Minnesota State University Moorhead was announced as the Division II 2023 Award of Excellence winner during the division's business session Saturday at the NCAA Convention in San Antonio.
The Dragons, among 22 Division II Award of Excellence finalists, were recognized for their efforts honoring the late Joe Keller, a MSU Moorhead superfan, student, athletics intern and friend to many in the community.
"I appreciate the NCAA's commitment to recognizing student-athletes for their contributions outside of their sports," MSU Moorhead President Anne Blackhurst said. "Our Dragon student-athletes exemplify MSU Moorhead's core values of grit, humility and heart — both on and off the playing field. They inspire my Dragon pride every day, and I'm thrilled they've received national recognition for their extraordinary engagement with our community."
Each year, the national Division II Student-Athlete Advisory Committee selects the Award of Excellence winner based on actions over the past year that exemplify the Division II philosophy, community engagement and student-athlete leadership.
Diagnosed with muscular dystrophy at age 5, Keller died in the summer of 2021. A Make-A-Wish recipient and advocate who grew up in the MSU Moorhead community, Keller became even more ingrained in Dragon athletics as a student majoring in broadcast journalism. He befriended athletes on every team. He attended as many of their events as possible. He helped MSU Moorhead's SAAC with Make-A-Wish fundraising efforts.
His impact on MSU Moorhead's student-athletes led them to want to honor his life in fitting fashion: a basketball doubleheader. T-shirts with "Joe's Heroes" on the front were worn by the men's and women's basketball teams in warmups. The MSU Moorhead SAAC also raised $4,385 for the Fargo Make-A-Wish Foundation through social media campaigns, collaboration with Papa John's and an indoor tailgate at the game. Keller's family was recognized on court, a special moment for everyone in the building.
As the winner of the award, MSU Moorhead will receive $2,500 to use toward future community engagement efforts.
Cedarville received runner-up Award of Excellence honors for its Yellowjacket Virtual Reading Program. The school will receive $1,250 to use toward future community engagement efforts. Cedarville implemented the program in August 2020 to stay engaged with its community during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. This program has continued, and this past fall, 57 teachers from 10 schools registered their classes to participate in the eight-week virtual reading series. In addition, 265 books were donated to 11 classrooms.Â
Roberts Wesleyan finished third for its partnership with Rise Against Hunger, an international humanitarian organization. The school will receive $1,000 for its efforts. Roberts Wesleyan student-athletes held their inaugural meal-packing event to help address both local and global hunger needs in 2022. Through a Redhawks fundraising event, they were able to raise $5,000 for this initiative, which gave them the opportunity to pack and box 13,176 single-meal packets. These meals were received by ORPHANetwork, a Rise Against Hunger partner, and distributed in Nicaragua.Â
