#DamWorthIt Earns National Award

CORVALLIS -- The Institute for Sport and Social Justice (ISSJ), formerly the National Consortium for Academics and Sports (NCAS), announced the recipients of its National STUDENT-Athlete Day Giant Steps Award Winners. This year marks 30 years of "Giant Steps" and includes an inspiring group of individuals in the categories of Courageous Student-Athletes, Civic Leader, Barrier Breaker, and Heroes Among Us.

This year's recipient of the Civic Leaders Award is Oregon State's #DamWorthIt campaign, led by current men's soccer student-athlete Nathan Braaten and former gymnast Taylor Ricci. #DamWorthIt is a campaign designed by Braaten and Ricci for student-athletes in order to decrease the stigma surrounding mental health through education and awareness.

The duo draws from their own personal experiences to create an environment that encourages social change through the platform of sport. Both have spoken to Oregon State University's Greek Life and ROTC groups, and are active at the community level.

In addition, both serve on Oregon State's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC); Ricci as the former SAAC President and acting Pac-12 Conference President, and Braaten is the acting Treasurer. Braaten currently leads the Mental Health Focus Group for Males in partnership with Oregon State University's Counseling and Psychological Center. They are advocates for student-athletes of all ages and recognize that their willingness to be vulnerable may encourage other student-athletes to reach out when they need too, and that it is okay, to not be okay.

Braaten, an applied science major, and Ricci, an exercise and sports science major, will both attend the ISSJ Giant Steps Forward and Hall of Fame Banquet in October in Orlando.

Giant Steps Awards are presented in conjunction with the celebration of National STUDENT-Athlete Day (NSAD). This celebration was created to honor student-athletes who have achieved excellence in the classroom, while having made significant contributions in the community.

OUR MISSION
Oregon State Athletics strives to Build Excellent Authentic Visionary Student-Athletes (Go BEAVS).

Players Mentioned

Nathan Braaten

Taylor Ricci

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