Awards as the outstanding senior athletes among Hope College graduates in the class of 2009 were presented to two students during the college's Honors Convocation on Thursday (April 23).
Awards as the outstanding senior athletes among Hope College graduates in the class of 2009 were presented to two students during the college's Honors Convocation on Thursday (April 23).
Nora Kuiper of Parchment (Parchment HS) was presented the John Schouten award while Jesse Reimink of Hudsonville (Hudsonville HS) received the Otto van der Velde All-Campus Award.
The van der Velde award is presented to a senior man for outstanding contributions to the college in athletics, scholarship and participation in student activities. The award, presented annually since 1932, is named in memory of Dr. Otto van der Velde, a 1915 HopeCollege graduate who lettered in four sports and was later the college's team physician for more than 40 years.
The Schouten award is given to a senior woman who, in addition to excelling in athletics, possesses other strong character traits and leadership abilities. The award is named in memory of John "Jack" Schouten who was a long-time physical educator and coach at Hope, in addition to serving as the college's first director of athletics.
A chemistry major, Kuiper is an NCAA All-American sprinter on the track team. Co-captain of this year's team, she holds the Hope record in the 100-meter dash and 200-meter dash. She is the two-time defending conference (MIAA) champion in the 100-meter dash. She is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Scott (Ann) Kuiper of Kalamazoo.
A geology major, Reimink is a consensus All-American basketball player. He was co-captain of the team as both a junior and senior. This season he led the conference (MIAA) in scoring and was chosen to several Division III All-America teams, incuding second team by the National Association of Basketball Coaches. He is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Ron (Linda) Reimink of Hudsonville.