Celebrating 33 years of academic excellence in volleyball, the AVCA Team Academic Award honors collegiate and high school varsity volleyball teams that are successful in the classroom.

Online nominations open May 29, 2025 and close June 30 at 5:00pm ET.

Head Coach must be an active AVCA member to nominate. Renew your membership or join the AVCA online, or contact members@avca.org for assistance.

Questions? Read FAQs below or contact alice.rogers@avca.org

Resources

Nomination Deadlines

  • Online nominations OPEN: Thursday, May 29
  • Online nominations CLOSE: Monday, June 30, 5:00pm ET.
  • If you require a deadline extension, contact AVCA: alice.rogers@avca.org
  • Press release will be published in mid-July. Preview will be shared with your SID/Media contact as entered on the nomination form.

Minimum GPA Requirement

In order for a team to earn the 2025 AVCA Team Academic Award, the entire team must achieve a minimum TEAM cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.30 (on a 4.00 scale), a 4.10 (on a 5.00 scale) or an 82.0 (on a 100-point scale) during the entire 2024-2025 academic year.

    • Include GPAs from BOTH semesters or ALL quarters.
    • Do not include summer semesters when calculating the final cumulative GPA.
    • DO NOT round up GPA. Ex: 3.28 does not equal 3.30; 4.09 does not equal 4.10; 81.9 does not equal an 82; even a 3.2999 does not equal a 3.30.
    • Please see the “Frequently Asked Questions – General” section for specific GPA reporting cases.
  • Only High School and Collegiate VARSITY teams are eligible for this award. Any program including girls/boys, women/men, indoor/beach.
  • Do NOT combine rosters – if you coach multiple teams, nominate them separately. Teams must each meet the GPA minimum to qualify.

Eligible Teams/Athletes

When submitting a nomination, include all athletes who competed in at least one set of varsity competition during the traditional volleyball season (fall season for women/girls, spring season for men/boys).

  • Only High School and Collegiate VARSITY teams are eligible for this award.
  • In the event of a student-athlete transferring or quitting the team, his/her GPA must still be included in the nomination if he/she participated in any dates of competition during the traditional season. If the student-athlete’s GPA is not available for the semesters (or quarters) after he/she left the team, use the GPA that is available, fill in 0.0 as a placeholder in the semesters (or quarters) after he/she left the team on the nomination form, then use the available GPA as his/her final cumulative GPA.
  • Redshirt athletes, freshman/transfers that enrolled in the spring, and athletes on medical leave or who were on the roster but could not compete due to injury would not be included in the nomination.
  • Please see the “Frequently Asked Questions – Athlete Scenarios” section for specific situations including transfers.

Online Nomination Process

  1. Head coach must be a current AVCA member. Head coach’s AVCA member login and password will be required to begin the nomination process. An SID or other representative may complete the form on behalf of head coach, but they must login using the head coach’s account.
  2. Online nomination form must be filled out completely. The entire AVCA Team Academic nomination process is submitted online.
  3. The nomination must be submitted with a minimum of SIX student-athletes, listed with first and last name. See Eligible Teams/Athletes for requirements in order for an athlete to be featured on the nomination.
  4. Include each student-athlete’s individual final GPAs for both semesters (or all quarters), AND each student-athlete’s final cumulative GPA for the 2024-2025 academic year.
  • Individual cumulative GPA equals the average of the GPAs from either both semesters or all quarters specific to the academic year in question. Individual cumulative GPA is not reflective of the student-athlete’s entire academic career at the institution (unless this is the way in which the institution calculates GPAs).
  1. Report the TEAM’s final Cumulative GPA, which must meet the minimum requirement.
  • Team cumulative GPA should be calculated by averaging each student-athlete’s individual cumulative GPAs. If your institution calculates as an academic career GPA then use that for the team cumulative GPA.
  • See below for an example of the GPA entry page.

  1. An explanation of the institution’s GPA scale (example: 4.0 = A, 3.0 = B, 2.0 = C, 1.0 = D), and the head coach must briefly describe his/her academic philosophy and how the team maintains success in the classroom.

Frequently Asked Questions – General

Q: My team achieved a 3.29999 GPA. Do we meet the minimum requirement?

A: Unfortunately, no. AVCA does not accept any nominations that have been rounded, no matter the decimal place. Please include the exact GPA to the decimal that your institutional calculates and reports on the students’ official transcript. (This policy is in line with the official requirements for College Sports Communicators [previously Co-SIDA].)

Q: Do I report weighted or unweighted GPAs?

A: The entire team’s GPAs should be calculated on the same grading scale regardless of honors/AP/IB/dual credit situations. Each student-athletes’ GPA must be reported exactly as it would appear on the student’s official transcript.

Q: We have both a women’s and men’s/girls and boys team. How do I report their GPAs?

A: Do NOT combine rosters – submit all women’s/men’s, indoor/beach, or girls/boys teams with separate nominations. Individual teams must each meet the GPA minimum to qualify.

Q: How do I calculate my team’s cumulative GPA for the single academic year if my institution only reports students’ GPAs on a career basis?

A: All GPAs must be reported exactly as it would appear on the students’ official transcript. Thus, the nomination would be in alignment with how your institution’s registrar calculates and reports grade point averages. In this case, your team’s cumulative GPA would then be calculated by averaging each student’s academic career GPA, since this is the format in which your institution calculates and can verify individual cumulative GPAs.

Q: My institution operates on semesters, but the nomination form lists quarters as the only available option?

A: Fall semester GPAs should be listed under “Term 1” and spring semester GPAs should be listed under “Term 2”. You may leave “Term 3” and “Term 4” blank.

Q: Will GPA data be published or shared?

A:  NO. AVCA does not publish individual student-athlete GPAs or team cumulative GPAs under any circumstances.

Q: Can I include summer semesters in the Individual Cumulative GPA in order to meet the minimum GPA requirement?

A: No. Due to the nature of a summer semester as it relates to the standard academic year and timing of reporting varsity rosters, we cannot accept nominations that include summer semesters calculated into any student-athlete’s individual cumulative GPA.

Q: My institution calculates GPAs on a grading scale other than 4.0, 5.0, or 100-pt. What is my team’s minimum requirement?

A: If your institution operates on a scale other than 4.0, 5.0 or 100-pt, you must convert your student-athlete’s GPAs to a 4.0 scale to submit your nomination. View a complete conversion chart here.

Q: I don’t have access to the nomination form or the nomination form says “You are not eligible to nominate.” Why is this?

A: In order to nominate your team for AVCA Team Academic Award, your head coach must have an active AVCA membership. Once the head coach’s membership is active, head coaches (or a representative) can access the nomination form with the coach’s account username and password.

  • If your head coach’s membership has expired, please contact AVCA Member Services at members@avca.org or 866-544-2822 to renew your membership.
  • If you are an SID/AD/Ast. Coach/Counselor, please contact your head coach to use their AVCA membership username and password to nominate.
  • If you are an active AVCA member listed as a Club Director/Club Coach, please contact AVCA Member Services at members@avca.org or 866-544-2822 to switch your membership type to Head Coach (affiliated with your school/university).

Q: Can I still submit a nomination after the June 30, 2025 deadline?

A: No. However, if it is known in advance that a delay exists in obtaining the official GPA from the registrar’s office after the nomination deadline, please email alice.rogers@avca.org immediately to report your circumstance. In order for your school to be considered for late nominations, you must contact AVCA in advance of the June 30 deadline.

Q: How can my team earn the AVCA Team Academic Award Honor Roll distinction?

A: No additional nomination is necessary to be considered for the AVCA Team Academic Honor Roll. AVCA Team Academic Honor Roll programs represent the top 20% of team cumulative GPAs nationally, by division. The number of winning programs in each category will vary based on annual submissions.

Frequently Asked Questions – Athlete Scenarios

Q: Which student-athletes do I include in my AVCA Team Academic nomination?

A: All athletes who competed in at least one set of varsity competition during the traditional volleyball season (fall season for women/girls, spring season for men/boys). Redshirt athletes, freshmen/transfers that enrolled in the spring, and athletes on medical leave or who were on the roster but could not compete due to injury MAY be included, but are not required.

Q: What do I do if a student-athlete graduates or transfers after the fall semester?

A: The student-athlete must still be included in the nomination. His/her fall GPA should be recorded as normal. For his/her spring GPA, record it as “0.0”, however their spring GPA should not be calculated into the Team Cumulative GPA.

Q: What do I do if a student-athlete quits the team after the fall semester and BEFORE the spring semester, but is still taking classes at my institution in the spring semester?

A: The student-athlete must still be included in the nomination. His/her fall GPA should be recorded as normal. For his/her spring GPA, record it as “0.0”, however their spring GPA should not be calculated into the Team Cumulative GPA.

Q: What do I do if a student-athlete quits the team DURING the spring semester?

A: The student-athlete’s spring GPA must still be included in the nomination. If he/she quit school entirely and did not complete the semester, the spring GPA must be recorded as reported on their official transcript (semester or career). If the official transcript reports “Incomplete” with no GPA, you may enter 0.00 and do not calculate this GPA into the Team Cumulative GPA.

Q: What do I do if a student-athlete studied abroad in the spring and will receive spring course credit at my institution?

A: All GPAs must be reported in alignment with how your institution’s registrar calculates and reports grade point averages. In this case, the student-athlete is receiving credit in the spring semester, thus you would record his/her spring GPA however your registrar reports it.

Q: What do I do if a student-athlete is completing their student-teaching or co-op on a Pass/Fail basis?

A: The student-athlete must still be included in the nomination. The semester in which he/she completed normal course-work should be record their GPA as normal. For his/her Pass/Fail semester, record the GPA as “0.0”, however this zero should not be calculated into the Team Cumulative GPA.

Q: Does AVCA offer recognition for individual student athletes with a high GPA?

A: High School senior athletes (girls and boys) can be recognized for their individual GPA through the Best and Brightest program. Learn more here. AVCA does not offer an award for individual collegiate athlete GPAs.

Press Release and Logos

Q: When will the press release/list of winning teams be published?

A: The AVCA Team Academic Award announcement will be published in mid-July. Press release date and embargoed information will be shared in advance with the SID/Media contact as entered on the nomination form.

Q: What years did my team previously win the award?

A: The AVCA Team Academic all-time record book (1992-2024) is available here.

Q: Where can I download the AVCA Team Academic logo?

A: Download the AVCA Team Academic logo here. Or, the AVCA main logo is available here.

Award Certificates and Plaques

Q: Where can I download AVCA Team Academic certificates?

A: Visit the AVCA Certificate Directory. 2025 certificates will be available to download when the press release is published. Past year certificates are also available in the database.

 

Q: How can I order AVCA Team Academic Award plaques (current or past years)?

A: Order AVCA Team Academic plaques online here. Orders and payment are processed by Rixstine, official trophy supplier of the AVCA. If you have questions regarding a Rixstine order, contact cs@rixstine.com

 

 

Other AVCA Team Academic questions? Contact alice.rogers@avca.org

Award Type

  • Team Academic

Nomination Open

May 29, 2025

All Nominations are Due By

June 30, 2025

AVCA Staff Member

Alice Rogers, AVCA Membership & Awards Specialist

alice.rogers@avca.org

(859) 287-2135