Blackburn College Senior Jared Jones was just named the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Male Scholar Athlete of the Year for the 2015-16 school year. Jones, from Mitchell, Indiana, has excelled in the classroom while also being a four-year member of the baseball team. Jones has also been the manager of the athletic program for the past three years in the Blackburn College Work Program.
"Jared is a student-athlete that comes along very rarely in regards to his work ethic, time management and people skills," said Blackburn Head Baseball Coach Mike Neal. Jones is majoring in sports administration and will be attending graduate school at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee next year.
"Jared has demonstrated all that is great with Division III athletics – excellence and dedication in the classroom, on the baseball field and within the community. Jared is a true ambassador for the Division, Blackburn College and the Conference," said SLIAC Commissioner Angie Morenz.
While attending Blackburn, Jones has spent parts of his summers either playing baseball, working in the athletic department at Indiana University, and attending a sports career symposium with the NCAA to prepare for a career in college athletics.
Jones is the first male athlete from Blackburn College to win this award with the conference. "This is a tremendous honor and accomplishment for Jared. He is an outstanding scholar-athlete and a highly respected student leader at Blackburn. The Blackburn College Community is very proud of Jared's selection as SLIAC Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year," said Blackburn College Athletic Director John Malin.