University of Tennessee Athletics
Lentz Receives CoSIDA Scholarship
June 20, 2011 | General
June 20, 2011
The College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) announced the winners of their 2011-12 undergraduate and postgraduate scholarships June 16.
Andrew Lentz, a graduate student pursuing a master's degree in sport management from Tennessee, earned the Wylie Smith Postgraduate Scholarship ($5,000).
Lentz, who earned his bachelor's degree in sport administration from Ball State in May of 2010, spent 2010-11 as a graduate assistant in Tennessee Athletic Media Relations office under the direction of Associate Athletic Director for Media Relations Bud Ford. Lentz also posted a 4.0 grade-point average as a graduate student at Tennessee.
Before continuing his graduate studies at Tennessee, Lentz spent three years working as a student assistant in the Ball State Athletic Communications Office under the direction of Associate Athletic Director for Media and Alumni Relations Joe Hernandez. Lentz also spent the summer of 2007 as a Syracuse University Athletics Communications Intern working under Director Pete Moore. Lentz expanded his experience as a media relations intern for the NBA's Indiana Pacers in both 2008 and 2010 and also served an internship with the Indianapolis Colts.
The Wylie Smith Postgraduate Scholarship is named in honor of the former CoSIDA Scholarships Committee chairman and long-time Sports Information Director at Northern Arizona University.
Britney Reddick, who is working as a graduate assistant in the Kutztown Sports Information Office, claimed the Langston Rogers Postgraduate Scholarship ($5,000). Reddick, who earned her bachelor's degree in journalism from North Carolina A&T in 2010, is pursuing a master's degree in electronic media from Kutztown University.
The Langston Rogers Postgraduate Scholarship is named in honor of former Mississippi Sports Information Director and CoSIDA Hall of Famer Langston Rogers, who served as the SID at Ole Miss from 1981 until his retirement in 2010. The scholarship is presented annually to a rising minority or female student.
CoSIDA's Fred Nuesch-Dave Wohlhueter Undergraduate Scholarship awards ($2,500 each) were presented to Adam Moussa of Memphis and Erica LaBranche of Stonehill College. Moussa has posted a 3.8 GPA as a sports management major with a minor in African-American studies. He has worked in Assistant Athletic Director for Media Relations Jennifer Rodrigues' office at Memphis since April of 2010. Moussa is on track to graduate from Memphis in May of 2012.
LaBranche carries a 3.4 GPA as an English major with a minor in secondary education at Stonehill College in Easton, Mass. She has worked in Director of Athletic Communications Douglas Monson's office at Stonehill since September of 2009. LaBranche expects to graduate from Stonehill in May of 2013.
The scholarships will be formally announced during CoSIDA's upcoming annual workshop in Marco Island, Fla.
The Fred Nuesch-Dave Wohlhueter Undergraduate Scholarships and Phil Langan Graduate Internship Grant have been awarded since 1999, when CoSIDA expanded its scholarship program in order to foster interest in the sports information field. Since presenting the first Wylie Smith Graduate Scholarship in 1981, CoSIDA has provided more than $375,000 in grants to students working in sports information offices at member institutions and conferences.
To be eligible for either the postgraduate or undergraduate scholarships, candidates must maintain a 3.0 cumulative grade-point average and express an interest in pursuing a career in sports information.
In addition to the four scholarships, CoSIDA awarded the 2011-12 Phil Langan Graduate Internship Grant ($10,000) to Ursinus in Collegeville, Pa. With a department of just one full-time employee, Sports Information Director James Wagner covers 25 varsity sports without the benefit of either a part-time employee or any graduate assistants.
The Phil Langan Graduate Internship Grant provides funds for a sports information office to hire a graduate intern on a one-year basis, hoping the success of the program can help the schools demonstrate the need for additional assistance in the future.
