FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 12, 2008


Weaver, Tucker named 2008 FHSAA Scholar-Athletes of the Year

ATLANTIC BEACH – T.J. Weaver of St. Johns Country Day School (Orange Park) and Katherine Tucker of Bishop Kenny High School (Jacksonville) were respectively named the 2008 FHSAA Male and Female Scholar-Athletes of the Year at the 14th Annual Florida High School Athletic Association Academic All-State Awards Banquet tonight at the One Ocean Resort in Atlantic Beach.

The two students – among the 24 chosen to the 2008 FHSAA Academic All-State Team – received a $3000 scholarship and commemorative trophy in addition to the $1000 award and medallion for being selected to the team. The Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award is generally regarded as the most prestigious award the Association confers upon an active student-athlete.

Weaver finished his high school career with a 4.0 cumulative unweighted grade point average, valedictorian of his 48-member senior class. He earned varsity letters in soccer and track & field all four years of high school, as well as two letters in football and one in swimming. Weaver was a member of the 2005 Class 2A boys soccer state championship team. He will attend the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Fla., majoring in Spanish and international business.

Weaver is a National Merit Finalist and a member of the National Honor Society and National French and Spanish Honor Societies. He was president of the Cum Laude Society and received the Duke University Book Award as a junior. Weaver also dedicates his time to peer tutoring and working as a volunteer camp counselor.

Tucker finished her high school career with a 4.0 cumulative unweighted grade point average, salutatorian of her 291-member senior class. She earned varsity letters in basketball and track & field all four years of high school, as well as volleyball her junior and senior years. Tucker was a member of the 2006 Class 4A girls volleyball state runner-up team as a junior and is a two-time state finalist in the high jump. She will attend the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind., majoring in chemistry and pre-medicine.

Tucker is an AP Scholar and a member of Bishop Kenny's President's Honor Roll. She served as president of the National Honor Society and received the National Latin Cum Laude Award as a junior. Tucker also received the John Burke Scholar-Athlete Award and the United States Army Reserve National Scholar-Athlete Award.

Last April, 24 student-athletes – 12 boys and 12 girls – were chosen from among more than 75 qualified nominees from the Association’s 650 member high schools as the 2008 FHSAA Academic All-State Team. To be eligible for selection to the team, a student must be a graduating senior, must have a cumulative unweighted grade point average of 3.5 or better, and must have earned a varsity letter in at least two different sports during each of their junior and senior years.

The FHSAA Scholar-Athletes of the Year recognition program began in 1991-92. Since the Academic All-State Team program was initiated during the 1994-95 school year, only those student-athletes who are selected to the team are eligible for the Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award.

The Florida High School Athletic Association is the governing body for interscholastic athletics in Florida. It has a membership of more than 750 middle, junior and senior high schools.

Past FHSAA Female Scholar-Athletes of the Year
2007 – Celeste Thacker, Osceola High School (Kissimmee)
2006 – Kristen Weaver, St. Johns Country Day (Orange Park)
2005 – Christa Bosenberg, Walton (DeFuniak Springs)
2004 – Katherine Booth, Lake Mary
2003 – Revae Green, Tavares
2002 – Courtney Caplin, St. Johns Country Day (Orange Park)
2001 – Becky Tapp, St. Petersburg Catholic
2000 – Lisa Porter, Island Christian (Islamorada)
1999 – Tiffany Walker, Naples
1998 – Deborah Thomas, Stanton (Jacksonville)
1997 – Megan Beck, Lely (Naples)
1996 – Mary Jernigan, Dr. Phillips (Orlando)
1995 – Terri Phelan, Miami Sunset
1994 – Kelly Dillon, Port St. Lucie
1993 – Stephanie Eken, St. Cloud
1992 – Erin Thomas, St. Thomas Aquinas (Fort Lauderdale)

Past FHSAA Male Scholar-Athletes of the Year
2007 – Daniel Bush, Arnold High School (Panama City Beach)
2006 – Jake Mervis, Lake Highland Prep (Orlando)
2005 – Eddie Tabasky, Mainland (Daytona Beach)
2004 – Ryan Truchelut, Trinity Prep (Winter Park)
2003 – Adam Kircher, Maclay (Tallahassee)
2002 – Nick Wilson, Paxon (Jacksonville)
2001 – Bob Ross, Rockledge
2000 – Nick Nestle, Mainland (Daytona Beach)
1999 – Jared Day, Liberty County (Bristol)
1998 – Isaac Morford, Keystone Heights
1997 – Robert Rutland-Brown, Spruce Creek (Port Orange)
1996 – Ethan Altaratz, Naples
1995 – Kevin Campbell, Jupiter
1994 – Grant Thompson, Oak Hall (Gainesville)
1993 – Clint Park, North Florida Christian (Tallahassee)
1992 – Shelby Highsmith Jr., Ransom Everglades (Miami)

Contact:
Laurel Ring
Director of Special Programs, FHSAA
(352) 372-9551 ext. 350
lring@fhsaa.org