By DENISE WATSON BATTS
Published November 24, 2003
Diaz
TAMPA - At 21, Delavane Diaz has some resume.
The South Tampa native is a senior at the U.S. Air Force Academy majoring in astronautical engineering and maintaining a 3.8 grade point average.
She served as wing commander, the highest rank a cadet can hold at the academy in Colorado, during the summer.
And she was twice named most valuable player of the academy's volleyball team, leading the conference in kills.
On Saturday, she added Rhodes scholar to her accomplishments.
Diaz, one of 32 U.S. students selected for the prestigious award, will join students from 18 other nations at the University of Oxford in Britain in October of next year.
"It's still surreal, I can't really believe it's happened," Diaz said Sunday from her parents' home, where was visiting for Thanksgiving.
Diaz said that her Oxford studies will be in engineering but that eventually she would love to return to the Air Force Academy to teach.
As a wing commander this summer, Diaz oversaw 4,000 cadets as the school underwent sweeping changes in response to a sexual assault scandal.
She held the top rank during basic cadet training, a grueling five-week period nicknamed "The Beast." Diaz said she tried to get rid of what she viewed as "senseless" traditions such as requiring underclassmen to eat at attention when in the presence of upperclassmen.
Another woman was appointed wing commander this fall. Diaz has downplayed the selection of two women to lead cadets after the scandal.
"There wasn't a distinction in my mind," Diaz told the Gazette of Colorado Springs last month. "I feel like I was treated like the wing commander. Being given the position was a strong message that I was qualified to lead the wing."
Wing commanders are nominated by cadets, but the academy commandant makes the final decision.
This year's Rhodes scholars were selected from 963 applicants from 366 colleges and universities. Diaz got word of her Oxford scholarship Saturday, as she sat with other finalists after the last round of interviews in Atlanta.
She said one of the highlights was being in the company of such stellar candidates.
"If I hadn't won, I would've been sad, but I don't think I could've felt wronged in any way," she said.
The news capped a frenetic week for Diaz. She had interviews in Coral Gables on Tuesday and Wednesday, a volleyball tournament in San Diego on Thursday and interviews in Atlanta on Friday and Saturday.
The scholarship process started in January with interviews at the academy and an essay she revised 35 times to perfect.
Diaz is no stranger to pursuing excellence. She was a standout at Berkeley Preparatory School, where she graduated in 2000 after helping lead the school to three state volleyball championships.
She was named Florida volleyball player of the year by Coach and Athletic Director magazine her senior year.
Diaz comes from a family of competitors. Her father, Juan Diaz, was a professional tennis player. Her mother, Orie Byars, was a skilled player. Byars' mother was a competitive golfer; Byars' father, a noted sailor.
"In my family, we're all just eager. We like competing in everything; we just think it's fun to try to do our best," Byars said. "I think we're intellectually curious. We don't sit around and wonder; we jump up for the encyclopedia, dictionary. We can't stand not knowing."
- Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.[Last modified November 24, 2003, 01:31:39]
