Colorado State athletics set a new school record for the 2015-16 school year with a league-leading ten of the university’s 14 athletic programs receiving perfect Academic Progress Rate scores of 1,000, the NCAA announced Wednesday.
“Being the leader in the Mountain West in APR is definitely a feather in our University’s cap,” Director of Athletics Joe Parker said in a news release.
“This is a tribute to our coaches for recruiting quality student-athletes, the professors and instructors here at Colorado State in their teaching excellence and our academic staff for continuing to work with all student-athletes to succeed in the classroom. However, the greatest portion of the credit is to the student-athletes for their efforts in their studies and taking advantage of the great resources and opportunities afforded them here at CSU. I am very proud of this as we again fulfill the first part of our department’s mission `To Educate’ and look forward to the continued efforts of all those involved.”
The NCAA releases APR scores each spring based on the previous academic year. When calculating the APR score, very scholarship athlete is worth two points. If the student-athlete remains eligible, it is worth one point and they earn another for remaining in school or graduating.
The sports programs that earned single-year perfect APRs are men’s cross country, men’s golf, men’s track & field, women’s basketball, women’s cross country, women’s golf, women’s soccer, women’s swimming & diving, women’s volleyball and women’s track & field. The other programs (football, men’s basketball, softball and women’s tennis) all scored above 955, which surpassed the NCAA standard of 930.
The Rams earned scores of 959 or better for the four-year period of 2012-13 to 2015-16 in all sports, with women’s soccer and men’s cross country earning perfect scores. Along with CSU, NCAA APR scores are rising across the nation.
Per the NCAA, Division I student-athletes improved academically for the 13th consecutive year, earning another all-time high four-year Academic Progress Rate. The 2015-16 overall four-year rate is 981, up two points from the four-year rate announced last year.
In a news release, NCAA President President Mark Emmert commented on the improved academic figures.
“I am so pleased that the Academic Progress Rates continue to rise, but I am more excited about what those numbers mean: Thousands of college athletes continue to make real progress toward earning their degrees,” Emmert said. “A college degree, combined with the skills they learn while participating in sports, will provide countless opportunities for them later in life.”
Highest Percentage of perfect 2015-16 APR scores
(relative to sport sponsorship in Mountain West)
Colorado State
71.4%
(10/14)
Boise State
50.0%
(9/18)
San Jose State
50.0%
(7/14)
San Diego State
47.1%
(8/17)
Nevada
46.7%
(7/15)
Air Force
44.0%
(11/25)
UNLV
43.8%
(7/16)
New Mexico
36.8%
(7/19)
Hawai’I
31.3%
(5/16)
Utah State
28.6%
(4/14)
Wyoming
26.7%
(4/15)
Fresno State
25.0%
(4/16)
CSU’s Combined Multiyear APR (four years from 2012-13 to 2015-16)
Men’s Basketball
976
Men’s Cross Country
1,000
Football
966
Men’s Golf
992
Men’s Track
991
Women’s Basketball
991
Women’s Cross Country
990
Women’s Golf
976
Softball
990
Women’s Soccer
1,000
Women’s Swimming & Diving
991
Women’s Tennis
959
Women’s Volleyball
995
Women’s Track
989
Collegian sports director Justin Michael can be reached by email at jmichael@collegian.com or Twitter @JustinTMichael.