Graduate Says "Caldwell College Faculty Was Always Available"
Class of 2008 graduate Nicholas Harriott has worked extremely hard to achieve his 4.0, and his academic and athletic successes including being named Academic All American. But he says his achievements at Caldwell College are not completely a result of his own hard work and discipline. He gives credit to his mother, the Caldwell College faculty and staff and the College's Athletics Department.
Raised in an inner city neighborhood on the island of Jamaica, Harriott says his mother has been a constant source of motivation in his life. "My mother taught me to never let my circumstances limit my abilities, but to use my abilities to overcome my circumstances."
He says that Caldwell College has also been very supportive. "Faculty was always available if I wanted to stop by for assistance and the administration was always willing to give a friendly word of advice."
A soccer midfielder chosen as an Arthur Ashe Scholar Athlete by Diverse Magazine, Harriott graduated with departmental honors, a bachelor's degree in Biology, and a long list of athletic accomplishments. A speedy outside midfielder and starter for the Caldwell College men's soccer team, Nicholas was named to the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) all-Tournament team in 2006.
Harriott became the first student-athlete at Caldwell College to earn Academic All-America honors from the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) when he was selected to the ESPN Magazine Academic All-America College Division third team this past fall. He is one of 33 soccer players chosen to the College Division Academic All-America teams, which include all NCAA Division II and Division III institutions.
He also is a three-time member of the CACC All-Academic Team. In his four-year career at Caldwell, he played in 66 games with 37 starts for the Cougars, tallying six goals and nine assists for 21 points. During his four years on the team, the Cougars won 47 games, the most victories in a four-year period in the history of the men's soccer program at Caldwell. Harriott is the president of the Tri-Beta Biology Society at Caldwell and he served as president of Caldwell's International Student Organization last year.
Harriott is looking at a career in biomedical research. He leaves Caldwell with many great memories, none quite as memorable as "being on the soccer field with all the guys fighting to win the championships."