Melissa Koch and Crystal Oravis
UW-L athletes are attempting
to keep a streak going about more than just winning games.
For thirteen years now, the
University of Wisconsin-La Crosse has held the highest GPA in the Wisconsin
Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. The success of the student athlete population can be credited
in part to the coaches at UW-L.
A women’s
track and field athlete says, “My coaches are very supportive of the idea that
school is first priority. If I were to talk to my coaches and ask to do a
workout early or at another time because I needed to meet with a teacher, study
group, or tutor, they would be very accommodating. I think that’s a huge help
to know I can balance everything.”
The
University of Wisconsin-La Crosse holds more athletic national championship
titles than any in the WIAC conference. UW-L student athletes also consistently
rank higher than all WIAC schools. In the 2011-2012 school year, the student
athlete population averaged a grade point average of 3.186. For the past ten
years, the student athlete grade point average has been higher than that of
UW-L’s student body grade point average.
Basketball
and baseball students at UW-L all say the same thing of their coaches; if ever
an academic concern came up, their coaches would be quick to help out. Kevin Johnson, a student athlete who graduated in May, was a
pitcher on the baseball team for four years and finished schooling in that time
with a degree in Mathematics and a concentration in Actuarial Science. “I realized that my academic ability would
have a greater impact on my life than my baseball ability. The biggest
difficulty was allocating an appropriate amount of time towards each.”
According to UW-L’s Athletic Director, Josh Whitman, “the same
attributes that make students successful academically make them successful
athletically.” These qualities include time management, focus, understanding
of responsibilities, and leadership.
Asked if
being a student athlete has hurt or helped the GPA, all of the athletes
spoken to for this story had the same response. A senior on the women’s
basketball team says, “I have noticed that out of season my time management
gets so much worse, which reflects onto my GPA. I can definitely say that being
an athlete has helped to motivate me to work harder in school.”
Many UW-L sports
teams are also required to do mid-semester and end of semester signed check off
sheets for each class. Having teachers sign off on each athlete and how they
are doing is a way for coaches to stay involved.
Whitman believes that the 2013-2014 year will be another strong
academic performance for student athletes. “Over the years, athletically
our teams go up and down, but I think academically we stay pretty consistent.
We have students coming here for the right reasons.”
The WIAC is made up of nine different schools. It has been
around for 100 years, and in that time the teams playing for the WIAC have won
98 National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III national championships.
Contrary to
the usual stereotype of a student athlete, D-III athletes have to work harder
for their own benefit. Division one athletes have the fear of losing
scholarships to help motivate them through their studies. Division three
athletes have to fight for their spot on the team, but also in the classroom,
all for personal satisfaction.
The report for the 2013-2014 year won’t come out until around
mid-July next year, but the will for student athletes to perform well is there
now. In a meeting with student athletes
earlier this Fall, this year’s motto was revealed: “The ceiling of our
past must become the floor of our future.”
