INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) announced St. Francis College Brooklyn is among 13 NCAA Division I institutions awarded more than $1.2 million in initiative grants to boost academic programs and initiatives that will help student-athletes earn their degrees.
The grants were awarded through the Accelerated Academic Success Program for the 2021-22 year. The NCAA offers grants to eligible schools with limited resources to assist with creating programming and systems that will further the academic success of their student-athletes.
The 13 schools and awards are:
- Alabama State University — $95,965.
- University of Arkansas at Little Rock — $100,000.*
- Austin Peay College — $100,000.
- California State University-Fullerton — $100,000.
- Central Arkansas University — $100,000.*
- Eastern Kentucky University — $100,000.*
- Indiana State University — $94,031.*
- Nicholls State University — $100,000.*
- North Carolina A&T — $95,000.
- University of South Carolina Upstate — $73,260.*
- St. Francis College Brooklyn — $98,408.*
- Texas Southern University — $100,000.
- Youngstown State University — $100,000.
*First-time recipients of an AASP grant.
The grants also support school efforts to meet the requirements of the Division I Academic Performance Program, which was developed to ensure schools provide an environment that supports education while enhancing the ability of student-athletes to earn a degree. Schools eligible to apply for the program are not in the Football Bowl Subdivision. The AASP initiative single-year grant allows schools to receive up to $100,000.
Schools may use the grants in a variety of ways to boost academic learning and initiatives, which include renovations to academic support spaces; tutoring; technology enhancements (i.e., laptops, Wi-Fi hot spots); summer school aid; student-athlete development (i.e., life skills and leadership programming); and professional development for staff.
“The NCAA is committed to the academic success of student-athletes,” said Felicia Martin, interim NCAA senior vice president of inclusion, education and community engagement. “We have witnessed the transformation that can occur when schools are provided the funding to support initiatives designed to enhance the academic experience of student-athletes. We are excited to see the positive impact that the AASP grant will have on each recipient’s campus and on the student-athletes at these schools.”
Release courtesy St. Francis College Brooklyn Athletics Communications
