wfn.org | Concordia College Grad Roxana Saberi to Receive 2010 NCAA 'Award of Valor'

[<NEWS@ELCA.ORG>]

Title: Concordia College Grad Roxana Saberi to Receive 2010 NCAA 'Award of Valor'
ELCA NEWS SERVICE

>November 12, 2009  

Concordia College Grad Roxana Saberi to Receive 2010 NCAA 'Award of Valor'
09-256-JB*

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)
will honor journalist Roxana Saberi, graduate of Concordia College,
Moorhead, Minn., with its 2010 Award of Valor.  Concordia is one of 28
colleges and universities of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
(ELCA).

The award is presented to current or former student-athletes,
coaches or administrators who have shown uncommon bravery and courage in
the face of grave personal danger, according to a news release from the
college. Saberi is one of two honorees to receive the 2010 Award of Valor.

Saberi, an international freelance journalist, became the subject of
worldwide concern during her four-month imprisonment in Iran. Her ordeal
ended with her release from prison last spring.

"Concordia is extremely proud of Roxana," said Dr. Pam Jolicoeur,
Concordia College president. "She showed remarkable courage and poise
under intense pressure, and she has already made a significant impact
through her emerging career as a journalist."

Saberi, who played soccer at Concordia, graduated summa cum laude
from the college in 1997. She earned graduate degrees in international
relations from Cambridge (U.K.) University, and journalism at Northwestern
University, Evanston, Ill. Her early career in print and television
journalism included reporting positions with media outlets in Washington,
D.C., Missouri, North Dakota and Texas.

In 2003 Saberi moved to Iran, the birthplace of her father, to pursue
her career and cultural interests. She regularly reported for the BBC and
National Public Radio. In late January 2009 she was arrested for an
alleged minor offense. Without legal counsel to defend her, Saberi was
convicted on espionage charges and sentenced to eight years at Evin
Prison.

Placed in solitary confinement, Saberi endured severe psychological
and mental stress throughout her incarceration, the Concordia release
said. She was repeatedly warned she could be sentenced to prison for 10 to
20 years, or given the death penalty, the release said.  The Rev. Mark S.
Hanson, ELCA presiding bishop, appealed to Iranian officials by letter to
free Saberi.

In May 2009, after 100 days in prison, the Iranian Revolutionary
Court of Appeals released Saberi with a two-year suspended sentence.

"Before I went to prison on January 31, I didn't really think much
about courage," said Saberi. "I just thought, 'well, I'm doing a job and
telling the stories of the Iranian people to people who cannot come to
Iran and may not ever be able to come to Iran.'"  Now she believes a
courageous person "focuses on something greater than yourself."

The award will be presented to Saberi at the Honors Celebration
during the 2010 NCAA Convention in Atlanta in January.

>---

*Information for this story was provided by Concordia College,
Moorhead, Minn.

For information contact:

John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org
http://www.elca.org/news
ELCA News Blog: http://www.elca.org/news/blog