East Michigan News

The Eastern Michigan University Department of Athletics has maintained strong academic performance according to the latest Academic Progress Rate (APR) report released by the NCAA. The APR, which assesses academic eligibility, retention, and graduation of scholarship student-athletes, covers a four-year period from 2020-21 to 2023-24.

In this report, EMU's men's cross country team, women's golf, and women's tennis teams achieved a perfect multi-year rate of 1,000. Additionally, eight teams including men's basketball and women's gymnastics scored perfect single-year scores in 2023-24.

Scott Wetherbee, EMU Vice President/Director of Athletics stated: "We prepare our student-athletes to achieve academic and athletic excellence. Consistent with our mission, we take great pride in how our student-athletes embody the highest standards of excellence in the classroom, on the field, and how they are engaged in the community."

The national average for Division I teams remained at 984 as APR marked its 21st anniversary. Over these years, student-athlete academic success has seen significant improvement.

The calculation for each team's APR is straightforward: scholarship athletes earn points for staying eligible and retained or graduating each term. Schools without athletic scholarships track recruited athletes similarly.

This marks the fourth year of public APR reporting following a COVID-19 hiatus. Although penalties were suspended last year due to pandemic impacts, normal operations resumed this year with penalties for teams scoring below 930.

EMU saw improvements across several sports with football increasing from 968 to 977 and women's golf reaching a perfect score from 992. Rowing and gymnastics also improved by five points each.

Five EMU teams ranked in the top half within their conference. In two decades since its inception nearly 22,000 athletes have returned to complete degrees contributing positively towards their former team's APR scores.

Dave Schnase from NCAA remarked: "As the college athletics landscape continues to evolve what remains unchanged is the academic success of student-athletes. We applaud the incredible academic achievements...and support provided by their schools."