From Emory University Athletics
Three former or current Emory University student-athletes have been named winter recipients of the prestigious NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship, bestowed upon student-athletes who excel academically and athletically, while also serving as leaders in the community. The NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship, a $10,000 award will be applied toward their current or future graduate degree programs.
The trio include former men's indoor track and field member Max Brown (Warren, NJ), former women's swimming and diving standout Caroline Olson (Atlanta, GA) and senior Lara Gemar (Phoenix, AZ) of the women's and swimming diving program, who recently completed her eligibility.
During Brown's four years (2014-15 through 2017-18) on the Eagles' indoor track and field team, he competed in three NCAA D-III Championships in the mile run, earning All-America honors in 2016 and 2018. His eighth-place finish at the 2018 nationals enabled him to become just the fourth Emory male, joining Troy Thompson, Chris Williams and Chris Nehls, to earn multiple All-America honors in the same event in Emory Men's Indoor Track and Field history. He garnered three All-University Athletic Association certificates, two in the mile run and one in the distance medley relay. In addition, he was a seven-time USTFCCCA South/Southeast All-Region honoree spanning the 800 meters, mile run and distance medley relay.
He still holds the school indoor records in the mile run and 1,000-meter run. In the classroom, he was a two-time member of the College of Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) All-Academic Team. He earned his undergraduate degree in 2018 as a double major in Biophysics (BS) and Classical Civilizations (BA), finishing with a grade-point average of 3.51. Currently living in Madison, Wisconsin, where he works for Epic Systems, Max will attend the University of Wisconsin Professional MBA School in the fall.
During Olson's storied career (2016-17 through 2019-20), she helped the women's swimming and diving program to three national crowns before the COVID-19 pandemic stymied the bid for a fourth straight title. A 12-time All-American, she was a national champion as a member of the 2019 400-medley relay team and the 2017 400-freestyle relay team, which established a national record. She captured three All-America certificates in the 100-yard backstroke and finished second at nationals in that event in 2017 with her time of 54.42 seconds, a school record. She helped Emory to four University Athletic Association championships, earning 11 all-league recognitions in the process. She was a five-time UAA champion, twice as a member of the 200-free relay team, twice on the 400-free relay team and once on the 400-medley relay team.
Olson was a three-time honoree on the College Swimming and Diving Coaches Association of America All-Scholar Team and earned a spot on the 2020 UAA President's Council Scholar-Athlete Team. She graduated Emory in May of 2020 as a double major in Anthropology and Human Biology and Environmental Sciences with a cumulative GPA of 3.72. Currently in the Rollins School of Public Health, in May she will earn an MPH and a certificate in Climate and Health. From there, she plans on attending medical school.
While the COVID-19 pandemic scuttled the 2020 NCAA D-III Championships and the 2020-21 season for the women's swimming and diving team, Gemar still played a role in the program's success as a member of the 2018 and 2019 national title teams. In 2020, she captured All-America honors in the 200 breaststroke after claiming honorable-mention kudos the previous year in the same event. A two-time All-UAA honoree in the 200 breaststroke, she finished second at the conference championships in 2020. Named team captain for the 2020-21 season, she garnered a host of institutional honors away from the pool including being named a Sonny Carter Scholarship recipient, earning a spot on Emory's Political Science Honors Program, being recognized as an Emory 100 Senior Honorary and being inducted in 2019 to Pi Sigma Alpha (National Political Science Honors Society).
In addition, she was a CSCAA Scholar All-American on two occasions. Very involved with the Special Olympics program in both Georgia and Arizona, she served as an intern for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and for the McCain Institute for International Leadership, where among some of her duties included creating content for the Student Alliance Against Trafficking website. She also was a two-year Research Fellow at the Emory Center for Law and Social Sciences. A double major in Public Policy Analysis and Political Science, she will graduate this weekend with a 3.86 GPA. After graduation, she plans on pursuing graduate studies in either Public Policy or Public Affairs.
Emory has been awarded 121 postgraduate scholarships over the school's history, and its 104 since 2000 is second only to Stanford University for the highest total by any NCAA member.