PORTLAND, Ore. – The Great Northwest Athletic Conference announced its recipients for the 2023-24 GNAC Faculty Athletic Representative Scholar-Athlete Awards, presented by Barnes & Noble College. 

A record 394 GNAC student-athletes earned FAR Scholar-Athlete honors, 30 more than the previous record set in 2022-23. This marks the fourth consecutive year in which the number of recipients exceeded 300 student-athletes. The Alaska Nanooks had 28 student-athletes receive the award.

Thirteen male student-athletes were named to the list, with six repeat winners. Braden Birnie (MHKY), Lassi Lehti (MHKY), Philipp Moosmayer (SKI), and Jonny Sorenson (MHKY) earned the award for the second time, while Harrison Israels (MHKY) and Nolan Earnest (MXC) garnered honors for the third and fourth time, respectively. Seven other Nanooks were first-time recipients, with Cade Ahrenholz (MHKY), William Hambley (MHKY), Aidan Hay (SKI), William Lawson-Body (MHKY), Mike Ophoff (MXC/SKI), Broten Sabo (MHKY), and Filip Wiberg (MHKY) making the list.

Alaska had 15 female student-athletes earn FAR Scholar-Athlete awards with 10 repeat winners. Kinley Erickson (WVB), Kayla Johnson (WBB), Emma McKenney (WBB), and Jayda Van Dyke (WBB) received the award for the second time, Sará Karasová (RIFLE) and Delainey Zock (WXC) picked up honors for the third time, and Lainey Lioi (SWIM), Mesa Moran (SWIM), Destiny Reimers (WBB), and Rilee White (WVB) became four-time winners. Rosie Fordham (WXC/SKI), Lori Houghton (SWIM), Kendall Kramer (WXC/SKI), Tristian Martin (WBB), and Lily Stewart (WVB/WBB) joined them with their first FAR Scholar-Athlete award.

The GNAC FAR Scholar-Athlete Award recognizes all student-athletes listed on any squad at a GNAC institution, regardless of whether the sport is a GNAC championship sport, who have compiled a cumulative grade point average of 3.85 or greater. Conference affiliate members could nominate only student-athletes from the sport in which they compete within the GNAC.

A faculty athletic representative (FAR) is a member of the faculty at an NCAA member institution who has been designated to serve as a liaison between the institution's faculty and the athletic department. The FAR serves as a representative of the institution in conference and NCAA affairs. 

The role of the FAR is "to ensure that the academic institution establishes and maintains the appropriate balance between academics and athletics."