Maddie Lawlor, Jalen Thompson Named MSU's Campus Winners for Jackie Robinson Community & Impact Award
11/19/2025 1:40:00 PM | Football, General, Field Hockey
EAST LANSING, Mich. – Michigan State's Maddie Lawlor (field hockey) and Jalen Thompson (football) have been named the campus winners for the 2025-26 Jackie Robinson Community & Impact Award presented by Discover, the Big Ten Conference announced on Wednesday.
Now in its second year, the honor was created to recognize Big Ten student-athletes who strive to have a positive impact within their community in addition to excellence in competition.
From the collection of 36 local winners on the 18 Big Ten campuses, two overall conference honorees will be selected and announced in the spring of 2026.
In recognition of their achievement and as an expression of the conference's appreciation, each of the 36 campus winners will receive a medal bearing the likeness of Jackie Robinson and the logo of the Big Ten Conference.
Jackie Robinson was a standout student-athlete at UCLA, where he was the school's first four-sport letterwinner, excelling in football, basketball, track and field, and baseball. Beyond his athletic prowess, he continues to be recognized and honored for his contributions off the field: integrating Major League Baseball and his lifelong commitment to social justice. He is the embodiment of the Big Ten's mission to develop strong student leaders, and we honor his legacy and core values of courage, determination, teamwork, persistence, integrity, citizenship, justice, commitment, and excellence. As Jackie famously said, "A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives."
"It is our privilege and great honor to bestow this award in Jackie's name upon these deserving Big Ten student-athletes and to express our appreciation for the support of the Jackie Robinson Foundation," said Big Ten Conference Commissioner Tony Petitti.
Lawlor was selected as Michigan State's female recipient due to her multi-year involvement with Be The Match (now known as the National Marrow Donor Program) and her selfless journey to becoming a donor herself. During her time in East Lansing, Lawlor and the Michigan State field hockey program have led day-long bone marrow registration drives on campus each year. The events are all coordinated, promoted and worked by members of the MSU field hockey team. Through the National Bone Marrow Registry, Lawlor became a rare match for a patient in need in 2024. Without hesitation, Lawlor agreed to start the extensive and invasive process and ultimately donated her bone marrow to help save someone's life.
In the classroom, Lawlor is a three-time Academic All-Big Ten selection and is on track earn the honor for a fourth time this fall.
A junior from Detroit, Thompson is in his third season with the Spartans as a defensive end. He will earn his third letter from the program this fall and currently leads the team with 6.5 tackles for loss while also recording a career-high 27 tackles. In the classroom, the advertising management major is on track to earn Academic All-Big Ten honors for the second year in a row, and garnered Academic All-District and Big Ten Distinguished Scholar accolades as a sophomore.
Off the field, Thompson organized his second annual youth camp in his hometown of Detroit this past July that supported anti-gun violence initiatives. He has also hosted a "Cleats 4 Kids" camp in Lansing.
This marks the second year in a row that Thompson has been named MSU's male recipient of the Jackie Robinson Community & Impact Award.
Honorees were selected based on the following criteria:
· Demonstrated Impact: Significant and tangible contributions to community projects or causes, including measurable outcomes or positive changes resulting from their involvement.
· Collaboration and Teamwork: Ability to work effectively with others, including peers, organizations, and community members, to achieve common goals and enhance community impact.
· Consistency and Commitment: Ongoing and consistent participation in community service activities over an extended period of time.
· Visibility and Advocacy: Efforts to raise awareness and advocate for important groups or causes, leveraging their platform to promote positive change and engage others.
"The Big Ten Jackie Robinson Community & Impact Award celebrates Jackie's legacy of excellence in community service," said Sonya Pankey Robinson, Jackie's first grandchild as well as Director and board member of the Jackie Robinson Foundation. "We are proud to recognize 36 outstanding men and women for the incredible impact they make in their community."
"Our student-athletes make significant contributions through competition, academics, and community impact," said Big Ten Senior Vice President, Community & Impact, Omar Brown. "This award allows the Big Ten to recognize these efforts in improving communities, just as we do with their other athletic and academic achievements. Jackie Robinson embodies this award and our goal to honor student-athletes who positively affect others."
The Big Ten Conference's commitment to athletics, academics and service goes back to the conference's founding. Coupling the academic goals set forth by leaders of the charter members of the conference with their steadfast commitment to athletics, the conference instituted the Big Ten Medal of Honor in 1915, the first award to demonstrate support for the educational emphasis placed on intercollegiate athletics. It is awarded annually by each member institution to one male and one female student of the graduating class who has attained the greatest proficiency in scholarship and athletics.
Now in its second year, the honor was created to recognize Big Ten student-athletes who strive to have a positive impact within their community in addition to excellence in competition.
From the collection of 36 local winners on the 18 Big Ten campuses, two overall conference honorees will be selected and announced in the spring of 2026.
In recognition of their achievement and as an expression of the conference's appreciation, each of the 36 campus winners will receive a medal bearing the likeness of Jackie Robinson and the logo of the Big Ten Conference.
Jackie Robinson was a standout student-athlete at UCLA, where he was the school's first four-sport letterwinner, excelling in football, basketball, track and field, and baseball. Beyond his athletic prowess, he continues to be recognized and honored for his contributions off the field: integrating Major League Baseball and his lifelong commitment to social justice. He is the embodiment of the Big Ten's mission to develop strong student leaders, and we honor his legacy and core values of courage, determination, teamwork, persistence, integrity, citizenship, justice, commitment, and excellence. As Jackie famously said, "A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives."
"It is our privilege and great honor to bestow this award in Jackie's name upon these deserving Big Ten student-athletes and to express our appreciation for the support of the Jackie Robinson Foundation," said Big Ten Conference Commissioner Tony Petitti.
Lawlor was selected as Michigan State's female recipient due to her multi-year involvement with Be The Match (now known as the National Marrow Donor Program) and her selfless journey to becoming a donor herself. During her time in East Lansing, Lawlor and the Michigan State field hockey program have led day-long bone marrow registration drives on campus each year. The events are all coordinated, promoted and worked by members of the MSU field hockey team. Through the National Bone Marrow Registry, Lawlor became a rare match for a patient in need in 2024. Without hesitation, Lawlor agreed to start the extensive and invasive process and ultimately donated her bone marrow to help save someone's life.
In the classroom, Lawlor is a three-time Academic All-Big Ten selection and is on track earn the honor for a fourth time this fall.
A junior from Detroit, Thompson is in his third season with the Spartans as a defensive end. He will earn his third letter from the program this fall and currently leads the team with 6.5 tackles for loss while also recording a career-high 27 tackles. In the classroom, the advertising management major is on track to earn Academic All-Big Ten honors for the second year in a row, and garnered Academic All-District and Big Ten Distinguished Scholar accolades as a sophomore.
Off the field, Thompson organized his second annual youth camp in his hometown of Detroit this past July that supported anti-gun violence initiatives. He has also hosted a "Cleats 4 Kids" camp in Lansing.
This marks the second year in a row that Thompson has been named MSU's male recipient of the Jackie Robinson Community & Impact Award.
Honorees were selected based on the following criteria:
· Demonstrated Impact: Significant and tangible contributions to community projects or causes, including measurable outcomes or positive changes resulting from their involvement.
· Collaboration and Teamwork: Ability to work effectively with others, including peers, organizations, and community members, to achieve common goals and enhance community impact.
· Consistency and Commitment: Ongoing and consistent participation in community service activities over an extended period of time.
· Visibility and Advocacy: Efforts to raise awareness and advocate for important groups or causes, leveraging their platform to promote positive change and engage others.
"The Big Ten Jackie Robinson Community & Impact Award celebrates Jackie's legacy of excellence in community service," said Sonya Pankey Robinson, Jackie's first grandchild as well as Director and board member of the Jackie Robinson Foundation. "We are proud to recognize 36 outstanding men and women for the incredible impact they make in their community."
"Our student-athletes make significant contributions through competition, academics, and community impact," said Big Ten Senior Vice President, Community & Impact, Omar Brown. "This award allows the Big Ten to recognize these efforts in improving communities, just as we do with their other athletic and academic achievements. Jackie Robinson embodies this award and our goal to honor student-athletes who positively affect others."
The Big Ten Conference's commitment to athletics, academics and service goes back to the conference's founding. Coupling the academic goals set forth by leaders of the charter members of the conference with their steadfast commitment to athletics, the conference instituted the Big Ten Medal of Honor in 1915, the first award to demonstrate support for the educational emphasis placed on intercollegiate athletics. It is awarded annually by each member institution to one male and one female student of the graduating class who has attained the greatest proficiency in scholarship and athletics.
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