MEDFORD, MA (July 1, 2026) - Sarah Firth, a 2026 Tufts University graduate and women's track & field All-American, has been selected as a recipient of an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship.
The NCAA awarded $10,000 postgraduate scholarships to 42 exceptional student-athletes as part of the 2025-26 NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship program. These student-athletes, representing spring sports across all three NCAA divisions, have demonstrated outstanding academic achievements, athletic excellence and leadership within their communities. Firth is one of just 21 female student-athletes nationally who competed at the NCAA Division I, II and III levels to receive the award for spring sports.
Firth graduated from Tufts with magna cum laude honors in February, earning a degree in quantitative economics. She will be continuing her education at Harvard University School of Design in the Master's of Urban Planning program. The NCAA scholarship will go towards her graduate school tuition.
"I'm so excited to receive this funding to study urban planning in graduate school at Harvard," Firth said. "While attending Tufts, I had the opportunity to spend four years studying in Somerville, a city known for its walkability, extensive bike infrastructure, public transit, and thoughtful approach to urban planning. One of my favorite courses at Tufts was Economics of Sports with Professor
Thomas Downes, where we studied how sports stadiums can be developed to maximize economic benefits for cities. Through Tufts Athletics, I was able to travel all over the country, experiencing different cities and seeing firsthand what worked, and what didn't, when it came to urban design and development. I'm excited to build on my experiences and continue learning how cities can better serve the people who live in them."
From Belmont, Massachusetts, Firth was a seven-time NCAA qualifier in the pole vault for the Jumbos. She earned All-American status six times, including an eighth-place finish at the NCAA Indoor Championships in 2022 and a 10th-place mark at the 2025 NCAA Indoor meet. She is the school-record holder in the event for the indoor season with a 3.92m (12'10 1/4") mark. Her outdoor best of 3.83m (12'6 3/4"), which once stood as the school record, currently ranks her third in school history. She was a New England Division III champion and a two-time New England Small College Athletic Conference All-Conference honoree during her career as well.
Firth graduated from Tufts early in seven semesters, also earning minors in urban studies and geoscience. She was a recipient of the Frederick Melvin Ellis Prize awarded to an individual who demonstrates athletic ability, a modest manner, successful academic achievement and potential for effective leadership of youth.
Outside of Athletics, Firth engaged in many other different activities at Tufts. As part of the Department of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning, she held roles as a Learning Assistant and Grant Writer and spent the summer 2023 in Greece with the Tufts Global Research Assistant Program. She was also deputy features editor and a sports columnist among other roles at the Tufts Daily newspaper, and had her academic research and reporting widely published. She was also a campus tour guide, part of the Tufts Greek Music Ensemble (vocals and accordion), Chair of the Tufts Orthodox Christian Fellowship and a member of the Tufts Club Gymnastics team.
"Sarah Firth is one of the most talented students that I advised during my 30-year career as a senior Tufts faculty member," said Yannis Ioannides, Firth's academic advisor, Research Professor and Max and Herta Neubauer Endowed Chair Emeritus of the Department of Economics. "Curious, energetic, bright, careful in entering new areas, but also ready to explore unfamiliar territories, Sarah impressed me by her performance in all aspects of her academic and extracurricular work. The breadth of her extracurricular activities when seen together with her athletic performance and her academic performance make her without any doubt a model candidate for this award."
Firth's volunteer work is highlighted by several years of involvement with the New England Hemophilia Association, where she has worked with children and families affected by all bleeding disorders. During the summers of 2024 and 2025, she was a camp counselor for the Alaska Hemophilia Association, helping young female campers affected by bleeding disorders.
True to her various skills and interests, this summer before starting at Harvard Firth is working as a sportswriter for USA Gymnastics, tutoring high school students in math and serving as a pole vault coach for the Slovenski Camps.
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