The Bob Basten Award is given annually to a former St. John’s University football player who, in his life as an alumnus, has exhibited outstanding leadership.
Minneapolis, Minnesota — October 3, 2016 — Denny Schleper, CEO of CliftonLarsonAllen (CLA), is the 2016 recipient of the Bob Basten Excellence in Leadership Award from St. John’s University. A 1983 graduate of St. John’s and quarterback of the Johnnies football team, Schleper was presented with the award at halftime of the school’s homecoming football game in Collegevillle, Minnesota, in September.
The Bob Basten Award is given annually to a former SJU football player who, in his life as an alumnus, has exhibited outstanding leadership traits, is involved in his community and alma mater, has a sense of fair play carried beyond the gridiron, and has an overall commitment to excellence.
Established in 2009, the Basten Award arose from a conversation between three friends from SJU’s Class of 1982 who wanted to salute Johnnie football players who represent the program's hallmark traits. One of those friends was Bob Basten, a former Minnesota Viking and business executive who died in 2012 after 10 years of battling ALS/Lou Gehrig's Disease. Schleper is the eighth recipient of the award.
“This is a great honor for me, in part due to the remembrance of the person the award is named for,” Schleper said. “The thing I recognize now about my time at St. John’s was how they develop young men to become leaders. On the football team we called our own plays, which allowed us to play and win as a team and learn from our mistakes.”
Pictured above: Denny Schleper and his wife, Cookie, accept the Bob Basten Award at St. John’s University in September.
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