INDIANAPOLIS – Southern New Hampshire University was one of 44 athletic departments across the country to earn the NCAA Division II Presidents' Award for Academic Excellence on Monday. The honor is bestowed upon institutions that achieved an Academic Success Rate (ASR) of 90 percent or higher in the most recent set of data that was released Dec. 6.
Southern New Hampshire registered a department-best ASR of 91 percent for the second second straight year, which tied for 27th best in the country out of 307 institutions. The award, in its 13th year of being given, was collected by a division-high seven NE10 schools. It is the third consecutive year SNHU earned the honor.
SNHU has either established or matched a department record in ASR for five consecutive years and has also now either increased its ASR or held steady for 10 straight years. The 91 percent is also well ahead of the national four-year ASR average, which held steady at 76 percent overall.
Eight Penmen programs posted an ASR of 100 percent, with two others checking in above 90 percent. Women's cross country/track & field garnered an ASR of 100 percent for the 14th time and 10th straight year, while women's basketball recorded its 12th overall and matched women's cross country with its 10th straight. Men's cross country and women's tennis each garnered an ASR of 100 percent for the ninth straight year, while women's lacrosse earned its fifth straight perfect ASR, and softball posted its fourth straight. Field hockey also tallied a perfect 100 for the third straight year. Men's lacrosse (95) and women's soccer (94) were the other two programs to achieve an ASR of at least 90 percent, while women's volleyball narrowly missed out with an 89.
SNHU was one of 10 Northeast-10 institutions to rank inside the top 100 and one of six in the top 30. The NE10, which posted the second best mark among all DII conferences with a mark of 88 percent, also had three schools in the top six, including Bentley University and Saint Michael's College, which tied for the top spot with an ASR of 99.
This is the 18th year the NCAA has released the ASR, which is the percentage of student-athletes who graduate within six years of initial enrollment at a college. The NCAA developed the Division II ASR at the request of college and university presidents who believed the federal graduation rate was flawed. Division II's ASR data takes transfer students into account and removes students who left the institution in good academic standing. In addition, given the partial-scholarship financial aid model of Division II, the ASR data includes student-athletes not on athletically related financial aid. The result is that ASR captures approximately 32,000 non-scholarship student-athletes who enrolled from 2013 through 2016, the four years covered in the most recent data.
Even when using the less-inclusive federal graduation rates, student-athletes are outperforming their peers in the general student population by seven percent. For Division II athletes, the federal rate held steady at 60 percent, while the general student body climbed one point to 53 percent.
For the latest on Southern New Hampshire University athletics, follow the Penmen via social media on Twitter, Facebook, Youtube and Instagram. You can also sign up to receive text message alerts and e-mail newsletters about your favorite Penmen teams.
