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Atkeson, Coleman Named 2025 Heidrick Family Scholarship Recipients
6/18/2025 8:00:00 AM | Rowing, Women's Tennis
DURHAM, N.C. — Duke student-athletes Jane Atkeson (women's rowing) and Ellie Coleman (women's tennis) were named recipients of the Heidrick Family Leadership Post Graduate Scholarships, the Blue Devils Athletics Department announced Wednesday.
The Heidrick Family Leadership Post Graduate Scholarships were established through a generous gift by Bob Heidrick and his family. The recipients are chosen not only for what they have contributed to the leadership community within Duke Athletics, but also by who they are as people, how they have grown in the area of leadership and how they have used their leadership development to enhance the community during their undergraduate career at Duke University.
The selection is viewed as an investment in the individual rather than on the athletic accomplishments. It is the investment in the excellence of his/her character, in the qualities of leadership possessed by the individual, commitment to others and the potential for service through outstanding leadership in the future.
Two scholarships will be awarded in the amount of $10,000 each to two graduating Duke student-athletes. The funds will be applied toward the continuation of their academic endeavors at the graduate or professional school level. Funds must be used within three years of each recipient's graduation from Duke University.
Atkeson was an integral part of the Duke rowing program over the last four seasons. The Raleigh native closed her collegiate career after seeing action in all eight regattas, primarily racing in the bow seat of the Second Varsity Four boat.
She was part of the 2V4 crew that swept both races at the Oak Ridge Cardinal Invitational and earned ACC Crew of the Week honors for their efforts. Atkeson helped the Blue Devils to a second-place finish at the 2025 Lake Wheeler Invitational, collecting 82 points throughout the two-day regatta. She has competed in three ACC Championships in her four years, including two podium finishes with a silver medal in 2022 and bronze in 2024. A leader both on and off the water, she was also selected as team captain for her final season.
Outside of rowing, Atkeson was involved in numerous organizations on campus. She served as a peer coach for DukeLine, a student-run mental health crisis line and an ACTION program leader, which aims to help first-year students transition to college. She also played a role in coordinating Duke rowing's involvement with Team Impact, an organization connecting children with serious illnesses and disabilities with college athletic teams for mentorship. While on the pre-med track, Atkeson has built up her clinical experience through internships at the Child Mind Institute in New York City and the Preston Robert Tisch Brain Tumor Center at Duke University Hospital. She was also selected for the Collegiate Athlete Premedical Experience (CAPE) program, a competitive medical shadowing and clinical program designed for female student-athletes at Duke.
Atkeson excelled in the classroom, turning in a 3.919 career GPA to earn her degree in psychology. In 2023, Atkeson became the second rower in program history to garner CSC Academic All-America recognition, earning third team honors. She is also a two-time All-ACC Academic Team and three-time ACC Honor Roll selection.
Coleman closed her collegiate career with an impressive 2024-25 season for the Blue Devil women's tennis program. She helped lead Duke to a perfect 12-0 ACC regular season mark and the ACC regular season title, while advancing to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Championship. She collected a career-high 26 singles wins and finished the year ranked No. 85 in singles, which was a season-best ledger. Coleman, a native of Midland, Mich., posted a 19-2 dual match singles record along with a 10-0 ACC mark and went a perfect 11-0 at No. 6 singles. She finished her career with an 83-38 singles ledger and 80-44 doubles mark.
For her efforts, Coleman earned All-America, Academic All-America and All-ACC accolades. She also was tabbed the Carolina Region Arthur Ashe Leadership & Sportsmanship Award winner, while also earning the inaugural Leadership Award for the Duke team. Coleman was an NCAA Doubles Championship qualifier and advanced to the quarterfinals along with rookie Irina Balus.
Along with playing tennis the last four years, Coleman was heavily involved in the CAPE program where she completed over 170 hours of shadowing experience with 30 physicians at the Duke University Hospital. She also was a part of Duke Sustainable Athletes, a group of 20+ student-athletes at Duke who worked towards more sustainability in Duke Athletics. The group received the Duke Climate Commitment Leadership Award for their efforts. Coleman traveled to Colorado for the Rubenstein-Bing Student-Athlete Civic Engagement Program (ACE) for a 3-week study away program focused on environmental conservation and was an ACTION Mentor.
An exceptional leader, Coleman received a degree in environmental science and policy along with totaling a 3.83 grade-point average. She was a standout academically earning All-ACC Academic Team honors each of her final three years, ACC Honor Roll all four years and was a three-time ITA Scholar-Athlete.
#GoDuke
Heidrick Family Leadership Post Graduate Scholarship Recipients:
2025:
Jane Atkeson (Women's Rowing)
Ellie Coleman (Women's Tennis)
2024:
Brianna Smith (Women's Track and Field)
Krew Veratti (Men's Soccer)
2023:
Emmy Duerr (Women's Soccer)
Caroline Howey (Track & Field)
2022:
Tess Boade (Women's Soccer)
Alexis Joseph (Women's Lacrosse)
2021:
Meible Chi (Women's Tennis)
Madison Dunk (Women's Lacrosse)
2020:
Nathaniel Hernandez (Swimming & Diving)
Araad Fisher (Wrestling)
2019:
Morgan Bitting (Field Hockey)
Virginia Elena Carta (Women's Golf)
2018:
Gabe Brandner (Football)
Sarah Furey (Field Hockey)
2017:
Elizabeth Horne (Rowing)
Michael Wilson (Track & Field)
2016:
Lauren Blazing (Field Hockey)
Delaney Lagrew (Swimming & Diving)
2015:
Immanuel Kerr-Brown (Wrestling)
Angel Thompson (Women's Lacrosse)
The Heidrick Family Leadership Post Graduate Scholarships were established through a generous gift by Bob Heidrick and his family. The recipients are chosen not only for what they have contributed to the leadership community within Duke Athletics, but also by who they are as people, how they have grown in the area of leadership and how they have used their leadership development to enhance the community during their undergraduate career at Duke University.
The selection is viewed as an investment in the individual rather than on the athletic accomplishments. It is the investment in the excellence of his/her character, in the qualities of leadership possessed by the individual, commitment to others and the potential for service through outstanding leadership in the future.
Two scholarships will be awarded in the amount of $10,000 each to two graduating Duke student-athletes. The funds will be applied toward the continuation of their academic endeavors at the graduate or professional school level. Funds must be used within three years of each recipient's graduation from Duke University.
Atkeson was an integral part of the Duke rowing program over the last four seasons. The Raleigh native closed her collegiate career after seeing action in all eight regattas, primarily racing in the bow seat of the Second Varsity Four boat.
She was part of the 2V4 crew that swept both races at the Oak Ridge Cardinal Invitational and earned ACC Crew of the Week honors for their efforts. Atkeson helped the Blue Devils to a second-place finish at the 2025 Lake Wheeler Invitational, collecting 82 points throughout the two-day regatta. She has competed in three ACC Championships in her four years, including two podium finishes with a silver medal in 2022 and bronze in 2024. A leader both on and off the water, she was also selected as team captain for her final season.
Outside of rowing, Atkeson was involved in numerous organizations on campus. She served as a peer coach for DukeLine, a student-run mental health crisis line and an ACTION program leader, which aims to help first-year students transition to college. She also played a role in coordinating Duke rowing's involvement with Team Impact, an organization connecting children with serious illnesses and disabilities with college athletic teams for mentorship. While on the pre-med track, Atkeson has built up her clinical experience through internships at the Child Mind Institute in New York City and the Preston Robert Tisch Brain Tumor Center at Duke University Hospital. She was also selected for the Collegiate Athlete Premedical Experience (CAPE) program, a competitive medical shadowing and clinical program designed for female student-athletes at Duke.
Atkeson excelled in the classroom, turning in a 3.919 career GPA to earn her degree in psychology. In 2023, Atkeson became the second rower in program history to garner CSC Academic All-America recognition, earning third team honors. She is also a two-time All-ACC Academic Team and three-time ACC Honor Roll selection.
Coleman closed her collegiate career with an impressive 2024-25 season for the Blue Devil women's tennis program. She helped lead Duke to a perfect 12-0 ACC regular season mark and the ACC regular season title, while advancing to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Championship. She collected a career-high 26 singles wins and finished the year ranked No. 85 in singles, which was a season-best ledger. Coleman, a native of Midland, Mich., posted a 19-2 dual match singles record along with a 10-0 ACC mark and went a perfect 11-0 at No. 6 singles. She finished her career with an 83-38 singles ledger and 80-44 doubles mark.
For her efforts, Coleman earned All-America, Academic All-America and All-ACC accolades. She also was tabbed the Carolina Region Arthur Ashe Leadership & Sportsmanship Award winner, while also earning the inaugural Leadership Award for the Duke team. Coleman was an NCAA Doubles Championship qualifier and advanced to the quarterfinals along with rookie Irina Balus.
Along with playing tennis the last four years, Coleman was heavily involved in the CAPE program where she completed over 170 hours of shadowing experience with 30 physicians at the Duke University Hospital. She also was a part of Duke Sustainable Athletes, a group of 20+ student-athletes at Duke who worked towards more sustainability in Duke Athletics. The group received the Duke Climate Commitment Leadership Award for their efforts. Coleman traveled to Colorado for the Rubenstein-Bing Student-Athlete Civic Engagement Program (ACE) for a 3-week study away program focused on environmental conservation and was an ACTION Mentor.
An exceptional leader, Coleman received a degree in environmental science and policy along with totaling a 3.83 grade-point average. She was a standout academically earning All-ACC Academic Team honors each of her final three years, ACC Honor Roll all four years and was a three-time ITA Scholar-Athlete.
#GoDuke
Heidrick Family Leadership Post Graduate Scholarship Recipients:
2025:
Jane Atkeson (Women's Rowing)
Ellie Coleman (Women's Tennis)
2024:
Brianna Smith (Women's Track and Field)
Krew Veratti (Men's Soccer)
2023:
Emmy Duerr (Women's Soccer)
Caroline Howey (Track & Field)
2022:
Tess Boade (Women's Soccer)
Alexis Joseph (Women's Lacrosse)
2021:
Meible Chi (Women's Tennis)
Madison Dunk (Women's Lacrosse)
2020:
Nathaniel Hernandez (Swimming & Diving)
Araad Fisher (Wrestling)
2019:
Morgan Bitting (Field Hockey)
Virginia Elena Carta (Women's Golf)
2018:
Gabe Brandner (Football)
Sarah Furey (Field Hockey)
2017:
Elizabeth Horne (Rowing)
Michael Wilson (Track & Field)
2016:
Lauren Blazing (Field Hockey)
Delaney Lagrew (Swimming & Diving)
2015:
Immanuel Kerr-Brown (Wrestling)
Angel Thompson (Women's Lacrosse)
Players Mentioned
Eleana Yu Post Match vs. Auburn
Saturday, May 10
Jame Ashworth Post Match vs. Auburn
Saturday, May 10
Ellie Coleman Post Match vs. FAU
Saturday, May 03
Jamie Ashworth Post Match vs. FAU
Saturday, May 03
