March 20, 2007
Sims to honor Paul Robeson Scholar-Athletes
20th annual ceremony praises tomorrow’s leaders
Academic achievements of more than 600 student athletes will be celebrated this evening at the 20th annual Paul Robeson Scholar-Athlete Awards. Boys and girls ranging from kindergarteners to sophomores in high school will be honored for their accomplishments in the classroom and on the playing field. The award is named after Robeson, an internationally famous African American singer, actor, athlete and scholar who was the third African American to graduate from Columbia University Law School.
The awards program was co-founded by King County Executive Ron Sims and Lt. Ronald Sylve of the Seattle Police Department (retired) when the two were coaching youth football. At its first ceremony, the program honored a few dozen Seattle students and over the past two decades it has grown into a countywide celebration.
"I look forward to honoring an accomplished and motivated group of scholar-athletes who have found a healthy balance between books and the playing field" said Sims.
Isaiah Stanback, a two-sport star at Garfield High School and a four-year letter winner at the University of Washington, where he started the last two seasons at quarterback will be the guest speaker. Despite a foot injury that ended his final UW season early, he ended his college football career 11th in Husky history in passing yards, and also had the lowest interception percentage of any Washington quarterback ever.
The ceremony will take place:
Tues., March 20, 2007
5 p.m. – Doors open for registration of recipients
6 p.m. – Ceremony program
Qwest Field Event Center
"Here in Martin Luther King, Jr. County we honor a great man in African American history as we honor our youth and the promise they hold as tomorrow's leaders," said Sims. "Being exceptional athletes is a great accomplishment, but if our youth are also academically driven to succeed their potential is infinite. With strong minds our youth can have a profound impact in their communities, this country and the world."
The Paul Robeson Scholar-Athlete Award is named in honor of Paul Robeson (1898-1976) an internationally acclaimed actor and singer who was also a brilliant scholar athlete, the Paul Robeson Scholar-Athlete Awards Program was created in 1986 by Sims and Sylve. The program aims to nurture and celebrate students who excel in both academics and athletics. In its first year, the program honored 23 students and with the success of the program, the number of recipients continues to increase each year. In its 20-year history, the program has honored nearly 10,000 students.
Paul Robeson was a man who overcame race and became one of the most accomplished, driven and multi-talented African Americans in history. Robeson was a Phi Beta Kappa scholar and valedictorian at Rutgers University who spoke and wrote more than 20 languages. Robeson graduated with honors from Columbia Law School.
As an athlete, Robeson was a star baseball catcher, a stellar basketball player and coach, one of the first African Americans to be named an All-American in college football and one of the first African Americans to play and star in professional football. An individual with an astonishing list of achievements, Robeson used his fame to advance the cause of civil rights.
This year's Paul Robeson Scholar-Athlete Award ceremony is sponsored by Muckleshoot Indian Tribe; KeyBank; Moneytree, Inc.; Pacific Raceways, Inc.; Puget Sound Energy; Regence BlueShield; Seattle Sonics & Storm Foundation; Wells Fargo Bank.