NEW ORLEANS – A commitment to giving back has earned UT Arlington the Sun Belt Conference’s Community Service Award for the 2015-16 school year. The conference announced the honor on Wednesday.
The Sun Belt honors a monthly community service award recipient based on community service projects completed during that month and the conference member that combines for the most monthly honors is named the overall award winner. UT Arlington combined for four monthly awards with wins in November, December, February, and March.
“While there are many that talk about change and making a difference, it is a choice to reach further and backup such talk,” said Sun Belt Commissioner Karl Benson. “I salute the student-athletes of UT Arlington for making the choice to serve their community and congratulate them on receiving this award.”
In November, UTA student-athletes collected over 450 clothing items that were donated to Mission Arlington – a service that assists people with their physical and mental health needs. Community service projects during that month also included creating motivational cards encouraging students to stay in school, raising over $650 for two charitable organizations, and collecting over 50 canned food items.
December saw Maverick student-athletics teams participate in the Salvation Army’s “Ring the Bell” campaign as well as collect household items for area families that were affected by recent tornadoes in North Texas. Once again, student-athletes also collected items that were donated to Mission Arlington.
February’s initial goal for the Dig Pink volleyball campaign was to collect 2,000 canned food items, but with the help of student-athletes, academic staff and community, UTA’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) exceeded their expectations by bringing over 3,400 items.
In March, UT Arlington student-athletes gathered over 1,000 articles of clothing, collected over 4,000 soda cans, and visited a local learning center to speak with kids on the importance of education.
“It’s more about giving back than just going to class every day, playing sports and hanging out with teammates,” UT Arlington Athletics Director Jim Baker said. “It just shows how well rounded these student-athletes are.
In addition to UT Arlington’s monthly wins, student-athletes from Little Rock (September), UL Lafayette (October), Troy (January), and Georgia Southern (April) were recognized for their service.