Lynnae Wilke and Daniel Lanari receive Scholar-Athlete Award

Lynnae Wilke from Parkers Prairie, MN, and Daniel Lanari from Mountain Iron, MN, received The College of St. Scholastica's Scholar-Athlete Award presented at the College's Senior Athletics Banquet on April 29.

The Scholar-Athlete Award is presented to one male and one female athlete who embody what it means to be a NCAA Division III athlete. Through this award, The College of St. Scholastica and its faculty recognize the role athletics play in developing leaders by rewarding athletes' excellence in the classroom as well as their service to the community.

St. Scholastica student athletes who demonstrate a healthy balance in their athletics, academics, college or community service, are in their senior year and have completed at least one season of intercollegiate athletics participation are eligible for the award. The Athletics Advisory Committee chooses the winners.

Wilke will graduate cum laude with a bachelor's degree in biology (pre-med) this spring. A two-year captain of the women's tennis team, she was selected to the UMAC All-Academic team in 2007. She currently serves as president of the Pre-Med Club and chair of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC).

She is a teaching assistant and tutor for St. Scholastica professor Dr. Gerald Cizadlo, a mentor and tutor for the MENTUR (More Education for Nurses That Are Under-Represented) program, and a volunteer at St. Mary's Duluth Clinic (SMDC). She has also taken a lead role in organizing many SAAC, Pre-Med Club and tennis team service activities.

Lanari will graduate cum laude with a bachelor's degree in physical therapy this spring. He was captain of the men's baseball team and two-time member of the UMAC All-Academic team.

He has been very involved in service and leadership roles throughout his career at St. Scholastica. He serves as a tutor for the baseball team, often advising his teammates on academic issues. He has also taken the lead in coordinating the baseball team's community service activities.

He has coordinated volunteer activities at the St. Scholastica Monastery, Holy Rosary School in Duluth and served his hometown community of Mountain Iron, MN.

The College of St. Scholastica is regularly recognized as one of the finest colleges in the Midwest. The 2009 "America's Best Colleges" survey by U.S. News & World Report magazine ranks St. Scholastica in the top tier of Midwestern Universities. The Washington Post has rated St. Scholastica as one of the nation's 100 "hidden gems" among U.S. colleges and universities.