One of the most dominant athletes to ever put on a City College of New York uniform, Paul Dedewo has won three City University of New York Athletic Conference Performer of the Year awards. His dedication to his schoolwork and volunteer work is much more impressive as the 2011 NCAA All-American holds a 3.559 GPA in Advertising and Public Relations.
“City College has a rich academic and athletic history,” said Dedewo, “and I wanted to get the most out of this prestigious university.
Confident in his ability to shatter school records, Dedewo knew he would leave his mark at CCNY.
“I wanted to make history of my own,” Dedewo said. “I saw that the track and field team here had tons of potential to not only dominate CUNYAC, but also become regular ECAC and NCAA participants.”
His four years at City College have helped shape one of the greatest all-around student-athletes in the school’s rich history.
“These four years competing on the track and field team have been the best four years of my life,” said Dedewo. “I’ve formed deep friendships and have witnessed huge development in myself as an athlete. It’s been such an enormous privilege being here at City College. I’ll remember these years for the rest of my life.”
After receiving the 2009-2010 Men’s Indoor Track and Field CUNYAC Rookie of the Year award, he was named the Outdoor Track and Field Performer of the Year before earning athlete of the year honors in 2010-11 (indoor), 2011 (outdoor) and 2011-12 (indoor). He was named the CUNYAC Championship MVP three times, 2009-10 (indoor), 2010 (outdoor) and 2011-12 (indoor). He has won his event in the CUNYAC Championship 11 times in his career en route to six CUNYAC all-star nods. A 2011 NCAA All-American, where he finished eighth in the nation in the 400m dash, he holds four CCNY records – the 200m, 400m, 500m dashes in indoor track and field and the 400m dash in outdoors. He is a two-time ECAC Champion, finishing tops in the 200m dash and 400m dash in the 2011-12 indoor track and field season.
As great as he is on the field, he is that much more competitive in the classroom, comparing his track and field experience to his classes.
“I try my best to apply the same passion I have on the track to my studies off the track,” Dedewo said.
“The same intensity I have running on a relay with my teammates I try to translate to working with group members in class. The same laser-sharp focus I have when seeing the finish line in sight is the same way I look at the last few weeks of a semester. The same amount of time I spend developing and sharpening my craft in the hurdles or coming out of the starting blocks in the sprint, I spend on developing my craft as a student.”
His motto has always been, “if I hate losing a race, why would I be okay with not being the best in the classroom?”
Head coach Hugh Reid, who is in his third season as the head coach, says that Dedewo’s dedication on and off the field speaks volumes about his character.
“Dedewo has hosted several tutoring sessions for our team and has been one of the most unselfish athletes I have ever coached. The way he conducts himself on and off the track really is impressive.”
With everything that he does in and out of CCNY, he makes it a priority to give back to the community, both with teammates and with his local organization, a college ministry called Cru.
“We spent our spring break in Haiti and served an orphanage while also completing some maintenance work in a small village called Chambrun,” said Dedewo. “We spent time traveling to tent cities that were formed after the 2010 earthquake.”
In New York City, he is a registered blood donor and donates whole blood every eight weeks while one of his greatest passions has been serving with Here’s Life Inner City/Boxes of Love, which is an organization that sends food and supplies to families in need all-year round. The organization fed 3,600 families in 2012 alone.
He has also volunteered with NYC Relief Bus, which provides the inner-city homeless with free clothing and food, St. Paul’s House, a ministry that provides free breakfast to the homeless every morning, Monday-Friday, and with Don’t Walk By, an annual NYC campaign and rescue mission that seeks to provide food, shelter and medical care to every homeless person in New York City.
His greatest accomplishment? Leading a sports ministry group on campus called Athletes in Action that encourage athletes on campus to play the game with integrity and great sportsmanship on and off the field while also devoting time to help others in the community learn several sports.
“Athletes in Action has grown over the years and includes many of the top athletes in CCNY,” Dedewo said. “We are very grateful to have the ability to help others in the community and it is something that I will continue to do after I am done with my playing days.”
Dedewo was a member of CCNY’s SAAC, was named to the dean’s list in the fall of last year and was the 2012 Group Multicultural Advertising Scholarship winner. His leadership on and off the field is one of the main reasons that the Beavers track squad boasts a high GPA and have won five consecutive CUNYAC Championships (men’s indoor and outdoor).