Hager’s nominator says she is passionate about helping student-athletes meet their academic goals, which led to a record-setting spring 2020 semester. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, Prairie Star athletes recorded a record 3.52 combined GPA for the semester. The academic performance of student-athletes has risen steadily over the past several years, and the department has now accomplished a 3.30 GPA or higher for six straight semesters.
“The academic success of the Athletic Department has never been higher and that is due to Nicole’s tireless effort in working with our students to obtain results,” said Peyton Deterding, her supervisor and UIS director of athletics.
Deterding credits Hager’s positive attitude in achieving results with student-athletes as it relates to their academic achievements.
“She continues to put the students’ needs first and is often seen as a guiding figure throughout their academic career while at UIS,” Deterding said.
On a daily basis, Hager is the main point of contact for student-athletes within the department.
“It is that daily interaction that students have come to depend on and Nicole continues to be a great example of what an outstanding employee should be,” Deterding said.
For the second semester in a row, all 17 UIS sports programs had a GPA of 3.00 or higher during the spring semester. A total of 195 student-athletes had a GPA of 3.00 or higher, which is 84.8 percent of the student-athlete body. A department record 39 student-athletes achieved a perfect 4.00 during the spring semester.
“The productivity is very apparent as even when working short-staffed as a one-person shop, we have continued to set departmental academic records,” Deterding said.
