Brandy Smith Awarded NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship
ITHACA, N.Y. – Senior
Brandy Smith of the Ithaca College women's track & field team has been selected by the NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship Committee to receive a $7,500 scholarship towards a postgraduate degree. The NCAA announced its winter recipients on March 7.
From the NCAA Postgraduate website – "The NCAA awards up to 174 postgraduate scholarships annually. The scholarships are awarded to student-athletes who excel academically and athletically and who are at least in their final year of intercollegiate athletics competition.
The one-time non-renewable scholarships of $7,500 are awarded three times a year corresponding to each sport season (fall, winter and spring). Each sports season there are 29 scholarships available for men and 29 scholarships available for women for use in an accredited graduate program.
All former student-athletes who earned an undergraduate degree from an NCAA member school are eligible to be nominated by that school for an NCAA graduate degree scholarship, regardless of when they received their undergraduate degree.
The NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship was created in 1964 to promote and encourage postgraduate education by rewarding the Association's most accomplished student-athletes through their participation in NCAA championship and/or emerging sports."
Smith, a native of Miami, Fla., graduated this past May with a business administration degree and a 3.82 grade-point average, produced one of the most successful careers in women's track & field program history.
She was a three-time national champion in the discus and a seven-time All-American over the course of the indoor and outdoor seasons from 2013 to 2017. During her senior campaign, she earned All-America honors in the indoor weight throw and shot put and then followed up with a national title in the discus – her third straight – and another All-America nod in the shot put at outdoor nationals.
Smith is the fourth individual in Ithaca College history to win three national championships in any sport. Her seven All-American performances are the second most in track & field history. Smith owns five different school records – indoor and outdoor shot put, weight throw, hammer throw and discus.
Smith will enroll as a graduate student at Babson College in Boston, Mass. and plans to pursue a Master of Science in Management in Entrepreneurial Leadership.
"I received an email on June 14 informing me that I was a recipient. I was thrilled to have been awarded that scholarship because it truly does make all the difference in terms of funding graduate studies," stated Smith.
Ithaca College's NCAA Faculty Athletics Representative
Barb Belyea had this to say about Smith. "I am so pleased to have Brandy's academic and athletic accomplishments acknowledged with this competitive national scholarship. She epitomizes the 'commitment to excellence' that Ithaca College academic programs and Bomber athletics strives to achieve."
Women's track & field head coach
Jennifer Potter was equally as excited to hear the news about Smith's accomplishment. "Brandy is very deserving of this award. She worked very hard both in the classroom and in her sport. She spent time outside of academics during the school year and in the summer volunteering and making a difference in young people's lives."
Smith is the 14th student-athlete to earn an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship, and the second this year, as
Sean Phillips of the men's cross country and track & field team was awarded this scholarship in the winter.