RIVERSIDE, Calif. – UC Riverside Women's Track and Field sprinter Taylor Brown has been selected as UCR's nominee for the 2017-18 NCAA Woman of the Year award.

So far in her senior year, the Merced, Calif. native has posted some of the team's highest individual marks in the 200m and 400m, while also making contributions on the Highlanders' relay teams. She also holds the school record at Merced College, where she attended from 2014-16, in the 400m. Academically, Brown is a four-time Dean's Honor List recipient and a Chancellor's Honor List member for the 2016-17 school year.

Aside from her athletic and academic achievements, Brown has remained busy in the community and in taking on various leadership positions.

In 2018, she has spent time in Los Angeles working with CORO, an organization which trains ethical, diverse civic leaders across the nation. During her training, she has gained experience in the realms of government, business, labor and non-profit organizations. From 2015-16, she was the Executive VP for Student Government at Merced College, serving as a school ambassador and a parliamentarian for the campus for a wide range of events.

Over the past year, Brown has spent time as the Elections Director with the Associated Students of UCR, helped promote a smoke-free campus by participating in the UCR Butt Bash, and last summer, at the UC Center in Sacramento, she worked in the government relations office for the University of California Student Association, receiving an award both for completion and for her research presentation.

"As a scholar, an athlete, and elections director, along with my experiences as member of UC Riverside's student government (ASUCR), I have been given a special platform to use my sphere of influence and create a positive impact at UCR," Brown explained in her personal statement.

"I believe that the lessons I learned from being a track athlete directly translate into the political arena, specifically in that I have had to learn to confront the demands of time while maintaining a winning attitude; even in the face of conflict... I take pride in the fact that I am guided by purpose, value and principle; and can recognize my responsibility to my community."

The criteria for selecting the NCAA Woman of the Year is as follows:
Academic achievement – 30 percent of total score
Athletics excellence – 30 percent of total score
Service and leadership – 30 percent of total score
Personal statement – 10 percent of total score