INDIANAPOLIS – Loyola University Maryland student-athletes continue to graduate at one of the highest rates in the nation according to the NCAA Graduation Success Rate data released today by the organization. The Greyhounds have the fifth-highest rate nationally among the 351 Division I schools in this year's report.
 
The university's GSR has ranked in the top six nationally in all 19 years of the report's existence; the school has been in the top 98 or 99 percentile each year. The Greyhounds have had a GSR of 95 percent or higher each year.
 
Eight of the Greyhounds' teams measured in the report had scores of 100 percent, and Loyola student-athletes cumulatively achieved a 95 percent Graduation Success Rate (GSR) score in the data compiled from the 2013-2016 cohorts that makes up this year's report.
 
Loyola's 95 percent overall GSR ranks first among schools from the State of Maryland. A full database of GSR results is available from the NCAA.
 
"Our student-athletes continue to be successful in their academic and athletic pursuits, and the current graduation success rates once again amplify the incredible extent of that success," said Donna M. Woodruff, Loyola's assistant vice president and director of athletics. "To consistently achieve graduation success rates that fall among the top five of all NCAA Division I institutions recognizes the steadfast commitment to academic excellence by the talented student-athletes, faculty, administrators and staff of Loyola University Maryland."
 
Loyola attained 100 percent scores for men's basketball, men's cross country, women's basketball, women's cross country and track and field, women's lacrosse, women's rowing, women's soccer and women's tennis.
 
The NCAA developed the Graduation Success Rate as part of its academic reform initiative to more accurately assess the academic success of student-athletes. The GSR also accounts for midyear enrollees and is calculated for every sport, which increases the total number of student-athletes tracked for graduation by more than 37 percent over the federal version.
 
Under the calculation, institutions are not penalized for outgoing transfer students who leave in good academic standing. Instead, the outgoing transfers are passed to the receiving institution's Graduation Success Rate cohort.