Skip To Main Content
Skip To Main Content

Missouri State

.

General

Commencement Wraps Summer Full of Academic Honors

July 24, 2015

MSU Commencement Central | MVC Honor Roll Release | MVFC Honor Roll Release | NCAA APR Home

SPRINGFIELD - A summer full of academic honors for Missouri State's student-athletes will culminate in nine Bears participating in commencement exercises at 10 a.m., on Friday, July 31 at JQH Arena on the Springfield campus.

Summer Commencement

Current Jacksonville Jaguars' tight end Clay Harbor, a three-time football All-American for the Bears from 2007-09, is perhaps the most recognizable name on this year's elite list of summer Bear graduates. However, three student-athletes - former gridder Mitchell Jenkins, volleyball stalwart MaryJo Kolze and soccer standout Rachel Weimer - have all earned master's degrees in their respective fields.

The graduating athletes represent five different sports, including five former Missouri State football players.

By sport, here are the student-athletes completing their degrees in July 2015:

  • Football (5): Nick Canavan (Accounting); Clay Harbor (Hospitality and Restaurant Administration); Jeremy Springer (Psychology); Kyren Watts (Communication Studies); and Mitchell Jenkins (Master of Business Administration).
  • Men's Basketball (1): Ron Mvouika (Communication Studies).
  • Men's Soccer): Jack Roberts (Communication Studies).
  • Volleyball (1): MaryJo Kolze (M.S. Industrial and Organizational Psychology).
  • Women's Soccer (1): Rachel Weimer (M.S. Health Promotion and Wellness Management).

Highest GPA on Record

For the spring 2015 semester, Missouri State's crop of nearly 400 student-athletes compiled a grade-point average of 3.11 - the highest semester GPA on record for the department. For the 2014-15 academic year, that same group of student-athletes compiled a 3.08 overall GPA.

Athletic Director's Honor Roll

A total of 254 student-athletes achieved at least a 3.00 GPA during the spring 2015 semester, making this elite group one of the largest contingents ever to be recognized by the MSU Athletic Director's Honor Roll for any semester.

By sport, here are the 2015 spring semester AD Honor Roll honorees:

Valley Honors

In late June, a group of 135 MSU student-athletes were recognized by the Missouri Valley Conference. Baseball player Dylan Becker, golfer Mark Karlsen, softball standout Heather Duckworth, jumper Haley Scott and volleyball performer Andrea Beaty highlighted the MSU contingent by receiving the prestigious MVC President's Council Academic Award.

Becker (Finance), Karlsen (General Business), Scott (Exercise and Movement Science) and Beaty (Psychology) were all spring 2015 graduates from Missouri State, while Duckworth (Psychology) completed her undergraduate degree in December of 2014. Becker, Scott and Duckworth all earned Magna Cum Laude academic distinction from the University, while Karlsen and Beaty earned Summa Cum Laude academic honors.

A total of 60 Bears also earned the MVC Commissioner's Academic Excellence Award, which requires a minimum grade point average of 3.5 for the previous two semesters, a minimum 3.2 cumulative grade point average, and participation in athletics. Women's soccer led the pack with 17 honorees in this category, while the MSU volleyball squad was represented with eight such honorees.

Finally, 135 Missouri State student-athletes were named to the 2014-15 MVC Honor Roll. To qualify for the Valley Honor Roll, a student-athlete must have recorded a minimum 3.2 grade point average for a specified term (fall of 2014 and spring 2015), must have been a member of an athletics team, and must have a minimum of 12 hours of enrollment during the fall or spring semesters.

Likewise, a total of 30 Missouri State University football players were honored by the Missouri Valley Football Conference this summer for academic excellence during the 2014-15 academic year.

Two senior Bears - Hunter Hays and Andrew Beisel - received the President's Council Academic Excellence Award which, likes its MVC counterpart, requires a minimum 3.5 cumulative grade point average (through the fall 2014 semester) and participation in athletics a minimum of two years. The student-athletes receiving this award must also be within 18 hours of graduation. A total of 31 players throughout the 10-team league received the honor this year. Beisel (Logistics & Supply Chain Management) and Hays (Cell & Molecular Biology) were both May 2015 graduates at MSU.

APR Success Continues

Finally, the NCAA's annual Academic Progress Report (APR) release included positive news again for Missouri State with each of the school's teams surpassing the minimum single-year and multi-year rates.

Teams must earn a four-year average APR of 930 or an average of 940 for the most-recent two years to participate in NCAA championships.

For the most-recent academic year reported (2013-14), Missouri State reported the following single-year APR percentages (1000 is a perfect APR score): Volleyball 995, Field Hockey 990, Softball 990, Men's Soccer 989, Men's Golf 986, Women's Cross Country 986, Women's Swimming & Diving 985, Men's Swimming & Diving 980, Women's Soccer 976, Women's Golf 975, Women's Outdoor Track 974, Women's Basketball 971, Women's Indoor Track 969, Men's Basketball 964, Baseball 963, Football 939. Women's tennis, which was reinstated in 2014-15, was not included in the NCAA's most-recent release.

#BearGrads

Print Friendly Version

Sponsors