Cody Dean, Austin College, Men's Swimming & Diving - Character & Community

Cody Dean, Austin College, Men's Swimming & Diving - Character & Community

CODY DEAN OF AUSTIN COLLEGE, a junior swimmer on the men's swimming and diving team from Keller, Texas, has been selected the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Character and Community Male Student Athlete of the Week for the week beginning December 5.

The SCAC Character & Community award honors the efforts of student-athletes who excel in the field of athletics, and also serve their campus and community.



Cody Dean is used to challenges. It’s part of what propels him in the pool, as a junior on the Austin College men’s swim team. Of course, his challenges haven’t been limited to trying to best the person in the next lane over. Being a double amputee since he was just over a year old, his challenges are different than most student-athletes, but they’ve also given him a unique perspective. It’s a perspective he’s been eager and able to share not just with his team or within the Austin College community, but also with the Sherman High School swimming and diving team, and in his experience with Paralympics.

Cody has participated in the Paralympics as a competitor, including this past summer, but he’s also used that platform to speak to children about being able to beat the odds and reach your goals. He’s worked with US Paraswimming to speak to elementary school children about disability, and his own experiences. This semester he’s also volunteered with the Sherman High team, where he’s been able to instill the lessons he’s learned into the local high school swimmers.

In addition to his work with Sherman and US Paraswimming, Cody has taken on several other leadership roles at Austin College, and has been active in community service going back to his high school years. When he was in high school, he put in more than 400 hours of service at Pregnancy Hep 4U, Legacy Adoption Services, the Keller High swimming and diving teams, and the Keller Senior Activities Center.

Since arriving in Sherman, he’s also been a member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, and has been the president of both the Baker Hall Council and Brockett Hall Council. He also co-founded CHAMPS, a disability advocacy group on campus, and has served as that organization’s vice president each of the last two years. In addition to the rest of his work in the campus community, Cody is also a Posey Leadership Institute Fellow.

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