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Mark Bernardino Receives Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award
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CHARLOTTESVILLE—Mark Bernardino, the men’s and women’s head swimming coach at Virginia for 32 years, was one of three UVa Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award recipients at the University’s Valedictory Exercises on May 22.
Each year the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Foundation sponsors the presentation of awards at 54 colleges in the southeastern United States to individuals who have served others, their institutions and their wider communities. Created in 1925 the awards are given to distinguished fourth year students and members of the University community in memory of the award’s namesake, a New York lawyer, businessman and philanthropist. The awards are intended to perpetuate the excellence of character and humanitarian service he epitomized.
Bernardino has been the head coach of Virginia’s men’s and women’s swimming teams for 32 years. He has led the teams to 21 Atlantic Coast Conference Championships, including 11 of the last 12 men’s championships and the last three women’s championships. Bernardino has been named ACC Coach of the Year 29 times, 12 for the women’s team and 17 for the men’s team.
During his tenure at UVa, more than 100 student-athletes have earned All-America honors, including three NCAA Champions who won five individual national titles in total. Virginia swimmers coached by Bernardino are Olympic medalists, World University Games medalists, Pan American Games medalists and World Championship finalists. More than 450 women and men have been named to the ACC Academic Honor Roll and two of Bernardino’s swimmers have been semifinalists for the Rhodes Scholarships.
Bernardino is currently president of the College Swimming Coaches Association of America in September of 2009.
A native of Drexel Hill, Pa., Bernardino graduated from Virginia’s McIntire School of Commerce in 1974 after a successful collegiate swimming career. He earned a master’s degree in counseling from UVa’s Curry School of Education before his appointment as the Cavaliers’ head coach in 1978.