Big 12 Conference Academic Programs

Performance in the classroom is just as important as accolades on the field when looking at the student-athlete. The Big 12 Conference recognizes student-athletes in multiple areas for academic achievement. Those areas include the Commissioner's Honor Roll, Academic All-Big 12 Teams, the Phillips 66 Big 12 Classroom Champions, the Dr. Gerald Lage Award, and the Big 12 Dr. Prentice Gautt Postgraduate Scholarship.

Acknowledging all participants, the Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll is an inclusive honor for all sports sponsored by the membership of the league. The Honor Roll is recorded and released each semester and recognizes those student-athletes who registered a 3.0 or better grade point average the previous semester.

Submitted through the Directors of Student-Athlete Support Services at each institution, those honored are not necessarily the stars on the field and court but those who participate on the team. They include the letterwinners and non-letterwinners and recognize every student-athlete who has excelled in the classroom.

More than 2,000 Big 12 student-athletes are named to the Commissioner's Honor Rolls at the end of each of semester.

Recognizing those student-athletes who excel in the classroom and on the field and court, the Big 12 has academic all-conference teams for all sports.

Nominated by the Directors of Student-Athlete Support Services and the Athletic Media Relations Directors, members of the all-academic teams have posted at least a 3.00 grade point average either cumulative or the previous two semesters and are regulars (i.e. letterwinners) on his or her respective team. First-team honorees are regulars who have at least a 3.20 GPA.

Last year, a few academic teams in the Big 12 exceeded 100 student-athletes recognized by the conference. In addition, student-athletes have gained recognition by being named to Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All-America teams.

• Academic All-Big 12 Teams

As Phillips 66 Big 12 Classroom Champions, the conference recognizes 30 student-athletes per school who have excelled in competition and in the classroom. Chosen through the Big 12 membership, those honored are recognized throughout the year on the Big 12 telecasts, FSN and ESPN Regional Television.

The Conference's highest academic honor, the award is in memory of Lage, who served as the Oklahoma State faculty athletics representative with the NCAA and the Big Eight/Big 12 Conference from 1983 until his death in 2007. He was the chairman on three occasions, in 1985-86, 1993-94 and most recently in 2003-04.

In order to be eligible for the accolade, student-athletes must have lettered at least once in their career while maintaining residence at their institution for at least one academic year. The honoree, which can only be recognized once, should have 100 hours of earned credit with a cumulative grade-point average of 3.80 at the time of the nomination.

The award began in 2011 with recipients announced each March and recognized at the Phillips 66 Big 12 men's & women's basketball championships.

Yearly honorees: 2018, 2017, 2016,  2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011

With 140 student-athletes from all Big 12 schools honored over the last six years, the Dr. Prentice Gautt Postgraduate Scholarships' list has grown to 300 recipients since the 1996-97 academic year.

Additional funding prior to the 2002-03 selection process allowed each school to name two outstanding scholars to the annual list of honorees. Conference officers also voted to name the postgraduate scholarship program awards after longtime Big 12 and Big Eight Conference Associate Commissioner and student services' pioneer Dr. Prentice Gautt in 2004. Dr. Gautt passed away on March 17, 2005.

The all-time group has solid representation of scholars throughout the 21 sponsored Big 12 sports and has provided $2,105,600 through the 2011-12 academic year for much-needed financial aid. Three faculty representatives, one senior woman administrator and one director of athletics form the selection group for the prestigious awards, which help the students to continue their formal education. Since its inception the Dr. Prentice Gautt Postgraduate Scholarship program has produced over a dozen physicians, several attorneys for the underprivileged, college professors, Peace Corps volunteers and positions of national prominence.

Criteria for these awards include a cumulative grade point average of 3.500 on a 4.0 scale, participation in at least two years of intercollegiate athletics at the scholar-athlete's respective institution. The scholar-athletes also must graduate from their respective member institutions within 15 months of their selection as postgraduate scholarship recipients and are expected to enroll in graduate/professional schools within 15 months after they graduate.

The $2,500 individual annual grants began in 1996-97, were raised to $5,000 in 1999 and increased to $6,900 prior to the 2003-04 term. In 2006-07, the awards climbed to $7,500 and moved to $9,000 in 2011-12. Most honorees in recent years have also been named to Academic All-Big 12 Teams as well as the Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll.

Policies and Procedures (PDF)

• Annual Dr. Prentice Gautt Postgraduate Scholarship Recipients

The Big 12 Conference established its Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award in 2012-13. A Scholar-Athlete of the Year is named in each of the Conference's sponsored sports. Each Big 12 institution nominates one individual per sport with the winners selected by a vote of the league's head coaches for that sport, who are not allowed to vote for their own student-athletes.

Scholar-Athlete of the Year nomination criteria includes:
• must be a junior or senior (athletic and academic standing)
• cumulative grade point average of 3.20 or higher
• participation in at least 60 percent of the team's scheduled contests
• minimum of one year in residence at the institution

All-time Scholar-Athlete Honorees