Although the headlines typically focus on the Mountaineers' athletic accomplishments, WVU student-athletes also make noteworthy strides in the classroom every semester. Two people who strongly support those efforts are athletic director Ed Pastilong and assistant athletic director Terri Howes, who, along with the WVU coaching staff, have made academics a departmental priority.

While considerable support is available to all student-athletes, the department's administrators, coaches and support staff emphasize the responsibility of each person for his or her own learning and academic achievement. Each student is ultimately responsible for regularly attending classes, studying and passing exams. "At WVU, we do everything in our power to assist our student-athletes as they work toward graduation," Pastilong says. "We only have one rule -- they must do their best in the classroom. Just as we can assure every student-athlete that the University and the athletic department will put forth our best effort for them, we expect our students to do the same thing for themselves."

Staff
Academic assistance is available to all student-athletes through the office of Garrett Ford, assistant athletic director for student services. His staff includes Sandy Cole-DeMent and Tiffany Flanagan, along with two graduate assistants. Together, they oversee study hall activities and assist student-athletes with the organization of their course schedules. Ford's staff works closely with the University Academic Counseling Center's representative, Paul Downey, Ed. D., the Undergraduate Academic Services Center's academic advisor for student-athletes. He is responsible for providing academic guidance for freshmen and sophomore student-athletes who have not declared for an academic majr. All other students who have declared an academic major, (which must be done by the beginning of the junior year according to NCAA regulations), are advised by faculty in their respective academic departments. WVU student-athletes have been provided the privilege of early class registration during the Fall and Spring semesters.

Monitoring Academic Activities and Progress
Throughout the academic year, department staff members also keep a careful record of each student-athlete's academic progress. Class and study hall attendance is also regularly checked. Periodic grade reports are obtained from faculty and Admissions and Records. Student-athletes and their coaches are kept appraised of each person's academic progress.

Tutoring
For those student-athletes who would benefit from additional academic assistance in specific subjects, individual tutorial services are available by request through Ms. Flanagan at (304) 293-2008. Tutors are typically graduate students or high achieving undergraduate students knowledgeable in specific areas of study. Student-athletes may also receive tutoring assistance through the WVU Learning Centers at (304) 293-2316.

Study Centers
WVU has a pair of study centers that student-athletes may use throughout the day and into the evening. The Andy Clark Academic Support Center is located in the Puskar Center at Mountaineer Field. The center houses 20 computers, including four new terminals and two networked printers in more than 10,000 square feet of study space. The center is staffed by Ms. Cole-DeMent. Individual study carrels and areas for group study provide a comfortable learning environment for student-athletes.

The Clark site's companion center is located on the second floor of the WVU Coliseum and is overseen by Ms. Flanagan. The Coliseum site is similarly equipped with 12 computers and individual and group study areas.

Both study centers are open seven days a week with flexible hours tailored to make the most of a student-athlete's often limited free time. Student-athletes may drop in either center between classes or after practice in evenings.

During the second week of classes, freshmen are enrolled in mandatory study halls, monitored by Ford and his staff. Those who do well academically during the first semester are given the option of attending study hall sessions in the second semester. However, is the student-athlete's GPA drops below a certain mark, she or he must continue to attend study hall sessions.

Academic Support Impact
The academic support provided to our student-athletes appears to have a positive effect on overall student-athlete academic achievement. Last year, more than one-third of all student-athletes achieved at least a 3.0 grade-point average, (a B or better), and earned a place on the Athletic Director's Academic Honor Roll. During the past three years, numerous student-athletes have earned Academic All-America, all-conference or all-district honors.

West Virginia University's graduation rate for student-athletes receiving scholarship aid has averaged in excess of 50 percent over the past five year. In comparison, the graduation rate for WVU's general student body is approximately 55 percent.

Summer Orientation
To insure that every student-athlete has the best possible opportunity to be successful in college, contact with the academic support services staff begins as soon as a recruit makes a commitment to attend WVU. According to Mr. Garrett Ford: "Before the student-athletes arrive in the fall, we know a lot about the degree of their academic preparation, and have identified those students who will likely benefit from additional assistance."

During the summer prior to the start of classes, incoming student-athletes are strongly encourage to attend freshman orientation sessions offered for all incoming WVU students. Summer orientation is a program where students can learn more about the campus, the Morgantown community, and most importantly, can pre-register for classes. During pre-registration, all incoming student-athletes obtain guidance on scheduling their courses to help them get on track early in their degree programs.

Student-Athlete Orientation: Sport and Exercise Psychology (SEP) 170
All freshmen and transfer student-athletes enroll in an orientation class specifically designed to meet the needs of Division I student-athletes called CHAMPS/Life Skills. This program was designed by the NCAA and the acronym CHAMPS stands for CHallenging Athletes Minds for Personal Success. Topics such as time management, stress management, budgeting, and career development are discussed. In addition, speakers from campus are invited to lead discussions on health issues such as drug and alcohol abuse, drug testing, sports nutrition, and sexual health and responsibility. The graded class is offered for one credit each fall and spring..

Degree Completion Program
For a variety of reasons, some student-athletes do not graduate by the time their athletic eligibility has ended. Nevertheless, help and support is still available. A post-eligibility program was created at the beginning of director Pastilong's administration to give qualified students who are close to graduating an opportunity to complete their degrees. Since the program's creation, dozens of students have participated, with an overall success rate of greater than 80 percent. In fact, many student-athletes from all sports participated in the post-eligibility program last year. Contact Garrett Ford at (304) 293-2008 ext. 7564 for more information.

NCAA Consortium
Former Mountaineer athletes are returning to school at the invitation of WVU to complete work on their degrees, some after as many as 15 years after they first came to school. In 1992, under the direction of Mr. Ford, West Virginia joined the growing list of schools that are a part of an NCAA-sponsored consortium. Similar to the post-eligibility program, the consortium provides former student-athletes a chance to continue to work toward their degrees. In addition, the closely screened consortium requires participants to be involved in community-related activities.

Consortium students are often much older former student-athletes who left the University to pursue professional sports or business careers, but who now wish to return to earn their degrees.

Athletic Director's Academic Honor Roll
Implemented in 1989 by director Pastilong, the Athletic Director's Academic Honor Roll was created to recognize students who have achieved a GPA average of 3.0 or better. A 4.0 club and a team award for the highest GPA were also established.

Since the program began in 1989, nearly 2,000 student-athletes have earned a place on the honor roll. A banquet is held each spring semester to recognize all honor roll members and award winners.

Learning Disability Services
What is a "learning disability" (LD)? Briefly, an LD is a psychological disorder that usually develops in childhood or adolescence. There are several categories of LDs which are diagnosed when an individual's achievement on individually administered, standardized tests is much lower than expected for the individual's age, educational level and level of intelligence. The prevalence of LD disorders in the general population ranges from two to 10 percent, depending on the nature of assessments and diagnostic definitions.

Since students attend WVU from a diverse geographic area and because many schools differ in their criteria and definitions of learning disabilities, it is essential that each incoming student requesting assistance for a learning disability have a careful review of his or her academic history. A qualified professional will determine eligibility for special assistance and the range of potential services that are available to accommodate the student-athlete's unique needs. In order to perform an accurate assessment, the reviewer will need: 1) an evaluation conducted within the past two years by a licensed psychologist with specialty training in LD's, and 2) a copy of the report and all test scores. Without this information, a diagnosis cannot be made and accommodations may not be available to you at WVU.

Although there are no separate classes for students with learning disabilities, a wide range of support is available through WVU Disability Services (304) 293-6700, which is located in the MountainLair. A partial list of available services for WVU students with a learning disability diagnosis or suspected learning disability includes:

• Diagnostic, psychological/educational evaluations
• Personal counseling
• Suggestions for class counseling
• Special arrangements for taking classroom tests
• Liaisons between faculty and students with learning disabilities
• Referral service to the WVU Reading, Writing and Math labs

These and other services are available to students with learning disabilities by calling Dr. Ed Etzel at (304) 293-7062 or e-mailing edward.etzel@mail.wvu.edu; or the WVU Disability Services at (304) 293-6700.