HOUSTON – Former Notre Dame standout and Rice offensive lineman David Berken has been chosen as the recipient of the Bob Quin Award for academic and athletic achievement.

Rice provost Dr. Gene Levy stated the Berken was selected from a group of outstanding students to receive the award. “I was especially impressed by the nomination of David Berkin,” said Levy, “who aside from compiling a distinguished academic record in both high school and university, combined many years of work experience on his family’s rice farm.”

Berken graduated at the top of his class at Notre Dame with a 4.0 GPA. He was a Wendy’s Heisman scholar athlete nominee, a Composite Academic All-State selection and a representative at Louisiana Boys State.

He is graduating from Rice with a bachelor’s degree in kinesiology with a focus on sports medicine and plans to attend medical school. He earned a 3.33 GPA at Rice while anchoring the offensive line.

During his college career, Berken was an Academic All-Conference selection from 2005-07. He was also a Draddy Trophy semifinalist in 2008 and ESPN The Magazine selected him for its Academic All-District VI team in 2008.