Clarksville, Ark. – The University of the Ozarks athletic department received national recognition for its community service efforts during the 2021-2022 academic year.
As announced by Helper Helper, a subscription service that tracks high schools, universities, and non-profits' community service hours and community impact, Eagle athletics ranked fifth among NCAA III institutions in the number of community service hours provided during the year. Volunteering a total of 1,305 hours according to Helper Helper, 14 of Ozarks' 17 NCAA III teams finished among the country's top-10 in community service hours.
The service hours provided by the baseball and women's and men's swim and dive programs led all NCAA III in those respective sports. Other programs ranked among the NCAA III's top-10 included women's and men's cross country/track (6th), women's soccer (4th), softball (10th), women's and men's tennis (2nd) and men's wrestling (3rd).
"Our student-athletes understand the value of volunteering and I'm thankful for their dedication to perform community service to organizations and individuals," said athletic director Jimmy Clark. "Many student-athletes, coaches and staff members played a role in providing service within the community. The majority of our nearly 300 student-athletes participated in community service during the school year. This is a great example of one of the university's core values – service."
The student-athletes provided service to a number of organizations including the Special Olympics, Forrester-Davis, Clarksville Elementary School and Samaritan's Purse. The teams also volunteered at many local events including Trunk or Treat, a Spadra Creek and Highway clean-up and a downtown renovation project.
