Groton Resident Awarded CT State Schools' Highest Academic Honor

GROTON, CT — A Groton resident was among 12 students awarded the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities Foundation's highest academic honor, The Henry Barnard Distinguished Student Award.

The students — enrolled in Central, Eastern, Southern, and Western Connecticut State Universities — received the award for their outstanding academic achievement, on-campus involvement, and dedication to community service. Each student was selected by his or her respective university and has maintained a minimum grade point average of 3.70 with a record of substantial voluntary service to their universities and communities.

Southern Connecticut State University student and Groton resident Kyle Mashia-Thaxton received the award. He was a history and political science major, Honors Program; business administration and French minor; and earned a 3.99 GPA.

Mashia-Thaxton served as a member of Southern’s Student Government Association, Student Activism Committee, College Democrats, Pre-Law Society, and Future Teachers Organization.

This is the 36th year the CSCU Foundation has annually awarded the Henry Barnard Distinguished Student Award to exemplary students. The award is named for Henry Barnard, the first U.S. Commissioner of Education, Connecticut’s first superintendent of schools and principal of what later became Central Connecticut State University. The CSCU Foundation is a nonprofit organization that supports education and research within the four state universities.