Director of Athletics Kevin Saal and Clayton Stoldt, the associate dean for the College of Applied Studies, shared the progress made on achieving record-high student-athlete GPAs across multiple programs during the Student Senate meeting last Wednesday.
The duo provided additional information on the recent academic success of student-athletes, updated athletics policies and initiatives, and a review of the assessment of student-athlete experiences.
Saal first spoke about the record-high 3.40 department-wide GPA. According to Saal, the men’s basketball team, as well as a few other programs, like softball and women’s tennis, achieved the highest on-record GPAs in the programs’ histories.
“One thing that really attracted me to this job two years ago was the high academic success of our student-athletes,” Saal said. “There’s just been some phenomenal work that’s been done (since).”
The two also boasted a 90% graduation success rate for student-athletes.
In 2021, the university established the Athletics Policy & Culture Task Force that would do “a 360 evaluation” of athletics culture, policy and future initiatives, according to Stoldt. Thirty-nine of the task’s force 41 recommended changes have been implemented, with substantial effort already made toward the remaining two.
Additionally, a new first-year seminar called “The Shocker Way” will be available for student-athletes in the fall. It will focus on student success components, the college athletics environment and student-athlete holistic development.
“There’s so many significant changes occurring in the athletics landscape, and the needs of our student-athletes are evolving so quickly,” Stoldt said.
Finally, the pair revealed how the athletics department collects feedback from student-athletes via surveys and exit interviews to contribute to the betterment of the program. Stoldt described an anonymous response application that allows student-athletes to submit concerns, complaints and suggestions throughout the year. Student-athletes also complete program surveys twice a year to enhance the WSU athletic experience.
The next Student Senate meeting will be live-streamed on SGA’s YouTube on April 17 at 6:30 p.m.
