June 10, 2003

FAIRFAX, VA ... George Mason University senior men's volleyball player Art Kulans(Crystal Lake, IL/Crystal Lake South) was selected to the 15-member Verizon Academic All-America At-Large First Team, the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) announced today. Kulans becomes the first George Mason student-athlete to be named to the national first team.

A 6-5 native of Crystal Lake, IL, and a 1999 graduate of Crystal Lake South High School, Kulans was a national second-team selection as a junior and earned District III Verizon Academic All-America At-Large honors all three years in which he has been eligible. District III includes all Division I schools in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida.

To be nominated for the Verizon Academic All-America program, a student-athlete must be at least a sophomore with a 3.2 or higher cumulative grade point average and be a starter or significant reserve. The at-large team is made up of athletes in all NCAA sports other than baseball, football, basketball, soccer and track & field/cross country. Members of the district first teams become eligible for the national team.

An All-Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association first-team and EIVA All-Academic Team selection, Kulans helped the Patriots to a 16-10 overall record and a runner-up finish in the EIVA this season. He averaged 2.97 kills, 1.37 digs and 0.67 blocks per game, and finished his career ranked first in career kills, second in career digs and blocks and fourth in career assists in George Mason rally-scoring records.

Named the 2003 George Mason Male Student-Athlete of the Year, as voted by his peers, Kulans graduated with higher than a 3.9 grade point average with a double major in finance and accounting. He was named to both the Dean's List and Athletic Director's Honor Roll every semester of college, and earned a perfect 4.0 GPA in six consecutive semesters.

In addition to becoming the first Patriot named to the national first team, Kulans is also the first repeat selection to any national Academic All-America team. Four other George Mason student-athletes have earned national honors, including two other volleyball players - Jason Robertson (Third Team, 1992) and Rob Baily (Second Team, 1990) - in addition to women's basketball player Keri Chaconas (Third Team, 1996) and women's track & field athlete Kim Saddic (Second Team, 1992).