Kansas Wesleyan University has earned the Champions of Character Gold Institution Award after recording a perfect score on the NAIA Core Report for the 2025-26 athletic year.
This was the third consecutive year that KWU has earned Gold status on the Core Report.
Each year, NAIA schools use the Champions of Character core report to measure the pursuit of character-driven athletics. Schools scoring a minimum of 60 out of 100 points earn the Champions of Character Five-Star Institution Award.
“I am thrilled with our coaches and athletic staff to have earned Gold status on the Core Report again this year,” said KWU Co-Interim Athletic Director Bill Neale. “It shows our continued commitment to excellence in all facets of what we do.
“We continue to challenge our teams to display outstanding character on and off the playing field and to give back to the community in many different ways and again they met the challenge. It shows that we are committed to doing the right thing here at KWU in everything we do.”
Institutions are measured on a demonstrated commitment to Champions of Character and earn points in character training, conduct in competition, academic focus, character recognition and character promotion. Institutions earned points based on exceptional student-athlete grade point averages and by having minimal to no ejections during competition throughout the course of the academic year.
KWU was one of 120 institutions to achieve the top score on the Core Report. There were 203 institutions across the country that earned NAIA Champion of Character Institution Awards across the three levels – Gold, Silver and Bronze.
The Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference was also named as a NAIA Champions of Character Conference for the 16th consecutive year. Conferences must have an established Champions of Character Committee, a conduct in competition oversight committee and have at least 60 percent of its member institutions earn a Champions of Character Institution Award.
The KCAC had 13 of 14 institutions earn the Award. Avila, Bethel, Evangel, Friends, KWU, McPherson, Oklahoma Wesleyan, Saint Mary, Sterling, Tabor and York all earned Gold status, and Ottawa and Bethany earned Silver status.
Release courtesy of KWU Athletics
