Nevada swimmer Josien Wijkhuijs was one of seven student-athletes in the Mountain West to be awarded $2,500 in tuition from the College Football Playoff (CFP) Foundation and Dr. Pepper as part of the Go Teach Dr. Pepper Tuition Giveaway.
This is the third year of the Go Teach Dr. Pepper Tuition Giveaway, which is part of a collective six-year effort between the CFP Foundation and Dr. Pepper, awarding more than $1.5 million in tuition to student-athletes looking to become teachers. This fund is in addition to Dr. Pepper's Tuition Giveaway program and includes all 10 FBS conferences, the University of Notre Dame and HBCU驶s. Each year, up to 150 student-athletes will be awarded $2,500 in tuition, and 11 grand-prize recipients will receive an additional $10,000 tuition grant – one student per conference. The Mountain West will announce its grand prize tuition recipient on Dec. 3.
Wijkhuijs is a fifth-year student-athlete for Nevada. Wijkhuijs has earned multiple All-Mountain West honors since her freshman year in 2019. This year, Wijkhuijs earned her first Mountain West Swimmer of the Week honors on Oct. 4.
The CFP Foundation and Dr. Pepper are dedicated to growing the Go Teach initiative to place qualified teachers in classrooms nationwide. Launched in 2018 through a pilot program at the University of Texas at Austin, the Go Teach initiative quickly expanded to a dozen schools by the end of 2019. Today, more than 15 schools are participating in the Go Teach program and identifying creative ways to help student-athletes move into the teaching profession.
The CFP Foundation is the largest sports entity supporting K-12 educators in America. For more information about the CFP Foundation, visit the website:
Recipients of $2,500 in tuition awards (each of the students is majoring in education):
- Erin Morden, Boise State, Gymnastics (Elementary Education)
- Isabella Sonkoly, Fresno State, Water Polo (Liberal Studies & Human Development)
- Josien Wijkhuijs, Nevada, Swimming (Integrated Elementary, English Language BSEDU Acquisition & Development)
- Christopher Humetewa, New Mexico, Track & Field (Secondary Education)
- Elizabeth Menzmer, San Diego State, Swimming (Special Education, Mild to Moderate Support Needs Credential)
- Ashley Goard, San José State, Softball (English Prep for Teaching)
- Caige McComb, Wyoming, Track & Field (College of Education, Secondary Education-Social Studies)
