University of Richmond Athletics
Spider Student-Athletes Rank Sixth in NCAA Graduation Statistics
Nov. 3, 2004
UNIVERSITY OF RICHMOND, Va. -
For the third consecutive year, University of Richmond student-athletes are ranked in the Top 20 nationally for graduation rates, according to the NCAA Official 2004 Division I Graduation Rates Report.
The Spiders finished tied for sixth with an 88 percent graduation rate, according to the report, which tracks the 1997-98 freshman class. The average graduation rate for that class of student-athletes was 62 percent.
In addition, Richmond's four-class average was tied for tenth nationally at 84 percent. The four-class average for all Division I institutions was 60 percent - a figure matched or exceeded by every Atlantic 10 school.
Moreover, each Atlantic 10 institution ranks at or above the national average for graduation rates, and all 12 schools graduate student-athletes at a percentage equal to or higher than the general student body for both the 1997-98 class and the four-class.
"The institutions of the Atlantic 10 have a history of providing environments for student-athletes to excel both on the field and in the classroom," says Atlantic 10 commissioner Linda Bruno. "These figures again prove that the term "student-athlete" is not lost among our institutions."
In 2002, Richmond's student-athlete graduation rate was 89 percent, ninth nationally, while in 2003 it was 84 percent, rated 12 in the nation.