INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Mercyhurst University is among 43 institutions – and only of two schools that sponsor a varsity water polo program – to earn recognition on the Presidents’ Award for Academic Excellence list.
Mercyhurst – which sponsors men’s water polo in the Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Conference and women’s water polo in the Western Water Polo Association (WWPA) – is joined on the list by Biola University, which sponsors both men’s and women’s water polo in the WWPA.
The Division II Academic Success Rate (ASR) is the percentage of student-athletes who graduate within six years of initial collegiate enrollment and includes virtually all Division II student-athletes.. The ASR includes transfers into a school in the calculation and removes transfers out who left school while academically eligible. The ASR also includes the more than 31,000 non-scholarship student-athletes who were enrolled in the four years covered in the most recent data.
The Academic Success Rate
Unlike the federal rate, the Division II ASR includes nearly 34,000 non-scholarship student-athletes and accounts for those who transfer to a Division II school after initial enrollment elsewhere, while removing student-athletes who leave school while academically eligible.
Even when using the less-inclusive federal graduation rates, student-athletes are outperforming their peers in the general student population by 8%. For Division II athletes, the federal rate increased 1 percentage point to 60%, and the general student body increased 1 point to 52%.
This is the 11th year the award has been given.
The schools receiving the 2021 Presidents’ Award are:
| Institution | Four-Year ASR | Conference |
|---|---|---|
| Bentley University | 99% | Northeast-10 Conference |
| Saint Michael’s College | 99% | Northeast-10 Conference |
| Biola University | 98% | Pacific West Conference |
| Hillsdale College | 98% | Great Midwest Athletic Conference |
| Thomas Jefferson University | 98% | Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference |
| Davenport University | 96% | Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference |
| Le Moyne College | 96% | Northeast-10 Conference |
| Rollins College | 96% | Sunshine State Conference |
| Rockhurst University | 95% | Great Lakes Valley Conference |
| Seattle Pacific University | 95% | Great Northwest Athletic Conference |
| Dominican University of California | 94% | Pacific West Conference |
| Eckerd College | 94% | Sunshine State Conference |
| Maryville University of Saint Louis | 94% | Great Lakes Valley Conference |
| Saint Anselm College | 94% | Northeast-10 Conference |
| Cedarville University | 93% | Great Midwest Athletic Conference |
| Georgia College | 93% | Peach Belt Conference |
| Michigan Technological University | 93% | Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference |
| Point Loma Nazarene University | 93% | Pacific West Conference |
| Trevecca Nazarene University | 93% | Great Midwest Athletic Conference |
| University of the Sciences | 93% | Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference |
| Adelphi University | 92% | Northeast-10 Conference |
| Barry University | 92% | Sunshine State Conference |
| Davis & Elkins College | 92% | Mountain East Conference |
| Mercyhurst University | 92% | Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference |
| Regis University (Colorado) | 92% | Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference |
| Stonehill College | 92% | Northeast-10 Conference |
| Truman State University | 92% | Great Lakes Valley Conference |
| Western Washington University | 92% | Great Northwest Athletic Conference |
| Assumption University | 91% | Northeast-10 Conference |
| Caldwell University | 91% | Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference |
| Colorado Christian University | 91% | Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference |
| Flagler College | 91% | Peach Belt Conference |
| Florida Southern College | 91% | Sunshine State Conference |
| Holy Family University | 91% | Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference |
| Lewis University | 91% | Great Lakes Valley Conference |
| Southern Wesleyan University | 91% | Conference Carolinas |
| St. Edward’s University | 91% | Lone Star Conference |
| William Jewell College | 91% | Great Lakes Valley Conference |
| Concordia University, St. Paul | 90% | Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference |
| Converse College | 90% | Conference Carolinas |
| Saint Martin’s University | 90% | Great Northwest Athletic Conference |
| Southern New Hampshire University | 90% | Northeast-10 Conference |
| St. Thomas Aquinas College | 90% | East Coast Conference |
