The CSUN men’s and women’s cross-country teams were recognized by the NCAA for their consistent academic excellence through multiple years with a Public Recognition Award.

The NCAA Public Recognition Award recognizes athletic programs with high scores on their academic progress rate, an annual scorecard of academic achievement for all Division I teams.

According to the NCAA’s website, the APR system was implemented in 2003 as “part of an ambitious reform effort in Division I.” The goal of APR was to hold institutions accountable for their student-athletes’ academic progress.

The APR is a points-based system that rewards each player with one point for staying enrolled at the same school and one point for being academically eligible. The team’s APR is derived by dividing the team’s total points by the possible amount of points earned by the student-athletes and multiplying that amount by 1,000.

The Matadors scored a perfect 1,000 on the APR, which puts them in elite company with schools like UC Berkeley and Cal Poly.

“I’m so proud of our men and women who contributed to our perfect APR score,” said Justin Johnson, the head coach for CSUN’s track and field and cross-country program. “Our student-athletes and academic support in the Matador Achievement Center have worked very hard to receive this recognition.”

There has always been a culture of academic success surrounding the Matadors’ cross-country teams.

According to a statement on the athletic department’s website, the women’s cross-country team has had 18 student-athletes named to the Academic All-Conference Team since the 2015 season. The men’s team has also achieved their share of academic success, with 11 of their student-athletes named to the Academic All-Conference team.