Former Case Western Reserve University cross country and track & field runner Jack Begley was named a recipient of the prestigious NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship for his academic and athletic achievements over his collegiate career.

Every year, the NCAA awards 126 postgraduate scholarships for $10,000, with 21 men and 21 women receiving the award each season (fall, winter, and spring). Student-athletes must have exhausted their athletic eligibility or not intend to use any remaining eligibility to be considered for the honor. Thirty-eight Spartan student-athletes have now received the award throughout the scholarship's history, including 17 over the last nine years.

Begley, the 2022 NCAA Men's Cross Country Elite 90 Award winner, was a two-time CSC Academic All-American at CWRU, claiming a spot on the First Team last year and the Second Team in 2022. A nine-time UAA All-Academic honoree as a Spartan, he graduated from CWRU in 2023 with a degree in engineering physics and a 4.0 cumulative grade point average.

Begley placed 53rd at the 2022 NCAA Cross Country Championship and 18th in the 10,000-meter run at the 2023 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. After winning the 5,000-meter run and 10,000-meter run at the 2023 UAA Outdoor Championships, he was named the conference's Most Outstanding Runner. For his career, Begley has seven All-Region honors (two cross country, five track and field) and eight All-UAA honors (two cross country, six track and field). He holds the school records in the outdoor 10,000-meter run and indoor 5,000-meter run.

After graduating from CWRU last May, Begley has continued his athletic career as a graduate student at the University of Chicago where he won the 2023 UAA Cross Country Championship.

The NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship was created in 1964 to promote and encourage graduate education by rewarding the Association's most accomplished student-athletes through their participation in NCAA championship and/or emerging sports. Athletics and academic achievements, campus involvement, community service, volunteer activities and demonstrated leadership are evaluated. An equitable approach is employed in reviewing an applicant's nomination form to provide all student-athlete nominees an opportunity to receive the graduate award, regardless of sport, division, gender or race. In maintaining the highest broad-based standards in the selection process, the program aims to reward those individuals whose dedication and effort are reflective of those characteristics necessary to succeed and thrive through graduate study.