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Intercollegiate Athletics
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Prospective Students

Why Meramec?

Tradition

The Meramec Athletics department is a member of the National Junior College Athletic Association and the Missouri Community College Athletic Conference. The program consists of four men's and four women's sports. The men compete in soccer, wrestling, basketball and baseball. The women compete in soccer, volleyball, basketball and softball.

Throughout its history, Meramec teams have won 5 NJCAA championships and have finished in the top 10 nationally 62 times. More than 224 student athletes have earned All-America recognition, 40 Academic All Americans, and many individuals have earned scholarships to four-year colleges and universities. In 1992 and 1999, the National Alliance of Two-Year College Athletic Administrators named a Meramec athlete as its student athlete of the year. In 1999, the NJCAA named a Meramec student athlete as its athlete of the year. In 1991, one former athlete earned a gold medal representing the United States in the Pan-American Games. Daisy dePeinder represented the Dutch in softball in the 2008 Olympics. Approximately 95 percent of Meramec's student athletes have attended St. Louis metro area high schools.

The Meramec coaching staff is a blend of veterans and newcomers. Three coaches have more victories in their sport than any other coach in the history of the NJCAA. Meramec coaches have received NJCAA Coach of the Year honors six times. Six individuals have been inducted into the NJCAA Hall of Fame for their sport. Meramec also employs a full-time certified athletic trainer.

In 1996, the Missouri Community College Athletic Conference established an All-Sports Award. The Meramec program has received this award in 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002 and 2006. In 1994 and 1995, Meramec received the Athletic Management Magazine Award of Excellence for fund raising and promotions. In 1998, Meramec earned the magazine's award for first place in the model program category for all higher education institutions in the United States. Meramec is the only two-year institution to ever receive this award.

In 2000, Meramec changed its logo and mascot from the Warriors to the Magic to be more culturally sensitive to society.

Philosophy

We strive to make pride, high goals and fun the focal point of our program.

• The development of pride is essential to the growth of the individual spirit. At Meramec, we seek to develop individuals who have the pride and courage to give their best effort.
• Those who set high goals are more likely to be achievers. We encourage our student athletes to earn As in the classroom and national championships in competition.
• Fun always wil be an integral part of our program. At Meramec, you see lots of smiles because we firmly believe our athletes and coaching staff should enjoy themselves. 

Scholarships

Prospective student athletes interested in receiving an athletic scholarship should contact the respective head coach. Head coaches make recommendations to the athletic administrator. The NJCAA Letter of Intent/Scholarship form is the formal document utilized for these purposes.

Testimonials

"The education I received at Meramec was of the same quality as that which I received at Stanford," said John Reid, who earned a baseball scholarship to Stanford University after competing for Meramec. He was the Cardinal's No. 2 starter and pitched in the College World Series. After graduation, he signed a professional contract. John now is an executive with a business firm in Chicago.

"Meramec offers academic porgrams that help each student to meet his or her potential, from pre-college classes to the Honors Program. Whatever your academic preparation, Meramec can meet you where you are and challenge you to become more than you imagined. As a student-athlete, you will enjoy professional and committed coaches and staff, and a strong tradition of winning at Meramec. The combination of academic options and athletic excellence makes Meramec an easy choice for student-athletes." Juliet Lilledahl Scherer - Softball.

 "I was a very late developer physically and my total basketball IQ was somewhat limited because of that. I was basically ignored by Division I schools in terms of solid scholarships. At the end of my sophomore year at Meramec, I was entertaining over 60 different scholarship offers - major and mid-major." Mike Branson - Basketball.

I transferred to Meramec from a four-year university and was pleased to find smaller more personable classes with teachers who cared about each indivdidual in their class. Playing on the Meramec Magic is an experience I will never forget." Jessica Hackerson - Basketball.

"My decision to attend Meramec was based on the academic and athletic opportunities that Meramec had to offer. It was clearly one of the best decisions I have made. The time spent there will never be forgotten. Participating in two sports, soccer and wrestling, and achieving All American status in 1997 in wrestling is one of the highlights of my life. With the help of the wrestling staff I was able to receive a scholarship in wrestling and continue my career at a Division I university." Jake Lapinski - Wrestling, Soccer.

According to statistics compiled by the American Association of Community Colleges, 50 percent of bachelor's degree recipients have taken courses or received a degree from a community college.

President's Cup Winners

Each semester the athletic team with the highest grade-point average is honored with the President's Cup, the most prestigious award given by the Athletics department.

The Athletics department also has a Coach's Honor Roll (minimum of 3.00 GPA) and an Athletic Director's Honor Roll (minimum 3.50 GPA). 

Academic Monitoring

Meramec athletes are students first. The Magic Academic Monitoring program was developed to enhance student success in the classroom. The program is a cooperative effort that includes the Counseling department, members of the faculty and the Athletics department. The program's premise is that class attendance is a critical factor in determining success.

"Be A Sport" Program

Through the "Be A Sport" program, various faculty and staff members at Meramec volunteer to mentor a student athlete. Student athletes who want to be a part of the Be A Sport program should contact the manager of PE/Athletics prior to the beginning of the fall semester.

If a student athlete is assigned a mentor, he/she will be required to meet with the mentor once a week for the entire academic year. The mentor serves as an academic guide for the student athlete. Mentors do not serve as tutors. Tutors are available in the many open labs that are offered on campus. 

Academic Assistance

All of these programs are offered at no charge to the student.

Supplemental Instruction (SI) is an academic assistance program aimed at increasing subject understanding through collaborative learning. SI consists of weekly group study/review sessions for students in traditionally difficult courses. SI offers you the opportunity to gather regularly with other students in your class to discuss the concepts raised in class, develop study strategies and test yourself before your professor does. SI is non-remedial, and it is open to all students in the targeted class who want to improve their understanding of course material and improve their grade.