Post by CrimsonPhantom on Jul 27, 2012 10:33:28 GMT -7
Athletes build a better future with hard work in the classroom
By Jack Nixon
From LC Bulletin 7/27/2012
Consistency is something everybody appreciates.
Whether it is your dry cleaner, your favorite restaurant or your child’s report card, you love it when you get the same satisfactory result time after time.
The New Mexico State athletics department has consistently hit high numbers for academic achievement since they joined the WAC. Dr. McKinley Boston’s Ph.D. was earned through hard work and study, and he is making sure those qualities stay in place no matter what the years bring on the field of play.
Last week, the Aggies announced that they topped the conference with 184 Academic All-WAC team members last year. The total encompasses freshmen, transfers and returning student athletes at NM State for the 2011-12 season. To be eligible for consideration to be an Academic All-WAC honoree, athletes have to have a minimum 3.0 grade point average and play in at least 50 percent of the team’s contests to qualify.
Years ago, at another school whose games I broadcast, they would trot out their walk-ons who were B-plus students as examples of their commitment to academics. The world of athletics and academics is better for the change that has come for all schools. Boston has a reason to smile since his game plan for classroom success is right on point.
“Winning and academic success are not mutually exclusive of one another,” he said in reference to the academic success. “I have shared that statement with many athletes and coaches in our department for some time. It was real heartwarming for me to receive the news that NM State had the most WAC All Academic selections this year.”
The Aggies earned 49 All-WAC academic honors in both fall 2011 and spring 2012. They also garnered 37 awards in the winter of 2012 to raise the total to 135 returning athletes recognized by the conference.
After exhausting their eligibility, Aggie student athletes graduate on a more frequent basis than the general student population at NM State. Last season, 103 student athletes were recognized at the El Paso Electric Crimson and White Society Banquet for earning or maintaining a 3.5 GPA or higher during the course of the academic year. The cumulative GPA for all of the Aggie athletic teams combined remained above a 3.0 for the 14th consecutive semester last year.
NM State athletes on all teams have exceeded the number of hours they put into community service, and a real competition has developed among the teams for the trophy for most service hours.
It is fun to cheer at the games for our teams, but the consistent achievement of the NM State athletes in the classroom gives the heart peace knowing these young people have a future beyond their sport.
From- www.lascrucesbulletin.com/ee/lascrucesbulletin/default.php?pSetup=lascrucesbulletin
By Jack Nixon
From LC Bulletin 7/27/2012
Consistency is something everybody appreciates.
Whether it is your dry cleaner, your favorite restaurant or your child’s report card, you love it when you get the same satisfactory result time after time.
The New Mexico State athletics department has consistently hit high numbers for academic achievement since they joined the WAC. Dr. McKinley Boston’s Ph.D. was earned through hard work and study, and he is making sure those qualities stay in place no matter what the years bring on the field of play.
Last week, the Aggies announced that they topped the conference with 184 Academic All-WAC team members last year. The total encompasses freshmen, transfers and returning student athletes at NM State for the 2011-12 season. To be eligible for consideration to be an Academic All-WAC honoree, athletes have to have a minimum 3.0 grade point average and play in at least 50 percent of the team’s contests to qualify.
Years ago, at another school whose games I broadcast, they would trot out their walk-ons who were B-plus students as examples of their commitment to academics. The world of athletics and academics is better for the change that has come for all schools. Boston has a reason to smile since his game plan for classroom success is right on point.
“Winning and academic success are not mutually exclusive of one another,” he said in reference to the academic success. “I have shared that statement with many athletes and coaches in our department for some time. It was real heartwarming for me to receive the news that NM State had the most WAC All Academic selections this year.”
The Aggies earned 49 All-WAC academic honors in both fall 2011 and spring 2012. They also garnered 37 awards in the winter of 2012 to raise the total to 135 returning athletes recognized by the conference.
After exhausting their eligibility, Aggie student athletes graduate on a more frequent basis than the general student population at NM State. Last season, 103 student athletes were recognized at the El Paso Electric Crimson and White Society Banquet for earning or maintaining a 3.5 GPA or higher during the course of the academic year. The cumulative GPA for all of the Aggie athletic teams combined remained above a 3.0 for the 14th consecutive semester last year.
NM State athletes on all teams have exceeded the number of hours they put into community service, and a real competition has developed among the teams for the trophy for most service hours.
It is fun to cheer at the games for our teams, but the consistent achievement of the NM State athletes in the classroom gives the heart peace knowing these young people have a future beyond their sport.
From- www.lascrucesbulletin.com/ee/lascrucesbulletin/default.php?pSetup=lascrucesbulletin