On Wednesday, February 15, 2023, the Minnesota State High School League officially announced the finalists for the state Triple “A” award. Brady Johnson, senior, was the male finalist for Region 7AA, representing St. Francis.

The criteria for the award is very demanding, and only a small number of students from each school are eligible to be a finalist for the award. Both Johnson and Autumn Miller were the candidates from St. Francis High School for 7AA.

Triple “A” stands for exceeding achievement in 3 areas of school participation: Academics, Athletics, and [Fine] Arts. The award is exclusive to seniors. One male and one female from each school per region are nominated, but only one of each gender can advance to the final state selection.

The first area of the award is Academics. In order to qualify for this, a student must have at least a 3.0 GPA, averaging a ‘B’. Johnson is one of the top students of his class by GPA. He also takes honors, AP, CIS,  and high-rigor classes.

The second area is Athletics. A student must participate in at least one Minnesota State High School League sport in order to qualify. Johnson is a three sport athlete at St. Francis, being a very active member of the Varsity Football team, the Varsity Boys Basketball team, and the Track team.

The third and final area of the award is Arts. A student must participate in some sort of fine art in order to qualify. This may include, but is not limited to: band, choir, theater, debate, speech, or visual art. Johnson plays the Tenor Saxophone for Honors Wind Ensemble at St. Francis, and has been enrolled in band since middle school.

“Triple ‘A’ Award recipients are selected through a multi-level process involving member schools of the League, the League’s administrative regions, and a special committee of educators, business leaders, and members from the fine arts and athletic communities,” stated the MSHSL in their official post regarding the finalists for the award.

In March, all 32 finalists, including Johnson, will be invited to a banquet where League officials will announce the 4 winners of the award. The finalists will also participate in an on-court ceremony during the Class AA championship game of the Boys Basketball State Tournament. The statewide award winners will also receive a $1,000 scholarship.

To be eligible to receive this award requires a large amount of commitment, skill, and dedication. Both Johnson and Miller have shown all three of these traits throughout their high school careers and Johnson stood out enough in a field of his peers to win the nod from the 7AA committee.