Women's Cross Country 1/31/2013 1:41:00 PM Brian Vail, Assistant Director of Athletic Communications

Women's Soccer, Women's Cross Country Lead in PSAC Academics

LOCK HAVEN, Pa.- The Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) has released Academic Success Rate (ASR) information showing the conference has an ASR of 78 percent, well above the 72 percent national average for student-athletes. Mercyhurst posted an 82 percent ASR for the 2002-2005 freshmen cohort.

The Laker women's soccer and women's cross country teams both posted a 100 percent ASR for the time period. They are two of 22 total teams in the PSAC to achieve the feat.

From the PSAC release:

“Student-Athletes from the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference are graduating well above the standard rate according to data that was released earlier this month by the NCAA. With an Academic Success Rate of 78%, the PSAC is one of 11 Division II conferences at or above the 72% national average for student-athletes.

ASR is calculated by measuring degree completion among freshmen classes over a four-year period. The most recent study focuses on those entering college from 2002-2005.

The PSAC has steadily increased its ASR over the past four studies. The 1999-2002 cohort registered at 75%, the 2000-03 freshmen classes moved to 76% and the last two studies have produced a 78% rate. Last year the league's 78% figure was sixth best among the 23 conferences featured in the study, however, maintaining that average has elevated the PSAC to fourth best in Division II.

“Those figures are reflective of the priorities our league has for its student-athletes,” said PSAC Commissioner Steve Murray. “Division II emphasizes balance between athletic competition and success in the classroom, and I take a great deal of pride that our schools are excelling on a national level in both categories.”

As the largest enrollment group in the Division II study, the PSAC was able to produce the most graduates with 5,422 of 6,966 student-athletes in those classes earning their degrees. By percentage the league trails only the Sunshine State (86%), the Northeast 10 (85%) and the Great Lakes Valley (80%) in ASR. Yet among those ahead of the PSAC, only the Northeast 10 claims an enrollment over 4,300 with 5,553 entering over the four-year period.

The study also revealed the PSAC is above the national average in every featured sport group. Women's track & field/cross country boasts the league's highest rate at 88% with women's basketball second best at 84%. Both groups were five percent higher than the national average in their sports. Also impressive were the rates for men's track & field/cross country (80%) and football (62%) as those sports were 8% higher than their national averages.

Sport	PSAC ASR %	NCAA II ASR %
Football	62	54
Men's Basketball	64	58
Baseball	72	69
Men's CC/Track	80	72
Men's Other Sports	75	72
Women's Basketball	84	79
Women's CC/Track	88	83
Women's Other Sports	88	83

The NCAA released institutional data in the fall, showcasing Millersville (86%), California (85%) and Slippery Rock (84%) with the top success rates. In total, eight PSAC schools reached the 80% threshold, as Mercyhurst (82%), Lock Haven (81%), Bloomsburg (80%), East Stroudsburg (80%) and West Chester (80%) join the conference's top three.

The following is a list of PSAC sport groups who achieved a 100% Academic Success Rate using the 2002-05 freshman cohorts:

Bloomsburg
Women's Soccer

California
Women's Golf

East Stroudsburg
Women's Lacrosse

Edinboro
Women's Basketball
Women's Lacrosse
Women's Swimming

Gannon
Men's CC/Track & Field
Women's CC/Track & Field
Men's Golf
Women's Golf
Women's Volleyball

IUP
Women's Swimming
Women's Tennis
Women's Volleyball

Lock Haven
Women's Swimming

Mercyhurst
Women's CC/Track & Field
Women's Soccer

Millersville
Women's CC/Track & Field
Field Hockey
Women's Tennis

Shippensburg
Women's Soccer

Slippery Rock
Women's Lacrosse

This is the seventh year the NCAA has released graduation data at the Division II level in the form of an Academic Success Rate. The ASR was developed by the NCAA at the request of college and university presidents who believed the Federal Graduation Rate was flawed. Division II's ASR data is similar to the Division I Graduation Success Rate as it takes transfer students in account. However, given the partial-scholarship financial aid model of Division II, ASR also includes student-athletes not on athletically related financial aid. The result is that ASR captures more than 36,000 non-scholarship student-athletes.

The Federal Graduation Rate accounts for only those who receive athletically related financial aid in their freshman year, and the PSAC continued to thrive under those standards, as well. Matching its 64% rate of a year ago, the PSAC still ranks second in Division II using the federal model. The Northeast 10 tops all conferences at 69%. In comparison, the Graduation Rate among all Division II student-athletes stands at 54% and the Graduation Rate among the entire student body is at 48%.

More from the NCAA regarding Academic Success Rates

- ASRs are calculated using a four-year rolling average, as is done with the federal rate.

- The Division II ASR is similar to the Division I Graduation Success Rate (GSR) in that it includes transfers into an institution in the calculation of the rate, but removes from the cohort students who left the institution while academically eligible to compete.

- Additionally, the ASR (unlike the GSR) includes all non-scholarship freshman student-athletes on the roster on the first date of competition.

- Because of this, ASR captures about two-thirds more student-athletes than the federal rate, largely due to more than 36,000 non-scholarship student-athletes being included in the NCAA calculation.

- 283 of 290 active Division II institutions in 2011-12 submitted their federal graduation rate data for the entering classes of 2002 to 2005; seven had no scholarship student-athletes during those years.

- Of those 290 institutions, 289 (99.7%) submitted additional data for the calculation of the ASR. (The other was a two-year college during those years and did not have to report.)

- Aggregate data also include 21 institutions in the Division II membership process.”

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