National Player of the Year
2012 Women's Basketball Jostens Trophy
University of Chicago senior Taylor Simpson was awarded the 2012 Jostens Trophy as the outstanding NCAA Division III women's basketball player of the year.
Created by the Rotary Club of Salem, Va., the Jostens Trophy honors those who fit the ideal of the well-rounded Division III student-athlete. The award takes into account three vital parts: basketball ability, academic prowess, and community service.
Simpson led the Maroons to a 27-1 record and the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA Tournament. The senior forward owned team-best averages of 12.7 points and 8.1 rebounds per game.
Simpson wrapped up her career with 955 points, 687 rebounds (ranked No. 3 in school history) and a .546 field-goal percentage (ranked No. 2 in school history).
As a student, Simpson founded the UChicago chapter of Global Brigades, a student-led global health and sustainable development organization. Between her freshman and sophomore year, she helped to procure $200,000 of medicine for medical clinics in Honduras. Simpson spent the summer before her junior year teaching visual arts to children in Varanasi, India, and was accepted into the Teach for America program in her senior year.
