Academic Center for Excellence

SUNY Niagara students are expected to remain in good academic standing and as such, the College measures satisfactory academic progress (SAP) at the end of each term (fall, winter, spring, and summer).

The College’s academic standards are designed to assist students in achieving their educational goals.  Overall, students are expected to earn a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher to remain in academic standing.

Students who do not achieve a cumulative GPA of 2.0 will be placed on Academic Probation.      Being on Academic Probation limits students to a maximum of 13 credits per semester. Students will also be required to utilize the Academic Center for Excellence (ACE) for a minimum of 10 hours during the semester. For additional details on the services ACE offers and meeting the 10-hour requirement, please click here. Students will be removed from Academic Probation and returned to good academic standing once they have achieved the following:

• A cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher
• Utilized the services offered by ACE for a minimum of 10 hours.*

*If a student is placed on Academic Probation for multiple semesters, hours earned in ACE from a previous semester will not carry over to another semester.  

Students can apply for a waiver to the 13 credit limitation & 10 hour ACE requirement by completing the “Probation Credit CAP/ACE Waiver Form.”

In addition to ACE, Students on Academic Probation are encouraged to utilize the numerous supportive services available at SUNY Niagara and meet with their advisor to discuss their academic progress. For a list of additional support services (such as The Student Success Center) please click here. Students’ academic standing will be reviewed by the Office of Academic Affairs on a semester-by-semester basis.

Great question! When we’ve looked at academic performances of SUNY Niagara students in the past & those that spent a significant amount of time in ACE  received higher grades than students that spent little to no time within our center.

While 10 hours may seem daunting, we certainly do not expect you to do complete these hours all at once. There is an average of 14-16 weeks in a given semester, so just spending an hour per week in ACE or online with a tutor will get you there in no time!

Throughout the semester we will check up on your hour accrual according to the academic probation policy. In order to meet these requirements, you can:

• Visit ACE in person on the Sanborn Campus. You must swipe in & out of ACE using your student ID card.
• Visit ACE in person at the NFCI Campus. You must sign in & out with the ACE employee on duty.
• Utilize ACE online tutoring services.

If you do not believe you would benefit from 10+ hours utilizing ACE and/or tutoring services this semester, you can submit a request for exemption.

For further information on the required ACE hours, please contact:

Madison Ebsary
ACE Coordinator
mebsary@niagaracc.suny.edu