May 14, 2003

STAMFORD, Conn. -- Former Northwestern baseball star Joe Girardi is among a group of 25 finalists for induction into the 16th annual Verizon Academic All-America Hall of Fame. Four of the finalists will be inducted at ceremonies in Cleveland, Ohio on June 28.

The former GTE, in cooperation with the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA), established the Hall of Fame in 1988 to honor former college student-athletes who have excelled in their professions and made substantial contributions to their communities. To be eligible, a candidate had to be an Academic All-America team member who graduated at least 10 years ago.

The Hall of Fame finalists were chosen from a group of more than 150 nominees and were selected by a 90-member voting board representing CoSIDA's 1,800 members. CBS broadcaster Dick Enberg, the spokesman for the Verizon Academic All-America program, will serve as master of ceremonies at this year's 16th annual induction. There are currently 73 members of the Hall of Fame.

Girardi (Northwestern, '86) is a catcher for the St. Louis Cardinals who was a three-time All-Big Ten player and a member of the Yankees' 1996, 1998 and 1999 World Series championship teams. Also a player for the Chicago Cubs and Colorado Rockies, Girardi still ranks among NU's all-time baseball leaders in career batting average (.351), games played (208), hits (227), doubles (45) and home runs (24).

Some of the other finalists include former Stanford soccer player Julie Foudy, former Syracuse football and pro football player Tim Green, former BYU football and pro football player Steve Young, former Oklahoma basketball player Alvan Adams, former Texas A&M football player Kip Corrington, former Western Maryland soccer and softball player Dr. Claudie Henemyre-Harris, former Nebraska and pro football player Dave Rimington, former Southern California volleyball player Katie Haller, former Penn State wrestler Dr. James Martin and former UMass basketball player Susan Peters.

Under an agreement with CoSIDA, GTE, now Verizon, has been the exclusive sponsor of the Academic All-America program since 1985. Verizon, America's literacy champion, strongly believes that literacy is a key ingredient to success and outstanding achievements in life. The Academic All-America program is part of Verizon Reads, the company's national campaign to promote literacy through corporate philanthropy, partner collaboration, community outreach, and customer and employee participation.

For more information on the Verizon Academic All-America program, visit www.cosida.com.