Hall of Fame
Cleveland Steward, Jr. was a dominant post-player for the Vulcan men's basketball team from 1969 through 1973.
Playing in era when freshman were not permitted to play, Steward was a three-year starter under Hall of Fame head coach Myles Witchey and his freshman coach was Floyd Shuler. The Vulcans won the school's first of now seven PSAC men's basketball titles during Steward's freshman season. The 1969-70 Vulcans achieved a then school-best 20-5 overall record.
"Every practice was a battle and obviously the upperclassmen were very good, highly competitive and they worked very hard to become the championship team that they were," said Steward about that squad that featured Cal Hall of Fame selections Ray Greene, Bernie Floriani, and Jack Taylor. "At the time I certainly felt along with the other freshman that were there that we had a little bit to do with the success of that team based on our group working very hard against them at each practice."
In just three years, Steward scored 785 points with nearly 500 rebounds while helping the Vulcans achieve consecutive 13-9 seasons followed by an 11-11 mark his senior year.
A consistent and versatile player whose scoring and rebounding averages increased each season, Steward averaged 14.5 points and seven rebounds per game as a junior and 16.2 points and 8.2 rebounds as a senior. Besides leading the team in scoring and rebounding in both 1971-72 and 1972-73, Steward was the Vulcans' leading foul shooter those seasons, converting 145 of 204 attempts (71.7%).
He received first-team, all-conference and all-state honors as well as NAIA honorable-mention All-American post-season recognition. During his collegiate career, Steward also worked construction jobs with his father, who was a masonry contractor.
"I moved between center and forward and like to consider myself as a shooting center if you will," Steward said. "But I have a lot of fond memories playing those following three years with the team and coaching staff."
Steward received his bachelor's degree in education from Cal U in 1973. While working as an educator after his undergraduate days, Steward earned a master's degree in education administration from Duquesne University and both his Ed.D. in education administration and his Principal Certification from Indiana University of Pennsylvania.
Originally from Greensburg, Pa., and a graduate of Greensburg-Salem High School, where he was offered college scholarships for both basketball and football, Steward began his teaching career at his scholastic alma mater. He taught there for 16 years, beginning as a fifth and sixth-grade teacher. At Greensburg-Salem, Steward also served as a home-school visitor and an alternative education teacher for seventh through ninth-grade students. He was the assistant coach and then head coach of the boy's basketball team. Steward also served as an assistant coach for two years at Jeannette High School before ending his coaching career to concentrate on his career as an educator.
"Athletics had certainly provided me with an opportunity to do some very memorable things but I decided at that point that administration was where I wanted to go and turned my focus more to real life application," said Steward. "The competitiveness, hard work and sacrifice are all traits that certainly help establish your mark as an athlete. But I believed I had to take that a step further and apply those same fundamentals in my professional career. I take a great sense of pride in that."
After serving one year as the primary elementary principal at Wilkins Primary Elementary, Steward moved to the Gateway School District as the Middle School Principal in 1990-91. Since then he has served as Gateway's director of elementary education, assistant superintendent and earlier this fall Steward began his second yeas as the district's superintendent. He believes his experience at Cal U as both a student and athlete has significantly impacted his prominent career as both a teacher and administrator.
"Coach Witchey and Coach Shuler certainly assisted me in growing and California was my first real time away from home," Steward said. "I learned early on that not everybody was going to make it into the pro ranks although back then you thought maybe you had a chance. My father was a very practical man and would tell me growing up to learn a trade that you could always fall back on but education was the key. I was playing ball at Cal but the ultimate goal was to attain a sound education and California certainly provided that for me."
Though his playing days ended 32 years ago, Steward remains close with many of his teammates and is understandably excited about his Hall of Fame induction.
"After graduation many of us have not only kept in touch but have had family outings together that have always been a great time for everyone," Steward said. "Ray Greene and I went to the same high school and I kind of followed him to Cal. We both still go to different sporting events together. I have attended various Hall of Fame ceremonies and I am very humbled by this honor and pleased to be a pert of this distinguished group."
Steward and his wife, Marcella, reside in Greensburg. The couple has two grown children, Cleveland III (C.J.) and Melissa.
