The Walter Byers Scholar (also known as Walter Byers Scholarship, and Walter Byers Postgraduate Scholarship) program is a scholarship program that recognizes the top male and female student-athlete in NCAA sports and that is awarded annually by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The NCAA's considers it its highest academic award. The NCAA initiated the Walter Byers Scholarship program in 1988 in recognition of the service of Walter Byers. The award is a postgraduate scholarship program designed to encourage excellence in academic performance by student-athletes. The recipients each year are the one male and one female student-athlete who has combined the best elements of mind and body to achieve national distinction for their achievements, and who promises to be a future leader in their chosen field of career service. Winners receive scholarships for postgraduate study.

Details , the stipend for each Byers Scholarship was $24,000 for an academic year. The scholarship amount is adjusted for the cost of living. The grant may be renewed for a second year based on academic progress. Financial need is not a factor in the granting of these scholarships. United States citizenship is not required to satisfy eligibility requirements. Awards from other sources will not disqualify an applicant, except that an awardee may not use more than one NCAA postgraduate scholarship. The Walter Byers Postgraduate Scholarship Program is separate and distinct from the NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship Program, which provides annual awards with smaller stipends.

The five-person Walter Byers Scholarship Committee, established by the NCAA membership and appointed by the NCAA Divisions I, II and III Management Councils, administers the program. The committee membership is required to include at least one man and one woman, at least one member from each division and subdivision of Division I, and one member each from Division II and Division III.

Among the most recognized for post-athletic career accomplishments are Randal Pinkett and Rob Pelinka. Of the winners the one most notable for having gone professional in their sport is National Football League veteran Rob Zatechka, who later went on to medical school.

Some winners have won other notable awards. The following lists dual winners of certain awards: Rhodes Scholar - Henderson, Thigpen, Pinkett Top VIII Award - Black, Roethlisberger, Busbee, Carney NCAA Woman of the Year Award - Black, Bersagel

Winners The historical winners are as follows:

Year Male Female Athlete Sport School Athlete Sport School1989Richard HallBasketballBall State UniversityRegina CavanaghTrack and fieldRice University1990Dean SmithBasketballUniversity of MaineLinda PopovichVolleyballBowling Green State University1991J. David BrownTrack and fieldCross countryUniversity of IowaMarie RoethlisbergerGymnasticsUniversity of Minnesota1992David HoneaCross countryNorth Carolina State UniversitySigall KassuttoGymnasticsUniversity of California, Berkeley1993Rob PelinkaBasketballUniversity of MichiganSheryl KlemmeBasketballSaint Joseph's College (Indiana)1994Randal PinkettTrack and fieldRutgers UniversityChrista GannonBasketballUniversity of California, Santa Barbara1995Robert ZatechkaFootballUniversity of Nebraska–LincolnCarla AinsworthSwimmingKenyon College1996Christopher PalmerFootballSt. John's University (Minnesota)Tracey HolmesGolfUniversity of Kentucky1997Scott KeaneTrack and fieldUniversity of CincinnatiMarya MorusiewiczVolleyballBarry University1998Robert "Brad" GrayFootballMassachusetts Institute of TechnologyMarsha HarrisBasketballNew York University1999Samuel "Calvin" ThigpenTrack and fieldCross countryUniversity of MississippiGladys GanielTrack and fieldCross countryProvidence College2000Matthew BusbeeSwimmingAuburn UniversityAnna HallbergsonTennisBarry University2001Bradley HendersonBasketballUniversity of ChicagoKimberly BlackSwimmingUniversity of Georgia2002Kyle EashFootballTrack and fieldIllinois Wesleyan UniversityClaudia VeritasLacrosseWellesley College2003McLain "Mac" SchneiderFootballUniversity of North DakotaNatalie HalbachGymnasticsUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill2004Joaquin ZalacainTennisUniversity of Puerto Rico, Rio PiedrasCorrin DrakulichTrack and fieldUniversity of Georgia2005Matthew GunnTrack and fieldCross countryUniversity of ArkansasSarah DanceSwimmingTruman State University2006Bryan NorringtonTrack and fieldColorado CollegeAnnie BersagelTrack and fieldCross countryWake Forest University2007Dane ToddFootballUniversity of Nebraska–LincolnKatie KingsburyTennisWashington and Lee University2008Dylan CarneyGymnasticsStanford UniversityBrenna BurnsTrack and fieldCross countryDavidson College2009Craig SheedyDivingUniversity of ArizonaAmy MasseySoccerUniversity of Southern California2010Joshua MahoneyFootballUniversity of Northern IowaKatherine TheisenTrack and fieldCross countryUniversity of St. Thomas2011J. David GatzSwimmingOhio Wesleyan UniversityJessica PixlarTrack and fieldCross countrySeattle Pacific University2012Miles BattyTrack and fieldCross CountryBrigham Young UniversityKelsey WardSwimmingDrury University2013 Matt Horn Soccer Winthrop University Alexa Duling Track and field University of South Dakota2014 Kyle Boden Football Emory and Henry College Karenee Demery Soccer California State University, Stanislaus2015 Tofey James "T.J." Leon IV Swimming Auburn University Lucinda Kauffman Field Hockey Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania2016 Mitchell Black Track and Field Tufts University Katherine Riojas Soccer University of Tulsa2017 George Bugarinovic Basketball Johns Hopkins University Nandini Mehta Soccer Northwestern University2018 Michael Seward Hockey Harvard University Jennifer Carmichael Track and Field University of Oklahoma2019 Derek Soled Fencing Yale University Rachael Acker Swimming University of California, Berkeley2020 Xavier Gonzalez Tennis Harvard University Kayla Leland Cross CountryBasketballTrack and Field Whitworth University2021 Ivo Cerda Soccer University of Michigan Asia Seidt Swimming University of Kentucky2022Gavin Turner Fencing Pennsylvania State UniversityMackenzie Niness Swimming Villanova University2023Dylan Kim Fencing Princeton UniversityLogan Eggleston Volleyball University of Texas2024Ian Cleary Baseball Oakland UniversityAlexandra Turvey Swimming Pomona College2025Mason Nichols Baseball University of MississippiKatelin Isakoff Swimming Tufts University2026Aidan Crawford Soccer Loyola University ChicagoSkylar Ciccolini Track and Field University of Missouri

See also Academic All-America List of Academic All-America Team Members of the Year Elite 89 Award NCAA Sportsmanship Award (student-athletes who have demonstrated one or more of the ideals of sportsmanship) Today's Top VIII Award (NCAA) (outstanding senior student-athletes) NCAA Woman of the Year Award (senior female student-athlete) Silver Anniversary Awards (NCAA) (former student-athletes)

Notes

External links Walter Byers Postgraduate Scholarship Program 2007 finalists