ELON, NC--Elon alumni Drew Van Horn and Robert Gasparello received the Professional Excellence Award on Tuesday evening at the 29th annual Elon University Athletics Banquet. The award was presented by Dr. Alan White, director of athletics.
The Professional Excellence Award recognizes former Elon athletes who have achieved excellence in their profession. Nominees are considered based on their achievements after leaving Elon. All nominees were active in their profession and/or avocation for a minimum of ten years.
"Rob Gasparello and Dr. Drew Van Horn were fine examples of the 'student-athlete' during their time with us," commented Dr. White. "It is not the least bit surprising that both of these gentlemen had gone on to distinguish themselves in their chosen professions. We are proud for them in all of their accomplishments and extremely honored to have them as alums of our program and university."
The Elon Athletics Foundation (EAF) is proud to announce two recipients this year. Dr. Drew Van Horn, a 1982 graduate and member of the men's basketball team at Elon, was named the twelfth president of Brevard College this past September.
Prior to Brevard, he served as the Vice President for University Relations and Advancement at Gardner-Webb University. Under his tenure, fundraising at the university reached an all time high. He successfully completed a $30 million comprehensive campaign. Van Horn's work in higher education began at Elon where he served as Director of Development, Director of Alumni and Parent Relations and Director of Student Activities. He also served as Executive Director of the Independent College Fund of North Carolina in Raleigh and as the Assistant State Director for the North Carolina chapter of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.
Robert Gasparello, a member of the men's basketball and soccer teams at Elon, became principal of Grimsley High School on July 1, 2002. He earned his Bachelor's degrees in Elementary Education and Physical Education from Elon in 1978.
Before his current position at Grimsley, Gasparello served as the principal of Hunter Elementary school since 1995. In 2001, he was named the Guilford County Schools Principal of the Year and also earned a citation from the Governor's office that year. In 2000, he won the Jack McCall Award from the North Carolina Principal Fellows Program. He was also named the 1992 Teacher of the Year for the Burlington City Schools. Gasparello was an assistant principal at Smith High and Jamestown Elementary before his stint at Hunter Elementary. Gasparello has also held positions at Broadview Middle, Western Alamance High and Elon College Elementary.
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