, Nashville, Tennessee
- Lawson Albright, junior, Greensboro, North Carolina
- Braydon Brus, sophomore, Glendora, California
- Jackson Carsello, junior, Northbrook, Illinois
- Joe DeHaan, senior, Tinley Park, Illinois
- Robert Fitzgerald, sophomore, Dallas, Texas
- Donnie Gray, junior, New Haven, Connecticut
- Nick Herzog, sophomore, Stilwell, Kansas
- Jack Lausch, sophomore, Chicago, Illinois
- Charlie Mangieri, graduate student, Peoria, Illinois
- Jack Oyola, sophomore, Alpharetta, Georgia
- Caleb Tiernan, junior, Livonia, Michigan
Lacrosse
- Kendall Halpern, senior, Woodbury, New York
- Hannah Johnson, junior, Baldwinsville, New York
- Carleigh Mahoney, senior, Mendham, New Jersey
- Megan Mallgrave, junior, Summit, New Jersey
Men’s Golf
Cameron Adam, junior, Edinburgh, Scotland
Men’s Soccer
- Brett Chrisman, senior, Glencoe, Illinois
- Jason Gajadhar, sophomore, Toronto, Ontario
- Justin Weiss, senior, Syosset, New York
Men's Swimming and Diving
Tonahuc Zinn, sophomore, Santa Ana, California
Men’s Tennis
Chad Miller, sophomore, Cincinnati, Ohio
Softball
- Lauren Boyd, senior, Union, Missouri
- Lauren Curry, junior, Whitehouse, Ohio
- Bridget Donahey, sophomore, Phoenix, Arizona
- Ayana Lindsey, junior, Iowa City, Iowa
- Lauren Sciborski, junior, South Lyon, Michigan
Volleyball
- Kathryn Randorf, sophomore, Chagrin Falls, Ohio
- Ellee Stinson, senior, Yorktown, Indiana
Women’s Basketball
Mercy Ademusayo, junior, Ode Irele, Nigeria
Women’s Golf
- Jieni Li, senior, Hangzhou, China
- Jiayi Wang, sophomore, Shanghai, China
Women’s Swimming and Diving
Markie Hopkins, graduate student, Mission Viejo, California
Wrestling
Maxx Mayfield, senior, Lincoln, Nebraska