Team DC Awards Scholarships to 9 LGBTQ Student-Athletes
Team DC will honor nine LGBTQ student-athletes and an LGBTQ-supportive coach at its annual Night of Champions Gala later this month.
Team DC, an association of LGBTQ sports clubs in the Greater D.C. region, will award nine high school LGBTQ student-athletes with scholarships.
The annual Team DC College Scholarship Program honors student-athletes with notable academic and athletic achievements during high school. Applicants must also demonstrate leadership skills, and, like many past recipients, demonstrate how their LGBTQ identity has influenced their successes.
Due to increased generosity from the community through donations to the scholarship program, this year’s nine applicants will each receive a $2,500 scholarship, which can be used to cover some of the costs associated with college attendance.
Since 2008, Team DC has awarded more than $200,000 to 106 LGBTQ student-athletes. Applications for the 2025 scholarship program will open in the fall of 2024.
This year’s recipients include
- Sofia Ames-Rodriguez, an ultimate frisbee player from Jackson-Reed High School in Washington, D.C.
- London Gray, a basketball, bowling, track and field, flag football, and softball player from Calvin Coolidge High School in Washington, D.C.
- Kai McFadgion, a soccer player from Washington Latin Public Charter School, in Washington, D.C.
- Wyatt Anderson, a cheerleader from Herndon High School, in Herndon, Va.
- AJ Ingson, a field hockey player from Woodson High School, in Fairfax, Va.
- Connor Richmond, a member of the dance team at Chantilly High School, in Fairfax, Va.
- Sean Memon, a diver from Arlington Career Center, in Arlington, Va.
Two other recipients have asked that their names not be published.
“This year’s scholars truly represent an outstanding level of commitment, passion, and dedication in both the classroom and in their sports,” Charles Roth, a Team DC board member and chair of the organization’s Scholarship Committee, said in a statement.
“We are exceptionally proud of this class’s achievements and are ever grateful for our community support, as this year we have broken a new record in funds being awarded, many thanks to Team DC member teams, and sponsors alike.”
The student-athletes will be honored at Team DC’s annual Night of Champions Awards Gala, which will be held on Saturday, April 20, at 6 p.m. at Hilton’s National Mall The Wharf Hotel, 480 L’Enfant Plaza SW.
Also being honored that evening will be Stacy Smith, recipient of the 2024 Clark Ray Horizon Award.
Smith is a swim coach, the director of leadership development, and a middle- and high-school health, values, and ethics teacher at The Edmund Burke School in Washington, D.C.
The award, named after the late Clark Ray, former executive director of the DC State Athletic Association and a vocal advocate for LGBTQ participation in sports, honors educators and coaches who support LGBTQ students in their various endeavors.
The Night of Champions Gala will also honor community leaders and representatives from Team DC’s various LGBTQ sports teams and leagues. Tickets for the gala are available online and can be purchased via the Team DC website.
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