Michigan Tech recognized by NCAA for Academic Success Rate
HOUGHTON, Mich. – Michigan Tech is a recipient of the NCAA Presidents' Award for Academic Excellence, presented to member schools earning an Academic Success Rate of 90 percent or higher.
The Huskies have a four-year Academic Success Rate of 91 percent across Division II programs. Tech was one of only two schools in the GLIAC to receive the award as 42 Division II institutions were recognized.
"The academic success of our student-athletes is extremely important to Michigan Tech Athletics," said Director of Athletics Suzanne Sanregret. "A 91 percent Academic Success Rate is a testament to the quality of the student-athletes that we recruit, the commitment from the coaches to focus on academics as well as athletics, and the holistic approach that we take as a department to support them. Also, considering the academic rigor of Michigan Tech and the challenges associated with travel and missed class time this is an exceptional accomplishment."
The ASR is based on student-athletes who entered Michigan Tech from 2010-13. Men's and women's Nordic skiing, women's basketball, volleyball, women's tennis, and women's cross country and track and field achieved a perfect 100 percent ASR. Men's basketball, men's cross country and track and field, and soccer all had over 90 with every program earning an ASR that ranks higher than the national average.
"The Presidents' Award for Academic Excellence recognizes Division II member schools for their commitment to a balanced college experience that supports the academic success of college athletes," said Sandra Jordan, chancellor of the University of South Carolina Aiken and chair of the Division II Presidents Council. "Ten more institutions earned this award than last year, setting an all-time high for this program, but most importantly, this means college athletes at these schools are achieving academic success that will benefit them for the rest of their lives."
The Academic Success Rate is the percentage of student-athletes who graduate within six years of initial collegiate enrollment and includes virtually all Division II student-athletes.
Unlike the federal rate, the Division II ASR includes nearly 34,000 non-scholarship student-athletes and accounts for those who transfer to a Division II school after initial enrollment elsewhere, while removing student-athletes who leave school while academically eligible. The national ASR for the four cohorts of student-athletes who entered college from 2010 to 2013 is 74 percent.
Division II student-athletes continue to graduate at a higher rate than the general student body. Even when using the less-inclusive federal graduation rate, the 2013 entering class of student-athletes graduated at a rate of 62 percent, compared with 53 percent for the general student body.