This past year allowed us to truly embed ourselves in the UW community and participate in and appreciate what makes our community so unique. A year ago, we joined the Big Ten Conference. Joining the Big Ten places us on the center stage of college athletics, with exposure that reaches across the globe. It’s who we are at Washington—a global powerhouse—and now we stand shoulder to shoulder with peers who match our values, ambitions and impact. In our first year in the Big Ten, our student-athletes reached numerous academic milestones, including the department’s highest combined GPA of 3.48, with 469 student-athletes earning a GPA above 3.0 and 304 earning academic All-Conference recognition.