National STUDENT-Athlete Day, celebrated annually since its inception in1987 and currently presented with the NCAA and the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS), was created by the National Consortium for Academics and Sports (NCAS) and Northeastern University's Center for the Study of Sport in Society, and is America's day to celebrate outstanding student-athletes who have achieved excellence in academics and athletics while having made significant contributions to the community, also recognizing parents, teachers, coaches and universities which help student-athletes bridge the gap between academics and athletics.

In addition to the community service each sport contributes throughout the year, volleyball's Kayleigh Spratt (Rohnert Park, CA/Rancho Cotate HS), track and field's Dorothy Andrews (Riverside, CA/Humboldt State), women's basketball's Ree Browne (Torrance, CA/South Torrance HS) and men's basketball's Michael Steed (Antelope, CA/Center HS) also were recognized for their involvement with the Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC).

Women's soccer leads the breakdown with 12 student-athletes on the list, followed by women's basketball and softball with 10 each. Of the 63 student-athletes, women's soccer boasts the four highest GPAs in Kimberly Hearn (Whittier, CA/Whittier HS) and Janet Antunez (Santa Ana, CA/Santa Ana HS) with 4.0s, Sandra Lloyd's (Fountain Valley, CA/Fountain Valley HS) at 3.94 and Candace Hearn (Whittier, CA/Whittier HS) at 3.91, while softball's Christine Bathauer (Torrance, CA/West HS) rounds out the top five with a 3.9 GPA.