Nyah Adams / News Director

St. Cloud State University’s newest Admission Counselor in the Undergraduate Admissions Office, 21-year-old Marena Kouba is receiving the highest civilian honor for heroism.

In mid-July of 2020 officials say a man and two children struggled to swim in the choppy water of Lake Superior near Marquette, Michigan. When the former SCSU swimmer noticed their struggle, without hesitation she jumped into the lake to save them.

Kouba told all three of them to hold onto her arm as she swam several hundred feet back to shore.

The Carnegie Medal is given throughout the U.S. and Canada to those who enter extreme danger while saving or attempting to save the lives of others.