NEW ORLEANS - App State graduate student
Celia Agee, a pole vaulter on the Mountaineers' track and field team, has been awarded a $12,500 tuition award through the Go Teach Dr. Pepper Tuition Giveaway.
The College Football Playoff Foundation and Go Teach Dr. Pepper Tuition Giveaway awards $2,500 in tuition to up to 150 student-athletes seeking careers in education. Eleven grand-prize selections - one student-athlete representative from each conference - are awarded an additional $10,000. Agee was the Sun Belt Conference's grand-prize winner.
More than 260 student-athletes have received tuition support through the program since it was started in 2020.
"I would like to congratulate Celia on her well-deserved scholarship," said director of track & field/cross country,
Damion McLean. "Her hard work and dedication have truly paid off. I'm thrilled to see her talent and commitment recognized in this way."
"I am thrilled for Celia being awarded this scholarship," said pole vault coach
Daniel Isaacs. "She has truly earned it through her character, hard work and high achievements on the track and in the classroom."
Agee graduated in the spring of 2023 with an undergraduate degree in elementary education with a concentration in language and literacy and a minor in special education. Agee is currently pursuing a master's degree in literacy education with a graduate certificate in autism.
"I want to be a teacher because I have such a deep love for learning that I want to be able to instill into the lives of young children," said Agee. "I want my future students to be able to come into my classroom and enter a safe and positive learning environment. I want my students to come to school and enjoy learning."
The Mineral, Va., native has worn the Black and Gold since 2019. Agee marked an indoor personal best of 3.69m (12' 1.25") at the 2023 Sun Belt Indoor Championships (Feb. 20-21). Her outdoor personal best, 3.66m (12' 0"), was set at the 2021 Wendy's Teal Seahawk Invitational (March 13, 2021) and was later matched at the 2023 Sun Belt Outdoor Championships (May 11-13).
Over the course of her career, Agee has tallied 16 top-five finishes in the indoor pole vault and 10 top-five finishes in the outdoor event. She has also collected CSC Academic All-District accolades for her efforts in the classroom.
"Being a student-athlete has really helped me in reaching some of my career goals," said Agee. "I think one of the important skills that being a track athlete has taught me is how to be a team member. As a teacher you're going to have to work with a bunch of different stakeholders in the school. Being able to learn from other people and hear things from different perspectives is something that is super important.
"I also think that being able to cheer on other people, whether it's during practice or during meets, has also taught me to be a cheerleader for the people around me that I'm going to have to do as a teacher."
Agee and the women's track and field team will resume competition on Jan. 13 with the Mondo College Invite at the JDL Fast Track in Winston-Salem, N.C.
