CLEVELAND – The National Association of Academic and Student-Athlete Development Professionals (N4A) has announced the 2020 recipients of its Professional Promise, Professional Excellence, Model Practices and Research Awards. The winners were formally recognized on Wednesday, June 24 during the 2020 N4A Virtual Convention.

"Congratulations to the 2020 winners of the Professional Promise, Professional Excellence, Model Practices and Research Awards! These individuals are being recognized by our N4A colleagues for the high-quality contributions that they have made to the industry and the students they serve," said Denise Poole, director, student success initiatives at Penn State University and 2019-20 N4A President. "We thank them for their commitment to the craft and for making a positive impact within the broader field of student-athlete support services."

Professional Promise Award
Given annually to one member from each region, the N4A Professional Promise Award honors "new" professionals who serve student-athletes and who have dedicated their energy to the Association and its mission. Winners must have been N4A members for more than one year but fewer than five years.

The 2019-20 Professional Promise Award recipients are:
 

REGION I	Trey Anderson Anne Arundel Community College
REGION II	Erin Holland University of Tennessee
REGION III	Christine Steffen University of Illinois
REGION IV	Alexandra Klauke Baylor University
REGION V	Michelle Galambos University of Arizona

 
Professional Excellence Award

Given to one member from each N4A Region, the N4A Professional Excellence Award recognizes professionals with 6 - 15 years in the field who meet the following criteria:

• N4A involvement at the regional and/or national level
• Commitment to improving his/her department, often going above and beyond the tasks/responsibilities outlined in their job description
• Ability to meet their students' needs and address critical issues within athletics and/or the campus community
• Viewed as a leader/mentor among his/her colleagues and is well-respected within the industry

The 2019-20 Professional Excellence Award recipients are:
 

REGION I	Mark Trumbo Syracuse University
REGION II	Ashton Henderson Florida State University
REGION III	Elliott Daniels Michigan State University
REGION IV	Marissa Edwards Kansas State University
REGION V	Marisol Quiroz University of Arizona

 
Model Practices Award

The N4A Model Practices Awards are given annually to a N4A-affiliated university or college that displays best practices in their programming for student-athletes (this includes, but is not limited to academic advising, academic integrity, disability services, target populations, learning specialists, tutoring, study hall/table, student-athlete affairs / life skills). Two awards are presented each year -- one in the area of academics, and one in the area of student-athlete development.

The 2019-20 Model Practices Award winners are:
 

Internship Program	Florida State University (Academic)
AU Eagles Leadership Academy	American University (Student-Athlete Development)

 
Research Award

The Research Award is given to a graduate student working on a dissertation/thesis or a practitioner completing a research project to put towards future research with the hopes of sharing with the organization.

The 2019-20 Research Award recipients are:
 

Collaboration between athletic and campus advisors: Ensuring college athletes' success	Dr. Lisa Rubin	Kansas State University
	Will Lewis	University of Georgia
Student-athlete barriers to bystander intentions: Assessing gender role conflict and opportunities to respond to post-sexual assault	Lorin Tredinnick	University of Connecticut

 
About N4A: N4A, which has been in existence since 1975, is a diverse educational service and professional non-profit organization. Membership of N4A includes academic support and student services personnel who are committed to enhancing opportunities for academic, athletics and personal success for student-athletes. For more information on N4A, visit www.nfoura.org. N4A is administered by NACDA, now in its 55^th year, administers 17 professional associations, including seven for the separate business units that report directly to the athletics directors. For more information on NACDA, visit www.nacda.com.