Student-athletes at the University of Northern Iowa are cracking the books and the national organization that governs collegiate sports has taken notice.

Five of UNI's athletic teams -- men's basketball, men's golf, women's golf, women's cross country and women's volleyball -- have been recognized by the NCAA for their latest multi-year Academic Progress Rate (APR) scores. These teams posted multi-year APR scores in the top 10-percent of all squads in their respective sports.

"We are extremely proud of the academic accomplishments of our student-athletes," UNI Director of Athletics David Harris said. "The hard work and dedication shown by these five teams in and out of the classroom reflects the core values of our department and our institution.

"We want to thank our coaches, academic services staff and the many faculty and staff members that contributed to this success. These student-athletes are phenomenal leaders, mentors and role models, and we will continue to make their academic success our number one priority."

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Source: UNI Athletics
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Each student-athlete receiving athletically-related financial aid earns one retention point for staying in school and one eligibility point for being academically eligible. A team's total points are divided by the points possible and then multiplied by one thousand to equal the team's APR score.

This is the 11th year the NCAA has recognized programs for their APRs, and UNI volleyball has been recognized all 11 years. UNI volleyball is one of 110 programs in the nation to have earned the recognition in each of the 11 years teams have been honored.

This is the sixth consecutive year and seventh overall that the women's cross country squad has been recognized, also finishing in the top 10 percent in 2004-05, 2009-10, 2010-11, 2011-12, 2012-13, 2013-14, 2014-15. This is the fifth-straight year the UNI men's golf team has attained the top-10 percent honor. It is the fourth consecutive top-10 percent honor for the UNI women's golf squad.

The UNI men's basketball program has been recognized for the fourth-straight season in the top-10 percent – the only Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) men's basketball program to be recognized in each of the last four years.

Each year, the NCAA honors selected NCAA Division I sports teams by publicly recognizing their latest multi-year NCAA Division I Academic Progress Rate. This announcement is part of the overall Division I academic reform effort and is intended to highlight teams that demonstrate a commitment to academic progress and retention of student-athletes by achieving the top APRs within their respective sports.

Specifically, these teams posted multi-year APRs in the top 10 percent of all squads in each sport. This year's release will again include recognition in the sport of football by subdivision (i.e., Football Bowl Subdivision and NCAA Football Championship Subdivision).

The APR provides a real-time look at a team's academic success each semester by tracking the academic progress of each student-athlete on scholarship. The APR accounts for eligibility, retention and graduation and provides a measure of each team's academic performance.

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