Video Interview with Brett Tester
Video Interview with Kali Cordes
ST. PAUL -- The College of St. Scholastica's Brett Tester and University of Minnesota Morris' Kali Cordes have been named the recipients of the 2013 Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Scholar-Athlete Leadership Award. The award, which is given to one male and one female student-athlete from UMAC member-institutions, recognizes graduating seniors who demonstrate a healthy balance by achieving excellence in academics, leadership, and service, while participating in intercollegiate athletics.
The NCAA Division III athlete is unique among intercollegiate athletes because, at Division III institutions, student-athletes receive no financial aid for athletic participation. Such institutions emphasize the overall quality of the educational experience and the successful completion of the student’s academic program; athletic participation is an important part of that educational experience. Division III provides opportunities for student-athletes to be a part of numerous campus activities in addition to athletics, and these award recipients have maximized those opportunities. The UMAC Scholar-Athlete Leadership Award is presented to students who embody what it means to be an NCAA Division III athlete. Through this award, the UMAC recognizes the role athletics plays in developing leaders by rewarding athletes' excellence in the classroom as well as service to the community. The league’s faculty athletic representatives nominate and vote on this honor.
Tester, an accounting and finance double major at St. Scholastica, has been a standout student-athlete in the sport of men’s basketball for four years. He was named UMAC Freshman of the Year for the 2009-2010 season and earned All-Conference honors each of the next three seasons. A two year captain of the men’s basketball team, Tester became the second player in Saints history to record 1,500 career points and 600 rebounds. Off the court Tester has made a name for himself as well. Maintaining a perfect 4.0 grade point average throughout his college career, Tester is the only St. Scholastica student-athlete to be named a College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) First Team Academic All-American twice. In addition, Tester has earned UMAC Academic All-Conference honors and was named a Benedictine Scholar by the college for demonstrating a high level of academic achievement and has earned several academic scholarships. His academic performance also earned him the titles of Outstanding Junior Accounting Student and Outstanding Junior Finance Student by the School of Business and Technology for the 2011-2012 academic year. Tester serves as a member of the Accounting Club and the School of Business and Technology Dean’s Advisory Council where acted as secretary for both groups during his collegiate career. An accounting department teaching assistant, Tester is also a tutor for other finance and accounting majors on campus as well as a tax software trainer for income tax students. This year he has worked as an intern for a local firm preparing tax returns for clients and acting as a supervisor for other interns. Throughout his career he has assisted the athletic department as a game management employee in the sports of volleyball, football and softball. Tester is also very involved in the Duluth community volunteering as a reading partner with local elementary schools and assisting with the cleanup of public hiking trails.
Cordes, who will graduate with a degree in Psychology and Studio Art at Minnesota Morris, was a captain and four-year member of the Cougar women’s soccer team and a one-year participant on the softball team. Cordes has been a member of the Minnesota Morris dean’s list every semester of her college career and is a four-time UMAC Academic All-Conference selection while also being named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District Women’s Soccer Team in 2011 and 2012. In 2010 she was named was named National Soccer Coaches Association of America All-Region for her performances both on and off the field. In addition to her academic work, Cordes has spent a considerable amount of time volunteering both on campus and in the Morris community. She is a volunteer at the University’s Health and Wellness Center and at the Benson Girls’ Ranch, an organization that provides a supportive, structured environment in which girls’ ages 12 to 21 learn to make responsible choices. Throughout her collegiate career Cordes coordinated a campus Toys for Tots drive, was involved with the Adopt a Family program, packed meals for Feed My Starving Children and led a silent auction and donation drive for the soccer team’s effort to raise awareness and funds for breast cancer research. Kali also serves as a member of the Minnesota Morris Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, is a group leader for undergraduate research in the psychology department, works for the Morris community education soccer program as well as the Divine House, which is a group home for adults with disabilities. This spring Cordes was awarded with the NCAA Post-Graduate scholarship, an honor that is given to student-athletes who have achieved high levels of combined academic and athletic success, are outstanding role models and intend to continue academic work beyond their baccalaureate degree.
“Each year I am impressed with the athletic, academic, leadership and service accomplishments of our Scholar-Athlete Leadership Award recipients,” UMAC Commissioner Corey Borchardt said. “This year is certainly no different as both Brett and Kali have numerous outstanding achievements in several arenas of their lives. These two student-athletes are great representatives of the NCAA Division III philosophy and the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference is extremely proud to highlight their successes and accomplishments.”
Both Tester and Cordes will receive a commemorative plaque with their name engraved on it. Together, they become the sixth group to win the UMAC Scholar-Athlete Leadership Award since its inception in 2008.
Past UMAC Scholar-Athlete Leadership Award winners:
2012 - Brady Giffith (Crown College), Joelle Pipal (Bethany Lutheran College)
2011 – Toby Peter (College of St. Scholastica), April Cook (Martin Luther College)
2010 – Nick Olson (Northwestern College), Maddy Gerber (University of Minnesota Morris)
2009 – Zach Marshall (Northwestern College), Eva Voss (Bethany Lutheran College)
2008 - Nathan Nass (Martin Luther College), Christopher
Rubesch (College of St. Scholastica), Kristin Scislow (Bethany Lutheran College)
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The Upper Midwest Athletic Conference is comprised of seven full and six associate members located throughout the Midwest. North Central will become the eighth full member with the commencement of the 2013-2014 academic year. Originally formed in 1972 as the Twin Rivers Conference, the league was renamed in 1983. The UMAC is a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III. The conference provides its member institutions the opportunity to be recognized in the areas of academic excellence and athletic competitiveness. The UMAC awards conference championships in 17 sports.
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