Academic All-America® Awards Program: Best practices for promoting your Academic All-America honore

August 26, 2019

in Education,

College Sports Information Directors of America

Academic All-America Best Practices

Tips for athletic communications professionals in promoting the Academic All-America Award

WHAT MAKES THE ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICA AWARD SPECIAL?

The Academic All-America program has been in existence since 1952 and it is the premier award given by CoSIDA. The organization aims to recognize the very best student-athletes in the nation, honoring both athletic accomplishments and academic accomplishments.

WHAT’S THE PROPER TERMINOLGY FOR THE AWARD?

Please use the proper language in your releases. In your headlines, refer to the award as either Academic All-District or Academic All-America. For the Academic All-America of the Year, you would refer to your winner as the ‘Academic All-America of the Year award winner,’ not ‘Academic All-American’ of the Year.’

WHO SHOULD I NOMINATE?

The answer to this varies by contest. In “positional” contests like soccer, football, baseball and softball, avoid nominating multiple players at the same position. In non-positional contests like volleyball, basketball, track/cross country, it is important to limit nominations to your strongest candidates to not split your own vote.

WHY SHOULD I VOTE IF HAVEN’T NOMINATED A STUDENT-ATHLETE?

Think of it as your civic duty as a CoSIDA member! All nominated athletes deserve our attention and consideration. Without a strong voter turnout, we risk the integrity of the program. Voting takes some time and we understand that your time is at a premium. Please plan accordingly so you can vote: every CoSIDA member is eligible to vote in their respective districts and divisions for the Academic All-America contest.

MY STUDENT-ATHLETE WON, NOW WHAT?

Congratulations! Your school has an Academic All-District or Academic All-America selection. Here are recommended ways to promote your student-athlete and their award:

Inform the individual, coaches and athletic director (or direct report) after the official announcement. Share this flyer with information about the award.
Post a release on your website.
Create an infographic for social media with links to your release.
Give it some context. Maybe this is your school’s first Academic All-America selection, maybe it’s your 200th. Consider adding a feature page to your athletics website dedicated to all previous Academic All-America selections.
Make a short video. Interview your award winner. Talk to their academic advisor and their coach. This can be an excellent opportunity to bridge the gap between academics and athletics on your campus.

Example Academic All-America web pages

Example graphics, social posts and videos

Academic All-America Graphics

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Army
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Bentley
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Calvin
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Eastern
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Texas A&M Kingsville
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LSU
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Michigan State
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Olivet Nazarene
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Oswego State
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Sam Houston State
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Southwest Minnesota State
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South Carolina
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Tarleton State
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Western Michigan
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Making game-clinching plays and excelling in the classroom.

Kenneth Brinson does it all.

????[#GoArmy](https://twitter.com/hashtag/GoArmy?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) #GoArmy pic.twitter.com/5rDfDn2q6Z

— Army Football (@ArmyWP_Football) December 10, 2018

Track: Mattson Adds Google Cloud Academic All-America to List of Honors #NE10Embrace #BentleyU #BentleyNation @CoSIDAAcadAA @ValleyBreeze18G @TheValleyBreeze pic.twitter.com/qCmaZlFMqw

— Bentley Sports Info (@BentleyFalcons) June 26, 2019

Congrats to [@CalvinVball](https://twitter.com/CalvinVball?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) Anna Kamp and Sarah DeVries for being named to the Google Cloud First Team Academic All-America Team! [#GoCalvin](https://twitter.com/hashtag/GoCalvin?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) pic.twitter.com/mVSW2QcO4i

— Calvin Knights (@CalvinKnights) December 12, 2018

The accolades keep coming in for [@LindenwoodWBB](https://twitter.com/LindenwoodWBB?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) with Kallie Bildner earning the first [@CoSIDAAcadAA](https://twitter.com/CoSIDAAcadAA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) honor in program history!

?? - https://t.co/okdXqQb84G #OneRoar pic.twitter.com/b4VTOUVOIW

— Lindenwood Lions (@LU_Lions) March 12, 2019

Huge congrats ?????? to Dan Chmielewski on earning CoSIDA Academic All-America Accolades!

??: https://t.co/I68RqVPBKJ pic.twitter.com/OqAaX67C7y

— Michigan St Baseball (@statebaseball) June 6, 2019

Calendar

Important Dates

All Events +

06/23/26 / 11:59 P.M. M/W At-Large Academic All-America National Ballot Voting Deadline (NCAA, NAIA, College Division)
06/30/26 / 11:59 P.M. M/W Track & Field/Cross Country Academic All-America National Ballot Voting Deadline (NCAA, NAIA)
07/07/26 / 12:00 P.M. W At-Large Academic All-America Announced (NCAA, NAIA, College Division)
07/08/26 / 12:00 P.M. M At-Large Academic All-America Announced (NCAA, NAIA, College Division)
07/14/26 / 12:00 P.M. M Track & Field/Cross Country Academic All-America Announced (NCAA, NAIA)
06/07/26 / All Day 2026 CSC Unite Convention in Las Vegas
06/08/26 / All Day 2026 CSC Unite Convention in Las Vegas
06/09/26 / All Day 2026 CSC Unite Convention in Las Vegas
06/09/26 / 11:59 P.M. Baseball Academic All-America National Ballot Voting Deadline (NCAA, NAIA)
06/10/26 / All Day 2026 CSC Unite Convention in Las Vegas
06/16/26 / 12:00 P.M. Softball Academic All-America Announced (NCAA, NAIA)
06/16/26 / 12:00 P.M. M/W At-Large Academic All-District Released; National Voting Begins (NCAA, NAIA, College Division)
06/16/26 / 11:59 P.M. M/W Track & Field/Cross Country Academic All-America Nomination Deadline (NCAA, NAIA)
06/23/26 / 12:00 P.M. M/W Track & Field/Cross Country Academic All-District Released; National Voting Begins (NCAA, NAIA)
06/23/26 / 12:00 P.M. Baseball Academic All-America Announced (NCAA, NAIA)
06/23/26 / 11:59 P.M. M/W At-Large Academic All-America National Ballot Voting Deadline (NCAA, NAIA, College Division)
06/30/26 / 11:59 P.M. M/W Track & Field/Cross Country Academic All-America National Ballot Voting Deadline (NCAA, NAIA)
07/07/26 / 12:00 P.M. W At-Large Academic All-America Announced (NCAA, NAIA, College Division)
07/08/26 / 12:00 P.M. M At-Large Academic All-America Announced (NCAA, NAIA, College Division)
07/14/26 / 12:00 P.M. M Track & Field/Cross Country Academic All-America Announced (NCAA, NAIA)
06/07/26 / All Day 2026 CSC Unite Convention in Las Vegas
06/08/26 / All Day 2026 CSC Unite Convention in Las Vegas
06/09/26 / All Day 2026 CSC Unite Convention in Las Vegas
06/09/26 / 11:59 P.M. Baseball Academic All-America National Ballot Voting Deadline (NCAA, NAIA)
06/10/26 / All Day 2026 CSC Unite Convention in Las Vegas

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Congrats to Nicole Weenink on another great honor. After earning All-America honors in Triple Jump and Long Jump, she was recognized as an Academic All-America with a spot on the 2018-19 NCAA Division III Google Cloud Academic All-America Team for Track & Field and Cross Country. Well-deserved. #FlyWithUs

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2018 Google Cloud NCAA DI W Soccer Academic AA of the Year - Bianca St. Georges, West Virginia

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