AUBURN, Ala. – Eight Auburn Athletics teams received Academic Progress Rate Public Recognition Awards for 2017-18, the NCAA announced Wednesday, Auburn's best showing in the award's 14-year history.
Men's basketball, men's golf, women's cross country, women's golf, women's tennis, women's track and field, gymnastics and volleyball were each honored for academic excellence among their peers.
The NCAA annually honors teams earning multiyear Academic Progress Rates in the top 10 percent of all squads in each sport.
"Auburn University is recognized nationally as an elite academic institution. To have eight teams recognized for superior academic achievement is a tremendous accomplishment," Director of Athletics Allen Greene said. "We congratulate our student-athletes for their hard work, and our coaches and academic support staff for their commitment to educate, support and develop our student-athletes at every moment."
It's the second consecutive NCAA APR Public Recognition Award for men's basketball, which received the honor for the first time last year. Volleyball and women's track are first-time honorees this year.
"We are extremely proud of the work our student-athletes put into being academically and athletically successful," said Dr. Kathryn Flynn, senior associate athletic director for Student-Athlete Support Services.
From the NCAA: Each year, the NCAA honors selected NCAA Division I sports teams by publicly recognizing their latest multiyear NCAA Division I Academic Progress Rate. This announcement is part of the overall Division I academic reform effort and is intended to highlight teams that demonstrate a commitment to academic progress and retention of student-athletes by achieving the top APRs within their respective sports. Specifically, these teams posted multiyear APRs in the top 10 percent of all squads in each sport.
The APR provides a real-time look at a team's academic success each semester by tracking the academic progress of each student-athlete on scholarship. The APR accounts for eligibility, retention and graduation and provides a measure of each team's academic performance.
Multiyear APRs for all Division I sports teams, including the teams receiving public recognition, will be released May 8. All teams must meet an academic threshold of 930 to qualify for the postseason and can face penalties for continued low performance. The most recent APRs are multiyear rates based on scores from the 2014-15, 2015-16, 2016-17 and 2017-18 academic years.