Van Voorhis Earns F.L. McDonald Postgraduate Scholarship

By Lion Athletics

FRISCO – Texas A&M University-Commerce men’s track and field and cross country student-athlete Colten van Voorhis has received the prestigious F.L. McDonald Postgraduate Scholarship from the Southland Conference.
 
Only two student-athletes across all sports and schools in the Southland receive the F.L. McDonald award, which is presented annually to one female and one male graduating student-athlete upon selection by the Southland Conference Faculty Athletic Representative Committee. The $5,000 scholarship must be applied to graduate study at an institution of the recipient’s choice.
 
Van Voorhis (Prosper – Rock Hill) has been a three-year member of the Lion track and field and cross country programs, while also receiving his bachelor’s degree in computer science earlier this spring. He was an undergraduate team captain of the cross country team in the 2023 season.
 
Along with being a member of the Lion track and field as well as cross country teams, Van Voorhis is also a member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and was a Department of Homeland Security Research program member, a project sponsored by the Department of Homeland Security in a joint effort between A&M-Commerce and the RELLIS Texas A&M campuses.
 
His research was identifying and protecting against security vulnerabilities to emerging emergency communication systems in a team of two A&M-Commerce students and two RELLIS students. He was also responsible for the creation of a computer science lab that could specifically be used to host a testbed for the research project and bridged the gap between A&M-Commerce and the RELLIS lab capabilities.
 
Van Voorhis also worked as a camera operator for the athletic department’s broadcasting services on ESPN+. UIW’s Payton Adams, a soccer student-athlete are the two recipients of the honor this year.
 
The F.L. McDonald award was established in 1996 in memory of Dr. F.L. McDonald, a former president of Lamar University and 1999 Southland Hall of Honor inductee. McDonald was serving as Lamar’s president in 1963 when the Southland Conference was established. He is considered one of the league’s founding fathers.
 
Adams and van Voorhis were chosen from a pool of fellow classmates and graduated student-athletes. Applicants must have at least a 3.75 GPA and have lettered at least two seasons at the nominating institution. Each recipient must enroll in a full-time graduate program within one year of receiving the award.