CCAA are naming scholars left and right and the Tommies are taking the crowns
Being a student athlete is demanding. You are required to balance not only weekly practices and games, but academics are thrown in there as well. Finding a medium between the two areas is crucial for success and building skills one can use in the future.
Being named a Canadian Collegiate Athletics Association (CCAA) National Scholar proves you are driven to succeed both on and off the field of play.
Last academic year, St. Thomas University (STU) topped the country with 77 national scholars. The number is up from last year, when the school produced 62 athletes who earned the prestigious honour.
Being named a national scholar is the highest student-athlete achievement in the country. The distinction recognizes those who have found academic success while taking part in a chosen varsity sport.
Meaghan Donahue Wies is the Director of Athletics and Recreation at STU. She has been in the position for over four years.
STU has achieved a variety of successes on the feild, in the form of national championships and Atlantic Collegiate Athletic Association (ACAA) conference titles.
However, having the most National Scholars is one of the most “amazing things" Donahue Wies has seen during her time at the school. When names are released is one of her favourite days of her job.
“We spend a lot of time talking about what our values are and what it means to be a Tommie. We pride ourselves on our success athletically, academically, in the community and in leadership positions,” said Donahue Wies. “To be able to see the success that they've had in the classroom and to see just how much they're working to embody a Tommie, it's incredible.”
She feels students have two “full time jobs” when they sign up to be a Tommie. They are university students who take their academics seriously enough to be named a national scholar. At the same time, they are also athletes putting in 20 to 30 hours of practice, games and travel.
“We're punching above our weight, not only athletically but academically,” she said.
Claudia Steeves is a third-year guard on the STU women’s basketball team. She has been named a CCAA National Scholar during her first two years at STU.
Being named to the list is something she “is proud of” and strives to achieve every year. Steeves credited STU’s tight-knit community and small size for her success.
“I think myself and my teammates are very like-minded,” she said, “It's not easy balancing academics and athletics, but being beside my teammates who are going through the same thing and have the same type of schedules … really helps. We motivate each other. They motivate me and we just strive to be the best we can be.”
STU’s women’s basketball team has a history of finding academic success. The team held one of the highest grade point averages (GPA) in the school last academic year. 14 of the 15 players on the team’s roster were named national scholars.
This academic success, according to Steeves, is something that her coach, Fred Conners, tries to make known to his players.
“His sentiment around academics is that school comes first and athletics comes second. He wants us to do the best we can in school, but also, putting in the work on the court and outside of academics and finding a good, happy medium between the two,” she said. “But as long as we're trying our best and we're putting in 100 [percent] in everything we do, he's happy with that”
Steeves has gotten used to everything university life has thrown at her. She called her first year a “slap in the face,” due to not knowing how busy the year was going to be balancing academics and the athletics schedule.
“The motto my whole life has been, ‘as long as you're trying your best and you're putting in the work, then we're happy with that, whatever the results are,’” she said. “This time, the results were very good to see. I know I put in the work and I'm happy with that.”
Nathan Peace is a co-captain of the men’s soccer team. The centre-back is in his second year with the green and gold.
He considers being named a national scholar a “cool recognition.” At the same time, he feels some people don’t know or can’t relate to the amount of work that goes into the role.
“Being a student comes first. So you have to focus and make sure you're getting all your schoolwork done before focusing on sports,” said Peace. “They're both important, but to be an athlete, you have to do all your classes and get a GPA to play.”
Peace credited his family for inspiring him to find success in his schoolwork. Looking at how hard his family has worked, he wants to match their work ethic and achieve his full potential.
“It's mostly just time management,” he said. “You have to plan ahead, see when all your assignments and tests are, when the due dates are and then just work ahead of schedule. And work around your athletics schedule.”
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