Fresno State Athletics
Give Me an A
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Jan. 31, 2000
FRESNO, Calif. - Picture athletes succeeding at their sport Imagine those athletes excelling in the classroom Paint the image "Bulldog Red"
At California State University, Fresno, a proud new tradition is beginning to thrive - the scholar-athlete.
It is growing and improving at such a rate each academic year that Fresno State's athletic department, led by Director Allen Bohl, is now spelling academics with the same "A" as athletics.
The arrival of the Academic Gameplan, brought to the Bulldog football team by founder and assistant coach John Baxter, made a significant impact. Players advance their learning skills more quickly. Instructors are afforded the sight of classrooms whose front row seats overflow with athletes.
Combined with dedicated coaches and an administration committed to education, Fresno State student-athletes are making the grade. In the last academic year, 582 men and women were members of a Bulldog athletic team. Of those, 232, just `first down and inches' shy of 40 percent, were recognized as scholar-athletes at the Kiwanis-sponsored Torch of Excellence banquet. That number is equivalent to all of the student-athletes in the football, equestrian and women's track and field programs combined, which are the three largest team sports in terms of student participation at Fresno State. In addition, 33 football student-athletes were honored at the banquet, an increase of 57 percent in two short years.
In the same two-year period the football team GPA increased from just below a 2.0 to nearly a 2.80, putting players into the B- average for grades. Men's basketball also increased their GPA in this time period from just below a 2.0 to nearly a 2.40 average.
During department meetings with coaches and athletic administration, Bohl never misses an opportunity to emphasize academic "wins" and graduation "goals." Fresno State's student-athlete graduation rates increased by four percent in the last academic school year. Bohl also assigned an academic advisor the responsibility to serve as the Athletics' Graduation Coach. This role is to encourage, promote and assist student-athletes in reaching new personal bests in the classroom and taking the victory lap to graduation.
For 1998-99, two of the nationally coveted NCAA Postgraduate scholarships were awarded to two Fresno State women: Dora Djilianova, NCAA tennis national finalist, and Melissa Price, NCAA Indoors Champion in the pole vault.
Dr. Vince Bloom, chair of the Athletic Advisory Council, added his congratulations to the 112 of last year's Bulldog class who were named Western Athletic Conference Scholar-Athletes, the 61 who garnered WAC Academic All-Conference honors, and the 39 who achieved a 4.0 in at least one semester. "It is tremendous that almost one fourth of Fresno State's student-athletes made the Dean's List [in 1998-99]," Bloom said. "This is a notable achievement." Included in the awards received by individuals and teams last year, the Bulldogs ranked third of 16 WAC schools in total number of GTE Academic All-Americans. In addition, Fresno State totaled the most WAC All-Academic honorees than any other conference member in 1998-99.
Last spring the women's tennis team was acknowledged by the International Tennis Association as an All-Academic Team, a comparable honor that has been bestowed on the women's swimming and diving team the last several years by the College Swimming Coaches Association of America.
With the increasing number of these rising stars, Fresno State is a contender among earnest educational institutions. Bulldog hopefuls have a challenging standard to meet, particularly as the focus on recruitment of new student-athletes is on athletic skill and academic preparation.
"The academic progress of these students is significant and they will help to motivate others," university President John D. Welty said. "I'm pleased that a culture of academic success seems to be growing among our student-athletes."
This season whey you visit our athletic venues recognize that you are witnessing the growth of a new breed of Bulldog.