COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Texas A&M junior outside hitter Angela Lowak is one of eight student-athletes in contention for the Haier Ultimate Achievement Award.
The winner of the national award, which recognizes student-athletes for achievement beyond sports including community service, academic excellence, overcoming adversity and a variety of other qualities, will be determined by fan voting, and the top vote-getter will earn their school a $5,000 donation to the general scholarship fund and a Haier 40-inch LED HD TV.
Go to http://achieve.haieramerica.com/ to vote.
Fans can vote once per day through April 3, and all fans who vote will be entered into a drawing to win a Haier 48-inch LED HD TV. In addition, Haier will make a donation to The Marfan Foundation for every vote cast.
Angela Lowak, Texas A&M University:
Angela Lowak, a business honors major from New Braunfels, Texas, utilizes her membership in several service organizations as a platform to volunteer at an array of service projects that have benefitted communities on both a local and national scale, as well as at the international level. A semifinalist for the prestigious Coach Wooden Citizen Cup, Lowak has volunteered for several events, including the Aggie Residence Hall Move-In Day, where she welcomed and assisted new and returning Aggies move into their dorms. The volleyball team representative on the Student Athlete Advisory Committee, Lowak volunteers at Film on the Field, a SAAC-sponsored annual event held to unify the student-athletes with the student body and members of the community and also assisted at Twin City coat drive. She also has volunteered for the Brazos Valley Food Bank, where she helped sort items and pack family boxes.
As a member of Pi Beta Phi, Lowak is active in the sorority's philanthropic endeavors for literacy, visiting the Barbara Bush Parent Center, where she assists local citizens become more proficient in English. She also helps organize and also coaches a team at the sorority's annual “Dodge The Arrow,” dodge ball tournament, which raises funds to provide books to children in need. Lowak works with First Book, where she reads to students at a local elementary school once a week.
A member of FCA, Lowak and her colleagues interact with local elementary school children during their physical education classes, teaching them the importance of being physically active and setting an example for good sportsmanship and team work. She was also a group leader at FCA Weekend of Champions, a retreat for middle school students, and taught students how to incorporate Christ into sport. During the Greek Summit/Campus Crusades, she met with Greeks from universities across the country to grow spiritually and learn how to be spiritual leaders in the Greek community. With Adventures and Missions, she raised her own funds and went on a 12-day trip with to AIDS-stricken Swaziland, where she volunteered at the hospital, helped with playground improvement projects and taught Bible study sessions.
Lowak has worked with Aggies BUILD, assisting in the building of mobile medical units to send to third-world countries, and she was a part of the 2014 Global Enterprise Experience, where she collaborated with students from all over the world via web chat to formulate a business plan to better the youth of the world.
In November 2014, Lowak was named the National Consortium for Academics and Sports PlayMaker of the Month, a national program that recognizes the academic achievement and community service of student-athletes who exemplify the NCAS motto of “Changing Lives Through the Power of Sport” through academic achievement and community service.
A two-time member of the SEC Community Service Team, Lowak also has served on the marketing committee for the Aggie Entrepreneurship Society in which they developed and organize marketing strategies to increase membership and involvement and challenged and refined entrepreneurial aspirations as well as enhanced business skill sets.
On the court, the 6-foot tall outside hitter who was chosen as a co-captain this past season and helped lead the Aggies to a 21-9 record and a fourth consecutive appearance in the NCAA tournament. She ranked third on the squad with 2.41 kills and 2.81 points per set and was named MVP of the Texas A&M Invitational for leading the Aggies to the tourney title. At the conclusion of the season, Lowak was voted by her coaches and teammates as the recipient of the team's Texas A&M Excellence Award, bestowed on the player who best represents the school's core values of respect, integrity, leadership, excellence, loyalty and selfless service.
Visit 12thMan.com for more information on Texas A&M volleyball. Aggie fans also can keep up to date with the A&M volleyball team on Facebook and on Twitter by following @AggieVolleyball.