USC Upstate has been awarded a grant of $70,608 from the NCAA’s Accelerating Academic Success Program (AASP) for the second time. This grant will bolster efforts to enhance the academic success and overall experience of the university’s student-athletes.
Matt Martin, Director of Athletics & Vice Chancellor for Intercollegiate Athletics at USC Upstate, expressed his gratitude for the award, stating “We are elated to be selected for the NCAA’s AASP grant once again this year. A huge thank you goes to Sarah Gildersleeve-Jones and her team for their continued dedication in elevating our student-athlete experience and ultimately making this grant a reality. The AASP grant will support several initiatives that our student-athlete enrichment team has been developing over the past several months, and I couldn’t be more excited to see the impact it will make on both current and future Upstate student-athletes.”
The funding will support several key areas:
- Summer Financial Aid: Directly assisting student-athletes with their eligibility, retention, and GPA.
- Leadership and Life-Skills Programming: Enhancing the personal development and growth of student-athletes.
- Additional Programming: Improving the overall student-athlete experience at USC Upstate.
“The AASP Grant creates opportunities for our student-athletes to grow not only as people with 925 Leaders, but to have their voices heard in new and unique ways through Real Response while also assisting them with the ultimate goal of graduation through extending our summer school scholarship program. This grant allows us to take a huge step forward in holistic support of our student-athletes.” said Sarah Gildersleeve-Jones, grant writer and the Associate Athletics Director for Student-Athlete Enrichment.
The NCAA’s Accelerating Academic Success Program offers grants to schools not in the Football Bowl Subdivision that are aimed at improving academic initiatives. USC Upstate’s grant includes $58,840 from the NCAA, with an additional $11,768 matched by the University. For more information about USC Upstate Athletics, visit https://upstatespartans.com/