THE FLATS – Georgia Tech student-athletes Hugh Chapman (baseball), Kierra Fletcher (women’s basketball), Catriona MacGregor (women’s swimming and diving) and Luke Waddell (baseball) are among the Atlantic Coast Conference’s 52 2021 Weaver-James-Corrigan Postgraduate Scholarship recipients.
This year’s list includes three student-athletes, including MacGregor, who will receive the Thacker Award and nine student-athletes, including Waddell, who plan to pursue professional careers in their chosen sports and were named honorary recipients. To be considered, a student-athlete must have a minimum 3.0 cumulative grade point average as an undergraduate.
The Weaver-James-Corrigan and Jim and Pat Thacker postgraduate scholarships are awarded to selected student-athletes who intend to pursue a graduate degree following completion of their undergraduate requirements. Chapman, Fletcher and MacGregor will each receive $6,000 toward their graduate educations. Those honored have performed with distinction in both the classroom and their respective sport, while demonstrating exemplary conduct in the community.
About the Weaver-James-Corrigan Award
The Weaver-James-Corrigan Award is named in honor of the late Jim Weaver, Bob James, and Gene Corrigan, the first three ACC commissioners. The league’s first commissioner, James H. Weaver, served the conference from 1954-70 after a stint as the Director of Athletics at Wake Forest. His early leadership and uncompromising integrity are largely responsible for the excellent reputation enjoyed by the ACC today.
Robert C. James, a former Maryland football player, was named commissioner in 1971 and served in that capacity for 16 years. During his tenure, the league continued to grow in stature and became recognized as a national leader in athletics and academics, winning 23 national championships and maintaining standards of excellence in the classroom.
Eugene F. Corrigan assumed his role as the third full-time commissioner on September 1, 1987 and served until August of 1997. During Corrigan’s tenure, ACC schools captured 30 NCAA championships and two national football titles.
Prior to 1994, the Weaver-James postgraduate scholarships were awarded as separate honors, including the Jim Weaver Award, the Marie James Award and the Bob James Award.
About the Thacker Award
The Thacker Award, which originated in 2005, is awarded in honor of the late Jim and Pat Thacker of Charlotte, North Carolina. Jim Thacker was the primary play-by-play announcer for the ACC’s first television network. Recipients of the award must demonstrate outstanding performance both in athletic competition and in the classroom and intend to further their education through postgraduate studies at an ACC institution.
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