Bobby Martinez – Sports Writer
NEW HAVEN — With a department that consists of 392 total student-athletes, Southern Connecticut State University’s athletic department over the years, has built a foundation that helps their students achieve high academic success not only on the playing field, but also in the classroom.
“These great accomplishments,” said Director of Athletics Patricia D. Nicol, “could not be achieved without tremendous support from our university administration, faculty and staff, as well as our coaching staff and athletic administration.”
For the fall 2013 academic semester, student-athletes as a whole, combined to finish the semester with an average grade point average of 3.04 where in fact marked the highest GPA in school history. Eleven of the 19 schools athletic teams calculated a combined GPA of a 3.0 or higher.
The women’s cross-country team had the highest of all teams with a GPA of 3.60 followed by the men’s swimming and diving team who had a 3.03. 46 percent of the student-athletes finished with a 3.0 or higher. 23 percent completed the semester with 3.5 or better, four percent finished with 3.9 and five students finished a 4.0.
Nicol said she is happy in student-athletes for achieving such high honors and setting a good example in the classroom.
“The academic success achieved individually,” she said, “and collectively by our student-athletes this past semester continues to demonstrate their presence as outstanding ambassadors for Southern Connecticut State University.”
Michael Kobylanski, associate director of Athletics and Communications, said they have numerous goals as a department where each student is expected to meet.
“Our goal is to make sure the coaches recruit quality athletes who have an intent to learn not just on the playing field,” he said. “We placed measures in place so they can be able to achieve them.”
Being a full-time student-athlete can be hard for some people. The athletic department has built a program that helps student-athletes with any trouble they encounter. A program these student-athletes have access to is the Study Table program said Kobylansi.
“We have a program called the student table,” he said. “It’s mandatory for all incoming freshman and incoming transfers. There’s a penalty if they don’t come which can result into them missing games.”
In an 11 page document that is handed out to student-athletes called the SCSU Athletic Department Academic Support Program Student Handbook, it states they are committed to the success of student athletes both in their sport and classroom. They also talk about the importance of the Athletic Academic Support Program where it exists to help students with their academic responsibilities so that they can more fully participate as a member of the university and community.
With numerous sport teams available at Southern, the focus said Kobylanski, is to make sure they students leave with a good education and be able to have a successful life after Southern.
“Our goal as a department is to make sure our student-athletes meet the universities main goal,” he said, “and that is making sure every student leaves with a diploma.”
All freshmen and returning student athletes that hold a cumulative GPA of 2.00 or lower, also transfer students must attend at least five hours of the Study Table Program a week. Also, all freshmen and transfers students who receive a GPA for a semester that is below 2.5, are required to participate in the Study Table Program the following semester. The athletic department also states in their handout that attendance is required and is monitored by their coaching staff weekly.
Not only do students have to meet the Study table Program requirements, they also have to hand in two progress reports during that particular semester. If a student was to hand in a progress report with a grade average below a “C,” the student-athlete must meet with their coordinator within a week to figure out the best solution in order to receive a higher grade.
