The full slate of NCAA academic reform penalties are now in effect. After four years of the NCAA collecting Academic Progress Rate (APR) numbers, 26 teams that have not improved their scores face historically based penalties, which kick in when the team's average score goes below 900. Contemporaneous penalties based on yearly scores have been handed out since 2005, and are based on achieving a score of 925.

The good news is that many institutions are figuring out how to improve their athletes' academic performance. How are they doing it? Tactics include everything from holding coaches more accountable to reaching out to former student-athletes who never graduated.

Oregon State University's baseball and football teams had scores of 924 and 913, respectively, in 2007, but this year posted scores of 932 and 926. "We took a very proactive approach to improving our teams' APR scores," says Executive Associate Athletic Director Todd Stansbury. "First of all, in the event that an athlete wants to transfer, we don't give them a release unless they're in good academic standing. Holding the release letter over their head ensures that they won't hurt us on their way out, and being in good standing will only help the athlete at their next school anyway."

The second part of Oregon State's plan involves weekly academic meetings among the head coach, academic support staff, and athletic administrator in charge of the sport. "Each week, we discuss any player in academic trouble, make sure there is a plan in place to get them back on track, and see to it that all the athletes are showing up for their classes and tutoring sessions," Stansbury says.

"What really made this work is that we assigned the head coach as the academic liaison," he continues. "A student-athlete receiving a note to go see the head coach instead of an assistant coach makes a big difference."

The final piece to helping Oregon State turn its numbers around involved a little bit of research and detective work. Athletic department officials looked through the past five years of student-athlete records to find those who had left the university without graduating, and contacted them to see if they'd be interested in coming back to complete their studies. Student-athletes who come back to complete their degrees earn a bonus APR point for their teams.

"We've always supported our student-athletes coming back to finish school, but now we are more active in encouraging them," Stansbury says. "Some of these student-athletes didn't realize how close they were to being done, or others had always been thinking about coming back, but needed an extra push to get them here. Convincing them to complete their degrees was a win-win for both of us."

The University of Kentucky men's basketball team multi-year APR score for 2003-04 and 2004-05 was 922. But by the time two more years had passed, the men's squad posted a multiyear score of 941, which puts the team far from any penalties.

Kentucky administrators increased student-athletes' commitment to their academics by implementing missed-class and missed-tutoring session penalties. And Athletic Director Mitch Barnhardt took a strong approach to making sure head coaches are invested in their athletes' academic lives.

"It has got to start with your coaches," Barnhardt says. "If they aren't committed to academic responsibility, you will struggle. [Head Men's Basketball Coach] Billy Gillespie is absolutely committed and unrelenting in making sure his players are accountable. We've learned that a seat on the bench is an amazing motivator for student-athletes.

"Our first goal is to graduate our student-athletes, and the APR is a tool that helps us do that," Barnhardt continues. "We refocused our energy on making sure the goals of our academic programs were being met and that our young people are progressing toward their degrees and their futures."

Making sure the head coach was invested in the program was also key for the Fresno State University baseball team, which raised its APR from 850 in 2004 to 963 for the 2006-07 school year. "We did it with one main tool," says Head Baseball Coach Mark Batesole. "We became personally involved with our players' academics."

The coaching staff holds individual weekly meetings to review the academic notebook that each player must carry with him, which includes information about teachers, schedules, and graded materials. Batesole also has players keep a weekly log of what they do in each class session. "They write down everything they do in every single class, and when we meet, we go over all of it," he explains.

"It sounds like babysitting and overkill--and it takes a ton of work on our part," Batesole continues. "But we felt like we had to get a grip on what these guys were doing academically, and it has really made a major difference. Sometimes it means we might miss a game or two when we're recruiting or we see one less pitcher on film--and that's okay."

Fresno State has also gotten buy-in from its athletes, focusing especially on those who have the potential to go pro after their junior years. "We explain to those guys the selfishness involved with not staying eligible because it could cost us a scholarship when they're gone," Batesole says.

"Once the players start understanding this isn't just about them, it's about their teammates who are going to be here next year, they buckle down," he continues. "They don't want to cheat them out of a scholarship. So they're going to get themselves to that 8 a.m. class and try to do well, even though they really don't have to."

Batesole points to junior pitcher Tanner Scheppers as an example. Scheppers was a sure MLB draft pick this year, but put in great academic effort anyway. "He was still getting up and going to class his spring semester because he knew it was going to affect his teammates," Batesole says. "And you should have seen how his teammates played behind him--they understood exactly what he was doing for them."