E&H Student-Athletes Succeeding in the Classroom

College students-athletes who participate in sports are more likely to graduate than the
average student. According to Huffington Post, “For male student-athletes the graduation rate
was 81 percent, while the rate for all men was 58 percent. Women out-performed men, with
female student-athletes graduating at a rate of 92 percent versus a 65 percent graduation rate for
all females at the Division III level.” This theme occurs here at Emory & Henry College, which
is a Division III institution.

Dean of Student Success and Retention Jolie Lewis said, “In the 2016 cohort 79 percent
of students that were non-athletes did not return, while 74 percent of students that were athletes
did return to E&H in 2016. Male athletes are more likely to come back than the average student.
As for male athletes, 73 percent came back for their second year, 67 percent of non-male athletes
came back for their second year. As for female athletes, 76 percent came back for their second
year while 85 percent non-female athletes came back for their second year.”

Student athletes at Emory & Henry College see a positive impact on their academic
record. Balancing athletic and academic achievement can be challenging for student-athletes.
Lewis also said, “It makes you structure your time. Athletes know that there is only a certain
amount of time in the day to get their work done.”

Positive impacts such as participation, graduation rates, and motivation are shown
through playing a collegiate sport.

According to an article in Higher Education, “Student-athletes across a large number of

colleges and universities do not differ from their peers, when it comes to participation in
educational practices.”

At E&H there are several resources for student-athletes to participate in educational

practices such as student instructor sessions, study hall, and the quantitative learning center, as
well as their own coaches.

Director of Disability Support Services Jennifer Condon explains how student-athletes at

E&H can succeed in the classroom. “Athletes have built in study halls. They have coaches that
are keeping tabs on them and making sure they are going to class and holding them to a high
standard. We communicate a lot with the coaches about students and support them that way.”

E&H student-athlete Myesha Logan said, “When you have a team, there are other
individuals who are focused in making sure that you do well in your classes for the greater good
of the team as a whole.”

According to an article in Sport and the Neoliberal University, “The NCAA’s new
rebranding campaign “pathways to opportunity” is a great example of a way to get student-
athletes to perform at high level than ever before.”
 When asked on how playing a sport has a positive impact on academic performance,
Logan said, “I think that sports participation increases academic success because it is a
requirement to have a minimum GPA and if you do not reach that GPA then you will not be able
to continue playing your sport.”