PHILADELPHIA (1/04/02) - Saint Joseph's University's Susan Moran has been named to the 30-player watch list for the inaugural Senior CLASS Award. The Senior CLASS Award - an acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School - will be presented annually by the Kansas City Club to the outstanding senior NCAA Division I basketball player. The award will honor the top male and female player in the country. Selection criteria will be based on a number of factors, the most important being that the recipient must have exhausted their four years of eligibility and have fulfilled their commitment to their respective university. In addition, the recipient must be working toward their degree, be in good academic standing and be of sound moral character. The general concept of an award to honor college seniors was instigated by sportscaster Dick Enberg during the CBS telecast of the 2001 NCAA Men's Basketball Championship Game this past April. "I applaud the Kansas City Club and the organizing group for taking the initiative to develop the Senior CLASS Award," said Enberg, who will serve as Honorary Chairman of the awards. "The idea is right....and the time is right. This is the beginning of a new tradition as we seek to honor the attributes of a special breed of athlete - the college senior." Following last year's college basketball season, over 30 NCAA Division I underclassmen gave up their final year of collegiate eligibility to apply for the NBA draft. That number doesn't include the numerous lower division players, plus six high school athletes that by-passed college and went directly to the professional ranks. While this trend has become a growing concern among men's basketball in recent years, the problem is beginning to reach the women's game as well. This past year, for the first time, two female basketball players left college early to play in the WNBA. The award winners will be selected by three separate voting entities - a panel of national media that covers college basketball, Division I college basketball coaches, and a nationwide fan balloting. A points system will combine the votes from these groups and determine the national winner. Thirty senior basketball players have been identified as nominees for the award entering the 2001-02 season. The national media panel will select 10 finalists for the ballot by February 5, 2002. The voting process will be conducted throughout the month of March. Fan balloting will be facilitated via the Internet and possible retail locations. The inaugural winners will be announced during the NCAA Final Four weekend - the men's in Atlanta and the women's in San Antonio. The first annual award recipients will then be honored at the Tribute Gala, a black- tie awards dinner held at the Westin Crown Center Hotel in Kansas City. The event, hosted by the Kansas City Club, is scheduled for Saturday, April 20.