Tech Matches School Record with Five NCAA Public Recognition Awards

THE FLATS — Georgia Tech matched a school record with five programs earning NCAA Public Recognition Awards for multiyear Academic Progress Rate (APR) scores that rank among the top 10 percent nationally in their respective sports, the NCAA announced on Wednesday.

Georgia Tech women’s cross country, golf, men’s tennis, women’s track & field and volleyball all earned the honor for the four-year period ending in 2016-17. Only once before has Tech received five NCAA Public Recognition Awards for a single academic year – 2008-09 (baseball, men’s cross country, women’s cross country, golf and volleyball).

Most notable among Georgia Tech’s latest recipients, head coach Bruce Heppler’s golf program earned its 13th-straight Public Recognition Award, continuing its streak of earning the honor every year since the inception of the APR program in 2006. GT golf is one of only 85 programs that has earned all 13 Public Recognition Awards. Among Power 5 conferences, it is one of two men’s golf teams and 14 programs overall that have achieved the feat.

Georgia Tech volleyball, under head coach Michelle Collier, earned a Public Recognition Award for the third-straight year and fifth time overall while Alan Drosky’s women’s cross country squad received the award for the second year in a row and fifth time overall. Head coach Kenny Thorne’s men’s tennis program earned the recognition for the second time (first since 2010-11) and Drosky’s women’s track & field team received the honor for the first time.

APR is an annual scorecard of academic achievement calculated for all Division I sports teams. It measures eligibility, graduation and retention each semester or academic term and provides a clear picture of the academic performance for each team in every sport. The most recent multiyear rates are based on the 2013-14, 2014-15, 2015-16 and 2016-17 academic years.