Inside Kansas State Rowing: Academics

The K-State rowing team continues to see the rewards of its hard work on the water and in the classroom. Seven Wildcats were honored by the Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association as 2009 CRCA National Scholar-Athletes.

The group of Michelle Bergman (kinesiology), Kilah Bond (kinesiology), Michelle Higgins (bio chemistry), Heather Hoffman (communication science and disorders), Whitley Jackson (biology), Michael Knoll (sociology) and Nicole Vogt (architectural engineering) all received the honor for K-State.

To be named a CRCA National Scholar-Athlete a student-athlete must hold a cumulative 3.5 GPA or higher for her career through the fall semester of the current competition year. They must also meet all eligibility requirements by their respective institution and be in at least their second year of eligibility. The student-athlete must have participated in 75 percent of the team’s spring races or in a regional conference event, and the team’s head coach must be a member in good standing with the CRCA.

This success comes as no surprise, since at Kansas State, being a champion is more than winning trophies in competition. It is about being a champion in the classroom, and becoming a champion in life.

The program of Student Services for Intercollegiate Athletics is dedicated to helping student athletes achieve those goals, through

new student orientation
academic counseling
tutoring & mentoring
academic skills training
monitoring of academic progress

Program Staff
The Student Services Program is staffed by six full-time academic counselors, including a Life Skills Coordinator, and approximately seventy academic tutors.

Each team is assigned an academic counselor who is responsible for contact with designated student athletes, supervision of tutorial services, administration of the team's study sessions and monitoring the student's academic progress.

Each counselor works with their students in utilizing program resources, University services, and the academic advising required by their School, College or major department.

Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC)
SAAC represents and articulates the broad and diverse interests, opinions and concerns of student-athletes to athletic department administrators.

Through SAAC, athletic department administrators and the Intercollegiate Athletic Council (IAC) discuss with student-athletes issues regarding the management, operation and rules that govern the Athletic Department and its sport teams.