PVCC Puma Press: November 2004

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	File Photo
	Athletic Director Greg Silcox and the rest of the Athletic Department team up with the faculty to help guide student athletes to academic success.
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Paradise Valley Community College has experienced its share of success in athletics, from national titles to All-Americans, but PVCC’s athletic achievements aren’t limited to just the playing field — they also extend to the classroom.

Last year, 60 percent of all Puma athletes scored over a 3.0 grade point average. The cumulative GPA for all athletes was 3.18, while the overall student body carried a 3.11 cumulative GPA. Eight athletes from last year’s sports teams made the National Junior Collegiate Athletic Association’s Academic All-American list.

Additionally, a majority of Puma athletes are surpassing requirements set forth for sports eligibility as written in the “Student Athlete Handbook.” The handbook states that student athletes are required to take at least 12 credit hours during the semester and maintain a minimum GPA of 1.75. Prior to a second season of competition, student athletes must have passed a minimum of 24 credit hours with a 2.0 GPA or higher.

Along with individual academic successes last year, the teams as a whole also achieved stellar results. The men’s cross-country team scored an overall 3.31 GPA, and was joined by the golf team’s 3.19 GPA, as they garnered All-American team honors.
Not to be outdone were the women, placing four teams on the All-American list. Women’s cross country scored a 3.29 GPA; the soccer team scored a 3.0 GPA; the track and field team scored a 3.34 GPA; and the softball team put up a 3.02 GPA.

According to Athletic Director Greg Silcox, coaches and faculty agree that the student athletes’ primary purpose for attending PVCC should be to achieve academic success, followed by athletic success. In support of this premise, twice a semester, Silcox, faculty and staff-support members perform progress checks on athletes to identify possible academic problems the student athletes may be experiencing. Silcox believes that achieving academic success is important because “student athletes need to understand the significance of a good education.”

In helping guide student athletes in the right direction, PVCC Athletics has set up mandatory study tables in the Learning Support Center for all freshmen, transfers and student athletes whose GPA is under 3.0. This study hall, tagged the Puma Athletic Student Success Time or P.A.S.S Time, helps keep athletes in good academic standing throughout the semester. P.A.S.S Time requires that all freshman and continuing athletes with a previous semester GPA less than 3.0 attend two-to-four hours per week. Academic advisers register the student athletes for P.A.S.S. Time and make them aware that failure to attend will affect their athletic eligibility.

Additionally, the Athletic Department’s Jeff Lace, coordinator of Academic Success, advises the students on setting goals, staying focused and moving forward.

Silcox says, “We really try and communicate the importance of academic interests and the benefits in achieving scholastic success, compared to athletic success. Our goal for our athletes after their two years here is for them to be better persons, better students and better athletes.”