CUNYAC Scholar-Athlete of the Month Presented by the Hospital for Special Surgery
For all of the 2015-16 award winners, visit cunyathletics.com/saotmawards
For more CUNYAC Scholar-Athlete of the Month History, visit cunyathletics.com/saotmhistory
Stephen Cadogan, Medgar Evers
Freshman with a 3.70 GPA in Biology
Men’s Indoor Track & Field from San Fernando, Trinidad and Presentation College High School
Stephen Cadogan has been named the CUNYAC/Hospital for Special Surgery Community College Scholar-Athlete of the Month for January 2016. The Trinidad native majors in Biology and has maintained a 3.70GPA for the last two semesters.
Stephen Cadogan is a freshman on the indoor track and field team. He is studying Liberal Arts and after 2 semesters has established a 3.707 GPA so far. Competitively, in Boston at the Terrier Classic meet on 1/30, he was part of the 4x400m relay team that both qualified for nationals and set a new school record time in the event of 3:18.27 Individually, in the same meet, Steven ran a national qualifying time in the 800m of 1:57.70 With a month to go before nationals, there is plenty of time let for Steven to improve his times and make a good showing at nationals.There are 12 men on the Indoor Track & Field team, and to Cadogan “although there is friendly competition, my teammates provide a massive amount of support and serve as the foundation of my success.”
After graduating from High School in Trinidad, Cadogan moved to Brooklyn where he heard that Kingsborough had a Trinidadian coach; is fact led him to apply. In Trinidad, Cadogan was a swimmer as well, and had been running for two years but had never envisioned himself running at the collegiate level. “The coach was extremely helpful, and walked me through the entire application process,” Cadogan recalls.
Majoring in Biology and competing on the Men’s Indoor Track & Field team is extremely demanding. When asked how he manages to balance course work, practice, games, work, and his personal life, Cadogan explains “it’s a sacrifice and putting academics and the team before a social life is essential, but it’s all worth it.”
Cadogan uses his knowledge from the classroom to help better prepare himself and his teammates for success. Being in the Biology field, Cadogan has learned about the body and reports “learning about nutrition and proper dieting has played a major role in my athletic success.” Cadogan adds, “My teammates are like my family and we all support each other and I find it easier to stick to my diet with their help.” Kingsborough’s Men’s Track & Field team are working hard on and off the track to prepare their bodies for competition and it appears that Cadogan’s input has been extremely helpful.
In addition to constantly preparing for competition and studying, Cadogan also works part-time at Modell’s, which is one of CUNYAC’s top sponsors. Although working, studying and competing is challenging, Cadogan feels that the key to success is “to never give up when you have the urge, and also to never limit yourself.” After speaking with Cadogan, it is evident that when he has a plan, he sticks to it and is constantly challenging himself. When asked how it feels to be named CUNYAC/Hospital for Special Surgery Community College Scholar-Athlete of the Month for the month of January Cadogan responded immediately, “I actually made this one of my goals for this season. It was shocking and I am very excited and honored.”
In the future, Cadogan plans to attend medical school with an ultimate goal of becoming an orthopedic surgeon. “I love my country and would like to be able to go back one day and help people,” Cadogan added enthusiastically. Cadogan strongly feels that it’s important to challenge yourself in all aspects, teammate Kwasie Applewhite is his greatest inspiration. “Kwasie has helped me gain confidence this season, which has made me a better competitor on all levels.” Stephen Cadogan’s accomplishments and drive as a rookie is impressive and the Kingsborough Wave is fortunate to have such a talented and dedicated student-athlete.