Whitesides Luncheon

Utah State's [University] athletics department recognized 185 student-athletes for achieving a 3.2 grade point average at the 22nd annual Joe E. and Elma Whitesides Scholar-Athlete Luncheon Tuesday [April 21, 2015]. To be eligible for the honor, student-athletes must have a cumulative 3.2 grade point average or have posted a 3.2 GPA during the last two semesters.

In all, approximately 50 percent of USU’s student-athletes earned a 3.2 GPA to qualify for the awards.

The top honoree during the luncheon was Mike Bills. The senior became the fifth straight track and field athlete to be honored with the Joe E. Whitesides Award. In fact, 15 of the past 25 recipients of the award have been from track and field.

“My initial goal was to come here and walk-on, but the academic experience is what has really stood out, along with the athletic experience,” Bills said. “It’s definitely been a challenge, especially to balance the whole academics and athletics with traveling almost every other week during the season. It’s been an obstacle, but at the same time, the staff and also the professors here have been one of the biggest contributions to my time here at Utah State.

“They’ve had a tremendous impact. They’ve been very helpful in reaching out and helping me have opportunities to explore other things.”

Twenty of the past 24 recipients of the top individual honor have been women. Joining Bills as the only male athletes to win the award during that time include Mike Puzey from men’s basketball in 2003, Tyler Ellis from men's track and field who shared the award with Rebecca Anderson and Alison Taylor in 2009, and Daniel Howell from men’s track and field who shared the award with Katelyn Heiner in 2012.

As a student-athlete, Bills has been a member of Utah State’s indoor and outdoor track and field teams, along with cross country.

Bills, who attended Timpanogos High School prior to Utah State, will graduate this spring with both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in accounting. The native of Orem, Utah, carries a 4.0 cumulative grade point average. Following graduation, he will begin work for Deloitte, an accounting firm in Washington, D.C, where he completed an internship last summer.

“The accounting program here, I got really lucky because the accounting program over the last four or five years has gone from being a no-name school to one of the top 30 in the nation,” Bills said. “I was really lucky to get on that bandwagon at the right time. Utah State is really well-known for their accounting now, so I was able to leverage the experience that other Aggies have made to my advantage and get an internship and what eventually turned into a job offer. It’s been life-changing and it's been a great experience.”

Overall, Bills is a three-time Whitesides Scholar-Athlete recipient. He also earned academic all-conference honors in 2012, 2013 and 2014, to go along with being tabbed a Mountain West Scholor-Athlete in 2013.

Bills is a member of Beta Alpha Psi and the Institute of Management Accountants, where he served as president of the Utah State chapter during the 2013-14 academic year. His academic achievements include receiving the National Stuart Cameron and Margaret McCloud Memorial Scholarship given to only one student each year. In 2013, Bills was awarded the Outstanding Student Leadership Award by the Utah State University School of Accountancy. More recently, he was awarded the Huntsman School of Business Undergraduate Researcher of the Year award.

Utah State also handed out team honors, and women’s tennis was named the top academic team with less than 20 members. Women’s cross country was the top academic team with more than 20 members and volleyball was the most improved academic team.

Melanie Stein, an advisor in the Health, Physical Education and Recreation Department, was presented the Meet The Challenge Award, while Analise Barker was given the Outstanding Tutor Award and Cree Taylor was given the Outstanding Mentor Award for their work with USU’s student-athletes.

The Whitesides honors started in 1953 by former USU athlete, coach and athletics director Joe E. Whitesides.

2015 UTAH STATE WHITESIDES SPECIAL HONORS
Whitesides Winner — Mike Bills
Meet The Challenge — Melanie Stein
Outstanding Tutor — Analise Barker
Outstanding Mentor — Cree Taylor

Top Teams (20-plus members)
1. Women's Cross Country
2. Women's Track & Field
3. Soccer

Top Teams (less than 20 members)
1. Women's Tennis
2. Volleyball
3. Men's Cross Country

Most Improved Teams
1. Volleyball
2. Women's Cross Country
3. Women's Tennis

(See the complete list of Whitesides honorees on the Athletics site.)

Contact:  Wade Denniston, (435) 797-1361