UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – One hundred twenty-five Penn State student-athletes are scheduled to graduate Saturday, May 9 during the virtual commencement ceremony.
Along with the 125 Nittany Lions on the intent to graduate list, 19 Penn State student-athletes participated in fall graduate to bring the 2019-20 total to 144 thus far. Additional graduates are set to come in August.
The men's hockey team leads the athletic department with 12 student-athletes on the intent to graduate list.
Among those on the intent to graduate list is Blake Gillikin, a two-time CoSIDA Academic All-America first-team honoree. Penn State has earned 207 CoSIDA Academic All-America honors in program history. Prior to the 2019-20 school year, Penn State ranked fourth all-time amongst NCAA Division I institutions in CoSIDA Academic All-America honorees
Also among the Nittany Lions scheduled to graduate are two-time National Champion wrestler Vincenzo Joseph and weight-throw National Champion David Lucas. The list of graduates features 81 Nittany Lions who earned Academic All-Big Ten honors throughout their careers amongst those on the intent to graduate lists.
Penn State Among the Nation's Most Comprehensive and Successful Athletic Programs
Under the leadership of Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Sandy Barbour, Penn State has one of the nation's most comprehensive and successful athletic programs, featuring 800 student-athletes across 31 varsity programs (16 men's, 15 women's). The Nittany Lions' 31 programs are tied for the fourth-highest number of sports sponsored by a Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) institution.
Record-Breaking NCAA Graduation Success Rate
The 2019 NCAA's annual graduation rates study of institutions across the nation revealed Penn State student-athletes at the University Park campus earned a Graduation Success Rate (GSR) of 91 percent to break the school's all-time record of 90, which was previously set in the 2010, 2017 and 2018 NCAA reports. Nittany Lion students posted a 91 percent graduation rate compared to the 88 percent average for all Division I institutions for students entering from 2009-10 through the 2012-13 academic year.
Penn State student-athletes have delivered a Graduation Success Rate in the 88-91 percent range during each of the past 13 NCAA reports, improving from 88 percent in the 2015 report, to 89 percent in 2016, to 90 percent in 2017 and 2018, and a record-breaking 91 percent figure in 2019. Ten Nittany Lion programs earned 100% graduation rates and 18 programs were above the national average.
Penn State student-athletes have led the athletic department to 34 Big Ten championships and nine NCAA National Championships since October 2013. For the 20th time in the last 26 years the Nittany Lions finished in top 15 in the Learfield IMG College Director's Cup.
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