KINGSTON, Ont. (November 21, 2018) - Queen's Athletics & Recreation honoured the 2017-18 Academic All-Stars at a breakfast reception held Wednesday morning in Grant Hall.
 
A total of 365 varsity student-athletes were recognized as Academic All-Stars, having earned at least a 3.5 grade-point average over the past academic year at Queen's. Today's event marks the seventh year the department has undertaken this initiative to honour the academic and athletic excellence of its student-athletes.
 

"We are so fortunate to have each and every one of you at Queen's," Vice-Provost and Dean of Student Affairs Ann Tierney said to those in attendance. "Because of your hard work and dedication to both academic and athletic pursuits, we are consistently among the top five schools in the country for the number of Academic All-Stars each year. I believe this reflects our goal of recruiting the very best student-athletes who are performing at the highest level, both in the classroom and on the field of play – and it reflects our commitment to providing you with the encouragement, support and resources that you need to excel."

Interim Provost and Vice-Principal (Academic) Tom Harris and Executive Director of Athletics & Recreation Leslie Dal Cin were also on hand to speak to the student-athletes and congratulate them on their success.
 
The Nixon Academic Leadership Award was given out to the male and female athletes from both the varsity teams and clubs who have exemplified achievement in academics, community service and fair play in their sport. This year's recipients of the Nixon Award are Caroline Wisheart, women's cycling, Zach Baum, men's sailing, Megan Saftich, women's basketball, and Elliot Hall, men's rowing. These awards are named in honour of Gord and Janet Nixon, two extraordinary benefactors to Athletics & Recreation.

For the second year the Pathways to Education academic leadership award presented by Freedom 55 Financial was presented to a male and female Pathways to Education high school student-athlete who have demonstrated commitment, discipline, resilience, leadership and a positive attitude in combining academic achievement and athletic performance. This year's recipients were Megan Major-Thompson and Christopher Hanley.
 

Queen's Athletics & Recreation and its student-led Varsity Leadership Council partnered with Pathways to Education to create mentorship and educational opportunities for local high school students. The partnership also sees Queen's Gaels Varsity Leadership Council host a group of Pathways students at Queen's for a day to participate in activities, have lunch, and talk about what university and life as a student-athlete are like.
 
Approximately 41 per cent of Queen's student-athletes were named Academic All-Stars this year. The varsity clubs with the highest GPAs were squash and curling, while the highest GPAs from varsity teams were from cross country and tied were women's volleyball, women's basketball, men's soccer and rowing.