Related Content
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Academic All-America® Information Index Page
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Best Practices for Nominating and Voting for Deserving Student-Athletes
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Nominate and vote at CoSIDA.com/Awards (CoSIDA members only)
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At-Large Program Details
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Voting Criteria and Awards Distribution
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AcademicAllAmerica.com
CoSIDA member commitment to nominate and vote is crucial to the success of the Academic All-America® program — a program that honors thousands of student-athletes from all divisions. Below are tips and tricks to help you navigate the system interface to get the most out of your experience.
Nominations
- Nominations will be sorted by position for soccer, football, baseball and softball contests.
- Volleyball, basketball, track/cross country and at-large contests will have defined numbers of individuals on each district team.
- Two-year schools, Canadian schools not affiliated with the NCAA or NAIA and those remaining schools not affiliated with the NCAA or NAIA will have one at-large team to be announced in the spring. This one at-large team will cover all the sports for which the other divisions have teams. The structure for this at-large team will be according to the number of nominations received.
Using the Nomination Bullet Points Successfully
In addition to statistical boxes, nominators have five bullet points with a maximum 100 characters each to provide additional information and awards for their nominee. How do you successfully make the case for your nominee with five bullet points having a maximum of 100 characters each?
- Consider how to strategically order your bullets and put the most important information first, specifically related to athletic achievement. This includes major honors like National Player of the Year, All-American, national champion, Academic All-American, conference MVP, or all-conference selection — let voters know that right away.
- Academic honors are important but reconsider stating the obvious, or at least save it for one of your last bullets. Of the nearly 20,000 nominations for the most-meaningful academic and athletic award, all of them are likely “dean’s list” honorees.
- Don’t repeat information from the statistical boxes (i.e., started all 26 games). Stats that are more likely to get voters’ attention are when your student-athlete is a national leader or has broken a record.
- Including community service, on-campus experiences, and job prospects help round out the candidate. Some voters may not completely analyze all five bullet points, so make the case of what your nominee has achieved athletically first.
The bottom line when nominating is to think about what you look for in candidates when you vote. Keep in mind that every voter may not, especially at the national level, be familiar with your student-athlete. It’s your duty to make sure you give your student-athlete the best chance to be noticed on the ballot.
Who Should I Nominate?
CoSIDA members often have an internal debate about who to nominate. The answer varies by contest.
- In “positional” contests (soccer, football, baseball and softball), attempt to avoid nominating multiple players at the same position. If only three soccer forwards are being selected in your district, for example, then nominating your best forward will likely increase the chances of selection. Coaches may prefer to nominate every player that qualifies based on GPA; however, only sports information contacts know who is nominated and there is no distinct advantage to nominating all qualifying candidates. Often this can lead to the vote being split among your nominees. As a standard benchmark, ask the question “Would another SID vote for my candidate?” before deciding who to nominate.
- In “non-positional” contests (volleyball, basketball, track/cross country) it is especially important to limit nominations to your strongest candidates in order to not split your own vote.
How Do I Pick My At-Large Candidates?
- The at-large program allows for a maximum of four student-athletes per school for each gender. The same standard benchmark “Would another SID vote for my candidate?” is an excellent guide to use in determining how many student-athletes to nominate.
- If you have more than four outstanding student-athletes, analyze their athletic accomplishments to determine who has the best chance of advancing to the national ballot.
Voting
Did you know that as part of your CoSIDA membership, you can vote for every Academic All-District® AND every Academic All-America® team in your classification? The Academic All-America Core Committee believes that increased voting numbers will yield better teams. Members at every institution are strongly encouraged to vote. Members of the core committee, the CoSIDA Board of Directors and CoSIDA staff continue to vote on every All-America team in every division.
Voting Made Easier
While there are no set guidelines on what defines a Academic All-American, it’s worth thinking about what criteria you use to evaluate Academic All-District® and Academic All-America® ballots.
- Generally speaking, CoSIDA is looking for the Academic All-America® Team to be represented by the best student-athletes in the nation.
- Voters are encouraged to compile teams with student-athletes that represent the best combination of athletic excellence and academic accomplishment. The percentage of weight that voters give to each is an individual decision, but CoSIDA looks to honor teams that combine top performance athletically AND academically. Voting strictly by GPA is highly discouraged.
Where to Get More Information
- CoSIDA launched the new AcademicAllAmerica.com last fall. This site serves as the public face of the program and is your resource for all historical information. Announcements of all teams originate here.
- CoSIDA.com contains all of the details of the program that would be intended primarily only for CoSIDA members, including criteria to nominate and vote. The full master schedule of deadlines is available here. Notices of the nominating/voting portals opening and closing are posted on CoSIDA.com.
- Nominating and voting takes place at CoSIDA.com/awards.
- The Academic All-America® Program has its own social media channels:
- The Academic All-America®, Academic All-District® and Hall of Fame logos are available to download from CoSIDA.com, via the Academic All-America® drop-down tab. These logos have been created to be used on any background and must not be altered in any way.