NEW YORK (March 29, 2023) --- Krysti Alejandro, a junior at New Jersey City University, has been selected to receive the 2023
Jim O’Connell Sports Communications Scholarship grant from the Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association.
The award will be presented to Alejandro at the 90th MBWA All-Met Haggerty Awards dinner scheduled Thursday, April 27, at the Sleepy Hollow Hotel & Conference Center in Tarrytown, NY. The Haggerty dinner is the longest running, media-managed college basketball awards program in the United States.
Alejandro, who hails from Kearny, NJ, is majoring in Media Arts and has an academic cumulative GPA of 3.68. In addition to her studies, she serves as an athletic communications assistant at NJCU. She also has experience as a photographer for Medieval Times, Lyndhurst, NJ, and has competed in soccer at both the high school and college level.
“Krysti is one of the most involved and well-known students on campus,” said Alex Falk, NJCU Director of Athletic Communications. “She is an extremely integral part of my team and a monumental part of the athletics community at NJCU.”
Her tasks with the Gothic Knights include copywriting, production and video editing of live and other events, game program and video graphics, sports statistics, day-to-day operation of social media channels and website operations.
“My dream of going pro [playing sports] was like every other athlete, but I have created a new dream for myself,” said Alejandro. “I have absorbed every ounce of knowledge [that I could]. With the help of [Alex Falk] and what he has taught me about athletic communications, I have found the field that I hope to be in for the rest of my life.”
Already looking ahead beyond her eventual graduation, Alejandro has applied for a position working with the NBA.
The Oc Award, which includes a check for $3,500, represents a one-time grant to a Met area college student majoring in sports journalism, communications, information or sports management. The scholarship is named in memory of Jim O’Connell, the longtime Associated Press national college basketball editor who passed away in July 2018 at the age of 64. Oc, as he was known, was a member of the MBWA Executive Committee as well as the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.
For a list of the MBWA’s previous honorees:
MBWA Jim O’Connell Sports Communications Scholarship Grant (year-by-year).