Courtesy of Grambling State Athletics
GRAMBLING, La. | Grambling State University student-athletes continued to excel in the classroom this season, with four programs producing perfect single-year NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) scores.
Men’s basketball, men’s cross country, women’s bowling, and women’s tennis posted scores of 1,000. In total, six teams improved upon their scores from last season (baseball, men’s basketball, men’s cross country, women’s bowling, women’s soccer, and women’s tennis).
All 15 teams exceeded the multi-year threshold of 930, with women’s tennis also scoring a perfect 1,000. Seven programs improved their multi-year scores (football, men’s track, women’s basketball, women’s cross country, softball, women’s track and women’s volleyball). Multi-year scores were tabulated from 2019-20 to 2022-23.
Multi-Year Scores (2019-20 — 2022-23, 930 and above)
Baseball — 955
Men’s Basketball — 950
Men’s Cross Country — 978
Football — 941
Men’s Track — 933
Women’s Basketball — 955
Women’s Bowling — 989
Women’s Cross Country — 960
Women’s Softball — 970
Women’s Soccer — 961
Women’s Tennis — 1,000
Women’s Track — 964
Women’s Volleyball — 983
Single-Year Scores (2022-23, 950 and above)
Baseball — 968
Men’s Basketball — 1,000
Men’s Cross Country — 1,000
Women’s Bowling — 1,000
Women’s Softball — 964
Women’s Soccer — 978
Women’s Tennis — 1,000
Women’s Volleyball — 976
WHAT IS NCAA APR
Courtesy of the NCAA
Implemented in 2003 as part of an ambitious academic reform effort in Division I, the Academic Progress Rate (APR) holds institutions accountable for the academic progress of their student-athletes through a team-based metric that accounts for the eligibility and retention of each student-athlete for each academic term.
The APR emerged when Division I presidents and chancellors sought a more timely assessment of academic success at colleges and universities. At the time, the best measure was the graduation rate calculated under the federally mandated methodology that was based on a six-year window and did not take transfers into account.
In addition to developing the APR, the presidents also adopted a new graduation rate methodology that more accurately reflects student-athlete transfer patterns and other factors affecting graduation (the new rate is called the Graduation Success Rate).
The APR system includes rewards for superior academic performance and penalties for teams that do not achieve certain academic benchmarks. Data are collected annually, and results are announced in the spring.
The Division I Committee on Academics (CoA) oversees the Academic Progress Rate as part of its responsibilities with the Academic Performance Program. The CoA sets policies and recommends legislative changes to the Division I Board of Directors which has the final say on changes in Division I.