RIVER FALLS, Wis. - The academic society Chi Alpha Sigma released their end-of-year standings today and Gustavus Adolphus College finished first in the country in honorees across the Division III level and fourth in the country overall.
A record 17,179 student-athletes were welcomed into Chi Alpha Sigma (XAΣ) during the 2024-25 academic year, the National College Athlete Honor Society announced today. As for individual schools, The Ohio State University (218), Lander University (186), and the University of Minnesota (169) were the only schools to top Gustavus, which boasts 167 members.
On the conference level, the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC), which Gustavus is a proud member of, had the largest induction class with 1,055 members, besting the likes of the Big Ten Conference (1,020) and the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (473).
"It has been a truly remarkable year," Chi Alpha Sigma executive director Kellen Wells-Mangold said. "Celebrating combined excellence in athletics and academics has been the core mission of Chi Alpha Sigma since 1996. Having more than 17,000 student-athletes from all different backgrounds, disciplines, sports, and divisions receive such well-deserved recognition for their work has been so exciting and rewarding to see."
The 17,179 inductees represent four-year institutions from across all divisions of the NCAA, NAIA, NCCAA, and USCAA. The 2024-25 inductee total surpasses the previous Chi Alpha Sigma record of 11,653, set during the 2023-24 academic year, and marks a 155 percent increase in annual honorees since the 2018-19 campaign.
Chi Alpha Sigma is the first and only national scholar-athlete society to honor four-year collegiate student-athletes who have excelled in both the classroom and in athletic competition. The organization recognizes college student-athletes who receive a varsity letter in their sport, achieve junior academic standing or higher after their fifth full-time semester, and earn a 3.5 or higher cumulative grade point average. There are now more than 500 active Chi Alpha Sigma chapters at colleges and universities across the United States.
About Chi Alpha Sigma
The National College Athlete Honor Society, Inc. is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that was founded in 1996. Chi Alpha Sigma works with state chapters of four-year institutions to recognize college student-athletes who excel in their sport, the classroom, and the community.
