Nathan Wright Jr

Nate Wright was born on September 25, 1978 in Edina, Minn., but raised in San Diego, California. His father, Nate Wright Sr., was an all-pro with the Minnesota Vikings  from 1971–1980 and played collegiately at San Diego State University.

Early life and education
While in high school, Nate excelled in the classroom and on the athletic field; he earned full athletic scholarships to a variety of prestigious academic and athletic colleges in The United States. Ultimately, his final choices were The University of Notre Dame, University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), and the University of Colorado at Boulder (CU Boulder)University of Colorado at Boulder, University of California, Berkeley (Cal) and the University of Washington (UW). After visiting these schools and weighing his scholarship options, Nate decided the best overall financial and academic choice was the University of Colorado at Boulder Colorado Buffaloes football. Nathan applied his full scholarship to the University of Colorado at Boulder where he received his Bachelors of Arts in Sociology in 2002. After graduation, Nate was employed at his alma mater, in the Office of Admissions for several years. He took a brief sabbatical in 2007 to Amman, Jordan where he studied in an intense Arabic language program at the University of Jordan.

Pre-Collegiate Career
As a senior in high school, Nate earned PrepStar and SuperPrep  all-America honors, along with honorable mention accolades from USA Today (which selected him first-team, all-state). He earned second-team, all-state honors from Cali-Hi Sports, and was the recipient of the Coca-Cola Golden Helmet Award. SuperPrep ranked him the No.16 defensive back in the nation, and ranked him as the No. 8 player overall in the Far West (the No. 2 defensive back). PrepStar placed him on its “Dream Team” and ranked him as the No. 10 athlete in the nation (and the No. 3 athlete in the Pac-10 area), while Prep Football Report selected him to its all-West team, ranking him as the No. 40 player in the region and the No. 8 defensive back. He was also a member of the Tacoma News-Tribune’s Western 100 team, and he received three votes for the Long Beach Press-Telegram’s Best-in-the-West squad. He was a the San Diego Tribune’s first-team all-county selection as a senior and was a first-team, all-division and all-Eastern league selection as both a junior and a senior (he was all-league on both offense and defense as a junior). As a senior at Point Loma high School, he was in on 81 tackles with five interceptions (one for a TD). As he continued to play offense, he also rushed 184 times for 1365 yards and seven touchdowns, and caught 32 passes for 406 yards and touchdowns. Top games his senior year included a win over Cathedral High School, where he rushed for 267 yards and three touchdowns and returned an interception 75 yards for the victory-clinching touchdown. He also had a 50-yard touchdown run against La Jolla in the final minute of play to rally his team to a win. Wright was coached by legendary coach Benny Edens .He lettered four times in basketball (as a point guard he was recruited by UCLA) and twice in track (for sprints and relays).

Collegiate career
At CU-Boulder, Nate wore the No. 25 jersey. Despite his incredible athleticism, Nate’s career was cut short due to chronic shoulder instability. After nine total surgeries, his pain was inferrably, and regrettably, persistent. Nate, however, did letter for three years and received multiple academic and community involvement awards. Some notable highlights from his career:

2000: He played in six games overall, including three on defense (no starts). He missed the final five games of the season after re-aggravating a chronic shoulder injury. He was in on nine tackles (seven solo) for the year. He missed all of spring practice recovering from January surgery to mend chronic shoulder problems. In the summer of 2000, he traveled to Uganda, where he spent two weeks helping build an orphanage for the impoverished as part of the youth component of “ChristAid INC.”. USA Today Team Roster: http://www.usatoday.com/sports/football/sfc/big12/sfcc01ra.htm

1999: Nate played in nine games (nine on special teams and six on defense), which included the Insight.com Bowl. He missed the first three games of the season after spraining knee ligaments in practice on Aug. 31. He was able to start in the much-anticipated game versus Oklahoma, however, where CU-Boulder relied heavily on their dime package. He was in for 128 snaps for the season, racking up 10 tackles (seven solo), with two for losses, two third down stops, a forced fumble and a pass deflection. All of his tackle statistics occurred in the OU game, where he played every snap (75 in all). He also caught a pass for 21 yards and a first down from Gabe Leonard on a fake punt against Nebraska. In Spring game, notably, he returned an interception for 48 yards.

1998: He played in eight games, including the Aloha Bowl, and started versus Iowa State. He was sidelined early in the season after breaking a bone in his hand during summer workouts. Despite his injury, he was in for 75 snaps and made seven tackles (six solo). On defense, he was often in the right place at the right time, with three third down stops and two pass deflections. He also had six special team points, from four tackles (one inside-the-20), and a knockdown block. 1998 Sports Illustrated Team Roster Aloha Bowl Team Roster:

1997: Nate redshirted. He practiced the entire season at cornerback until shoulder surgery in November 1997.

Professional career
Before beginning his career in Student Services, Nate lived and traveled across Europe. He lived and worked in Budapest, Hungary, volunteered in the United States Peace Corps Peace Corps in Burkina Faso, West Africa and studied in Amman, Jordan Jordan. Throughout these experiences, Nate developed skills in oration, communication, and language. In addition, he learned valuable cultural competencies that have allowed him to become a more effective recruiter. During this time, he also began to focus on education and family values—two emphasis that would have dramatic effects on his recruitment paradigm. Nate chose to devote his life to providing access through education, in all its forms, to students both domestically and abroad. After his extensive travel, he gained employment with his Alma Mater, at the University of Colorado at Boulder's Office of Admissions. Although he started as an Admission Counselor, he moved quickly through the ranks of the profession to become an Assistant Director, a Senior Assistant Director and, finally, a Director all within a four-year period. Employment at this prestigious university gave Nate experience with making selective admission decisions, administering scholarships and financial aid, and advising students of all backgrounds. His involvement as the Chair of the Multicultural Access and Community Affairs division of the Office of Admissions also allowed him to leave an indelible legacy in the creation of new programs and services for students. Through his leadership and example, the Office of Admissions adopted a new, office-wide multicultural recruitment philosophy that focused on holistic assessment and equity. Within a short period of time, in the College of Engineering and Applied Science, Nate has applied these skills in the successful drafting and receipt of major grants, three major college policies, and in the creation of four new publications, and a website. Furthermore, he has implemented an unprecedented recruitment plan and cultivated a new office culture focusing on pluralism. Nate is currently employed as the Director of Marketing and Recruitment at the University of Denver School of Engineering & Computer Science.

Honors and Special Recognition
•   University of Colorado at Boulder - Equity and Excellence Award nominee

•   University of Colorado at Boulder - Black Faculty and Staff Tri-Executive (withdraw) •   Herbst Academic Center Buff Scholar

•   Academic Starter - University of Colorado Football Program

•   Certificate of Sponsorship: “Outreach to Africa Ministry, Inc.” •   Bank of America Community Champion Award (Orphans, Uganda, Africa)

•   Athletic Letter - University of Colorado Football Program

•   Big Twelve Commissioner’s Honor Roll

•   Denver Post Game Day Hero (vs. University of Oklahoma)

•   Offensive Scout Team player of the week (vs. Colorado State & Wyoming)

•   Coca Cola Golden Helmet Award, “Most Valuable Player”

•   Varsity Football and Basketball Team Captain

•   PrepStar and SuperPrep All-American

•   Honorable mention All-American and All-state California, All-American from USA Today

•   Dole & Kemp Campaign Collegiate Sports of America Pre-Season Distinguished Student Athlete

•   San Diego Urban League Inc. Golden Pyramid Scholar Award

•   Walter J. Zable/San Diego Chapter of the National Football Foundation Award- Scholar-Leader Athlete

•   Wendy’s High School Heisman National Nominee

Associations
•      National Association of Admission Counselors, Member 2008-2009 (NACAC)

•      Chancellor’s Diversity Advisory Board, Member (CDAB)