McCarthy/ Torpey Men's Basketball Scholarship

Melanie Torpey and John McCarthy are both graduates of Western and have been involved with Western for many years. After graduation, both of them went on to teach in the Gunnison community for over fifty years combined. As teachers, academics are very important to them which is the reason for the academic component of this scholarship.

In addition to their teaching, both of these individuals coached multiple sports for over seventy seasons. Melanie was primarily a gymnastics coach at Gunnison High School and John’sfocus was on basketball with the Western men’sprogram for over twenty years. Having a passion for athletics, they see and believe in the qualities that are instilled and grow in student athletes; qualities such as work ethic, selflessness, community involvement, and leadership. These are the altruistic qualities that the recipient of this scholarship possesses.

Ms. Torpey and “Coach Mac” would have liked to have given this scholarship years earlier in their careers. They have watched student-athletes give their time and energy to Western with little or no rewards other than the aforementioned intrinsic qualities. The time that these student-athletes give precludes them from having outside employment the way many other students may have to raise the money necessary to live during their college years. The intent of this scholarship is to help with the cost of their education.

ELIGIBILITY
-Need: Financial need is a consideration
-Athletics: Must be a current member in good standing of the Men’sBasketball program. Must be eligible by NCAA D-II standards to be able to receive athletic aid.
-Year in School (after completion of current spring semester): Must be full-time student at Western
-GPA: Cumulative of 3.2 or higher for work conducted at Western. Must maintain a 3.2 GPA while on the scholarship.
-Other: Must exhibit work ethic, selflessness, community involvement and leadership qualities