Courtesy of LehighSports.com
INDIANAPOLIS – Because of the impact they’ve made within the Lehigh and local communities, senior Devon Carter and junior Quinci Mann have been nominated for the Allstate Insurance Company Good Works Team, as announced by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) and the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) on Wednesday. They are two of 278 nominees, across all divisions of men’s and women’s basketball, for the prestigious honor. The Good Works Team honors an outstanding group of student-athletes who represent the sport’s finest in the areas of community service and leadership among their peers.
Lehigh is the only school in the Patriot League with both a men’s and women’s nominee. Carter is one of just three nominees from the league on the men’s side while Mann is one of only three Patriot League women’s basketball nominees.
The Allstate NABC and WBCA Good Works Teams® recognizes players at all levels of college basketball whose charitable involvement and altruistic acts stand out amongst all other student-athletes participating in the sport.
The players nominated embody the true spirit of teamwork and giving back. Athletic departments and sports information directors across the country nominated the 181 NABC and the 97 WBCA student-athletes for the prestigious honor. Two special voting panels will select 10-member teams from both the NABC and WBCA, comprised of five student-athletes from the NCAA Division I level and five student-athletes from Divisions II, III and the NAIA. The final roster of 20 award recipients will be unveiled in February.
A Good Works Team nominee for a second straight year, Carter is making a difference in the Lehigh community in a number of ways, which includes conducting research with Psychology Professor, Dr. Gordon Moskowitz. Some breakthroughs came out of the research as the study was the first to show that time perception is affected by race. After earning his undergraduate degree in psychology last spring, Carter has continued his studies, and research, as a graduate student this fall while also beginning his own research related to goal attainment. Carter’s impact has spread into the local community as well. Last summer, a large contingent of student-athletes headed to Penrose Middle School in Philadelphia where they helped rebuild their athletic fields by doing things like painting, pulling weeds and putting up fencing. There was also a leadership workshop for the middle school students. This past summer, Carter and his teammates went to a local church where they provided food and clothing for veterans and the homeless. He also spoke at a Stay in to Win assembly at a local middle school this fall, touching on various topics including the importance of staying in school and graduating.
Mann has made a big impact at Lehigh as well, highlighted by recently starting a program called ASCEND: Athletes Seeking Change Educating and Nurturing Diversity. The program is a task-force aimed at creating an inclusive environment and increasing cultural awareness and support. Mann initiated the creation of the program, which will work with other athletic groups like Student-Athlete Council, Athlete Ally, Student-Athlete Mentors and Community Outreach by Athletes Who Care about Helping (COACH). The ultimate goal is to help create a unified athletic department that will tackle social issues throughout the university. They will work closely with administration, staff, and faculty to raise cultural competency, advocate for marginalized identities and communities within Athletics, and provide opportunities for support, exploration and learning. In addition, Mann has been very active with community service. Mann and her teammates make several community visits, including an annual visit to St. Luke’s Hospital around the holidays to visit the children and brighten up their days.
Both Carter and Mann have been actively involved with Reading Rocks, where Lehigh student-athletes read to elementary/middle school students and spend time with the youngsters. They also take part in Adopt-A-Family, an opportunity for the student-athletes to develop a special relationship with an underprivileged local family around the holidays. By “adopting” a family, the Mountain Hawks support them and provide them a holiday season. The entire event includes raising funds, shopping for gifts, wrapping the gifts and the final event when the student-athletes meet their families and provide the gifts.
Since 2008, Allstate has partnered with the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) as a sponsor of the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team®, which recognizes the off-the-field impact college football student-athletes have on their communities.
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