Clarkson senior forward Vanessa Gagnon has been named the winner of the 2014 Sarah Devens Award, which also comes with a $10,000 post-graduate scholarship.
A joint award between ECAC Hockey and Hockey East, the award is presented annually to a player who “demonstrates leadership and commitment both on and off the ice.”
In addition to winning the Devens Award, Gagnon also won ECAC Hockey’s Mandi Schwartz Award as the top student-athlete in the conference and the best defensive forward honor.
A fourth-year graduate student at Clarkson, Gagnon finished her undergraduate degree in Innovation and Entrepreneurship during her junior year with a 3.95 GPA and is currently one of only two students to maintain a perfect 4.0 GPA in Clarkson’s MBA program.
She is also pursuing an additional certification in environmental management.
Gagnon’s off-ice accomplishments include partnering with faculty members to develop microfinance projects in Uganda where she will be visiting this May to roll out the screening and training support for the projects, induction into the highest of business school honor societies, ECAC Hockey all-academic teams, President’s List and Dean’s List, Golden Knights’ Unsung Hero Award Winner, as well as becoming the first student-athlete in program history to earn CoSIDA All-Academic Teams and winner of the Elite 89.
The Elite 89, an award founded by the NCAA, recognizes “the true essence of the student-athlete by honoring the individual who has reached the pinnacle of competition at the national championship level in his or her sport, while also achieving the highest academic standard among his or her peers.”
The 2013 Devens Award winner was Yale forward Alyssa Zupon.
