Teams participate in round three of the 2017 NCAA Women’s Golf National Championship at Rich Harvest Farms Course on Sunday, May 21, 2017 in Sugar Grove, Illinois.
By: CofC Media
The College of Charleston Athletics Department has posted another banner year in the classroom, receiving a single-year NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) score of 986. That marks the third consecutive year of 985 or better, which qualifies CofC for the NCAA's Division I academic performance-based revenue distribution.
“The numerical representation of our student-athletes' success has risen in (Athletics Director) Matt Roberts' tenure because he emphasizes a strategic commitment to a positive student-athlete experience and empowers coaches and staff to achieve it,” says Kate Tiller, senior associate athletics director for student-athlete success. “Each APR point represents the academic success and retention or graduation of a student-athlete. There's a success story for each earned point. We are proud of our student-athletes who work hard to persist and graduate from the College while representing us in intercollegiate athletics.”
Five CofC programs earned A perfect single-year APR of 1,000, including men's soccer, women's golf, beach volleyball, men's tennis and men's cross country.
“Academics is a high priority for our athletes and the Athletics Department as a whole,” says head women's golf coach Jamie Futrell.
Futrell's program has posted nine consecutive perfect multiyear APR scores, marking the longest string of consecutive years by any varsity sport at the College. With multiyear APR scores of 1,000 for a total of 10 seasons, women's golf has been the College's top point-earning athletics program.
Also making history this year was head men's soccer coach Keith Wiggans, who guided the men's soccer program to its second-ever perfect single-year APR score and its first since the 2009–10 academic year. Beach volleyball also stood out under head coach Jason Kepner, who led the team to a sixth consecutive perfect multiyear APR score. And, under head coach Amy Seago, the men's cross country program now has six total perfect multiyear APR scores and its first since the 2013–14 academic year.
Another highlight was the baseball program, which claimed a regular season conference title in 2022 under head coach Chad Holbrook and, besting its previous record of 969, set an all-time program record with a multiyear APR score of 972.
“The personal attention our academic staff gives our student-athletes is second to none,” says Futrell. “They are a major component in the growth and maturity of our student-athletes during their time at CofC.”
