Aug. 9, 2013
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Seventeen Penn State student-athletes are scheduled to graduate during Commencement exercises Saturday, August 10 on the University Park campus. A total of 157 Penn State student-athletes have earned their degrees since last December.
Student-athletes representing 11 Penn State squads are on the approved to graduate list, including five members of the football program, and two members of the baseball and Lady Lion basketball team.
Among the student-athletes scheduled to graduate this weekend are: Nikki Greene and Mia Nickson (women's basketball), with Nickson earning her second degree. Kristin Carpenter (women's volleyball), Miles Chamley-Watson (men's fencing), Maddy Evans (women's soccer) and Jermaine Marshall (men's basketball) also are approved to graduate.
Tight end Matt Lehman and wide receiver Brandon Moseby-Felder, who will be seniors on the field this season, are is among the five Penn State football student-athletes scheduled to receive their diplomas on Saturday. Former Nittany Lions Mark Arcidiacono, Emery Etter and D'Anton Lynn, also are approved to graduate.
With the addition of Lehman and Felder, eight members of the 2013 Nittany Lion football team will have graduated prior to the August 31 season opener vs. Syracuse, including All-Big Ten guard John Urschel, who is working on his second master's degree.
Penn State student-athletes, who captured a school record 11 conference championships, including a record eight Big Ten titles, in 2012-13, consistently have been among the nation's most successful in earning their degrees. Among some of the recent academic accomplishments are:
- A record 109 current and former Penn State student-athletes graduated this past May;
- A school record of 296 Nittany Lion student-athletes earned Academic All-Big Ten honors in 2012-13, shattering the previous record of 261;
- A record 68 Nittany Lion student-athletes earned the Big Ten Distinguished Scholar Award in 2012-13 for earning a GPA of 3.7 or higher during the most recent academic year;
- A record 450 Penn State student-athletes earned a grade-point average of 3.0 or higher during the 2013 spring semester;
- The NCAA's annual study of institutions nationwide in October, 2012 revealed that Penn State student-athletes at the University Park campus earned a Graduation Success Rate (GSR) of 88 percent compared to an 80 percent average for all Division I institutions. The 88 percent figure was third-highest among Big Ten Conference institutions;
- The NCAA four-year federal graduation rate average for University Park student-athletes was 78 percent, significantly higher than the national average of 64 percent, and second to Northwestern (88) among Big Ten institutions;
- Among the 2005-06 entering freshman class, 80 percent of Penn State student-athletes earned degrees within six years, well above the 65 percent average for all Division I institutions, according to the NCAA;
- Seven Nittany Lion student-athlete earned Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All-America honors in 2012-13, giving Penn State 182 all-time honorees, the third-highest total among Division I institutions. Penn State has had 36 Academic All-America honorees the past five years.
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