Colby-Sawyer Award

The Colby-Sawyer Award is given to the senior who, in the opinion of the faculty, best exemplifies the ideals of the college in personal dignity, intellectual growth, contribution to campus life and constructive influence on other students.

Curtis Warren ’18

Curtis Warren, an exercise science major from Morrill, Maine, balances excellence and leadership in the classroom and beyond.

An active member of the Colby-Sawyer community, Curtis is a member of the national honor society Alpha Chi. He helped new students get to know Colby-Sawyer as a three-time Orientation Leader, and he has been a peer tutor in the Student Learning Collaborative. He served in the Student Government Association as a senator one year and participated in the Emerging Leaders Program during his first and sophomore years.

Curtis’s life is infused with athletics. A pole vault state champion in high school, Curtis was a member of both the Chargers’ indoor and outdoor track and field teams and was co-captain for two years. He was a seven-time New England qualifier and earned all ECAC honors last year in the pole vault. He also holds the indoor and outdoor school records and the NAC record in pole vault. He was a Student Athlete Advisory Committee liaison during his junior year and as a senior was co-president of the Exercise and Sport Sciences Majors Club. The club has recognized him for his volunteer work at the Boston Marathon, the Special Olympics and the ESS 5K. Last spring, he worked with the New London Outing Club in their children’s morning program to facilitate healthy and cooperative play in a learning environment. He also has volunteered with the local middle and high schools’ wrestling and track and field teams, as well as the town recreation program’s flag football after school program. Curtis also works as a certified personal trainer at the on-campus Van Cise Fitness Center.

In nominating him for the Colby-Sawyer Award, one faculty member wrote that he is “able to take theoretical concepts and make practical applications and can analyze problems quantitatively or qualitatively. He seeks opportunities for professional development, such as attending the New England Chapter of the American College of Sports Medicine conference his junior and senior years.”

Curtis’s academic adventures will continue in the fall at the University of New England, where he will begin working toward his doctorate in physical therapy.