Story courtesty of Arcadia Athletics
INDIANAPOLIS, In. - Arcadia University softball senior Megan Klose has been named a recipient of the 2024 NCAA Jim McKay Scholarship, as announced by the association on Thursday afternoon.
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The McKay Scholarship was created in 2008 to honor pioneer sports journalist Jim McKay. The recipients are selected by the NCAA Walter Byers Scholarship Committee regardless of division. Klose will receive a $10,000 scholarship awarded by the NCAA to college athletes who demonstrate achievement in sports communications or public relations or hope to contribute to the field.
"This award means the world to me, having been a Division III athlete," Klose explained. "Academics are the foundation of who we are as D3 athletes and to have showcased my dedication to both academics and softball in receiving this award is truly an unmatched feeling. I share this honor with a Division I men's golf player (Clemson's Jonathan Nielsen), which is the greatest showcase that D3 athletes can do whatever and be whoever they want to be."
Klose finished her undergraduate career with a perfect 4.0 grade-point average and was named Second Team All-Middle Atlantic Conference Freedom (MAC Freedom) this past season. Klose, who served as a team captain the last two years, also did internships in the athletic department with the Athletic Communications office and the women's ice hockey program.
"Using this scholarship, I intend on working online toward a Masters Degree in either Sports Communication or Sports Business through Liberty University, while working full time as a social media specialist at WebFX in Harrisburg, PA," Klose finished.
Arcadia's Faculty Athletics Representative (FAR) Dr. Chris Mullin, a Professor in the Department of Media and Communications, had this to say of Megan: "As Arcadia's Faculty Athletic Representative (FAR) part of my job is to identify students who might be eligible for the various scholarships that the NCAA generously offers each year. When I read the requirements for the Jim McKay Scholarship, I immediately thought of Megan Klose. I knew Meg was an exceptional student, and her coach, Sarah Birchmeier confirmed that she would support the nomination from the 'athletic side'. A Jim McKay scholar needs to have an excellent academic record; superior character and leadership; ascribe to the highest levels of integrity, including the principles of truthfulness, accuracy, objectivity, impartiality, fairness and public accountability; and demonstrate efforts in the communication field or have an interest beyond their major to contribute to sports communication. Meg possesses every one of these qualities. She finished her undergraduate career with a perfect 4.0, AND she did it in three years while playing a varsity sport. She continually challenged herself in the classroom and outside the classroom completing two internships, including one with the Harrisburg Senators (Wasington Nationals AA-affiliate). In the classroom, Meg was enthusiastic and driven by natural curiosity for communication, especially as it relates to the field of sports and public relations."
At graduation, the Media and Communications Department as a whole said of Klose, "Klose is an exemplary student in every respect. She is responsible and attentive, hard-working, and relentlessly committed to improvement. Her remarkable undergraduate accomplishments have earned her universal respect from her peers and faculty in the Department of Media and Communication."