Scholar-Athlete Scores Top Grad Honors

Jessica Beach’s high-octane combination of superb academics and athletics has earned her the nod as Cal State Northridge’s 2007 Wolfson Scholar, the university’s highest honor for a graduating senior.

The biology major’s path to glory, however, was not for the faint of heart. She followed a grueling daily schedule of classes, hammer and discus throw practice, tutoring fellow student/athletes, and studying. “Super organization and time management, those are key,” she said.

Graduating with a sterling 4.0 grade point average, Beach made the dean’s list every semester. A member of the Western Athletic Conference Women’s Indoor Track and Field Championship Team, she twice was Northridge Female Scholar Student-Athlete of the Year. Beach compiled a record of Mountain Pacific Sports Federation All-Academic Honors and Big West Conference honors, and also was the College of Science and Mathematics’ choice for its 2005-06 Heald Outstanding Junior Award.

The scholar-athlete found time for a 2006 summer internship with the Fish and Wildlife Department in her native Washington and “just fell in love with genetics.” Drawing inspiration from assistant biology professor Rheem Medh, who is researching the genetics of cell death in the fight against leukemia, Beach plans to pursue a master’s degree in science at CSUN, with an emphasis on biomedical genetics.