May 7, 2009
All of Baylor's intercollegiate athletics programs scored at or above the national threshold of 925 in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's 2009 Academic Progress Rate (APR) public report released Wednesday and none of its teams are subject to the organization's Contemporaneous Penalties.
Three of Baylor's programs, baseball, women's golf and women's soccer, led the Big 12 Conference in APR scores within their respective sports, while two more, men's basketball and women's tennis, finished second in their ranking.
Baylor's men's basketball and women's golf programs earlier received public recognition awards from the NCAA for having APR scores which rank among the top 10 percent within their respective sport. Both programs qualified for postseason play in 2008-09, with men's basketball reaching the NIT championship game and the women's golf team receiving its ninth NCAA Regional bid in the last 10 years.
"I am extremely proud of the academic performance of our student-athletes," said Baylor Director of Athletics Ian McCaw. "This success is a credit to the dedication of our student-athletes, academic commitment of our coaches and the outstanding work of the student-athlete services staff. Moreover, Baylor's faculty members play a key role in the academic success of our student-athletes and are to be commended for the outstanding job they do in the classroom."
Ten of Baylor's athletic programs scored above the national Division I APR average for their respective sport (baseball, men's basketball, men's cross country, men's golf, women's cross country, women's golf, women's soccer, softball, women's tennis and women's volleyball).
The APR, now in its fifth year, is a four-year average based on the school's overall student-athlete eligibility, graduation and retention rates for student-athletes who participated during the 2004-05, 2005-06, 2006-07 and 2007-08 academic years. It also serves as a predictor of graduation success.
Baylor's sport-by-sport APR scores:
Men's Programs: Baseball, 978; Basketball, 989; Cross Country, 979; Football, 930; Golf, 984; Tennis, 927; Indoor Track, 931; Outdoor Track, 928.
Women's Programs: Basketball, 955; Cross Country, 973; Golf, 1000; Soccer, 989; Softball, 977; Tennis, 986; Indoor Track, 956; Outdoor Track, 956; Volleyball, 975.
