Boyd was selected from among more than 2,500 student-athlete nominees from 150 Pennsylvania schools. The honor is presented to those student-athletes who have overcome difficult circumstances; have given back to their schools and communities; and who embody an optimistic attitude.
He is a captain of Mars Area High School Boys Varsity Track & Field Team, a position that he has held for the last two years, during which he was also named Team MVP.
This season, he helped to lead the team to place second in the quarterfinals of the 2019 WPIAL Class 3A Boys Varsity Team Track Championships. In individual competition, he took 11th place in the Discus and 17th place in the Shot Put at the 2019 WPIAL Class 3A Boys Varsity Track & Field Individual Championships.
Boyd also served as a captain of the school’s Boys Varsity Football Team and was named to the 2018 Class 5A Northern All-Conference First Team Offense. This season, the Fightin’ Planets advanced to the first round of the 2018 WPIAL Class 5A Boys Football Championship
He has earned high honors every semester throughout academic career at Mars Area High School. He is a member of National Honor Society and serves as president of the school’s German National Honor Society chapter.
Along with his sister, junior Chelsea Boyd, he planned and organized a fundraiser to benefit those affected by Hurricane Harvey. In the community, Boyd helped to develop a youth football camp, at which he volunteers every year; coaches a youth track and field team; and he volunteers at the TRY Special Needs’ summer camp and at the organization’s annual “A Night To Remember” prom.
This fall, Boyd will attend Pennsylvania State University’s University Park Campus, where he plans to study immunology and infectious disease with the ambition of becoming a neurosurgeon. Boyd’s late grandfather suffered from Parkinson’s Disease and Dementia, which has led in part to his interest in pursuing neurology.
Boyd, along with all 2018-2019 award winners, will be recognized at the C. Harper Positive High School Athlete Awards on Monday, June 17, at the Sen. John Heinz History Center. Winners will also receive a private tour of the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex on Sunday, June 16, and will be recognized on the field at PNC Park, during the Pittsburgh Pirates game against the Detroit Tigers on Wednesday, June 19.
For more information, visit http://pittsburgh.positiveathlete.org/.