INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana - For the eighth time in the last 10 years, all of Cleveland State University's aid-awarding athletic programs earned a multiyear Academic Progress Rate (APR) score above the NCAA minimum threshold, according to data released by the NCAA to its member institutions Tuesday afternoon.
Four programs—women's basketball, cross country, women's fencing and women's golf—registered perfect multiyear APR scores of 1,000. This is the 15th consecutive year that the cross country program has posted a perfect APR score, the fourth straight year that women's basketball has accomplished the feat and the second straight such performance for women's golf.
Cleveland State has had at least one program post a perfect score of 1,000 since the inception of the APR, and has had at least three programs earn a perfect score for eight consecutive years. The Vikings department had an average single-year score of 983 collectively, with 10 programs logging a perfect 1,000 single-year score in 2018-19. The Viking lacrosse program was one of these 10, as it achieved a perfect single-year score for the first time in its young history. Meanwhile, the women's basketball squad was one of just two teams in the 10-team Horizon League to register a perfect multiyear score.
"Cleveland State student-athletes, coaches and support staff take great pride in these results as they are a direct representation of our historical and continued commitment to academic excellence," said Director of Athletics Scott Garrett. "We are very grateful to our coaches and academic support staff, in particular our academic advisors Winnie Lane and Meghan Sanniti, who continue to mentor our student-athletes through their transformation in the classroom. Our student-athletes enjoy the significant campus resources available to assist in their academic endeavors and they continue to serve as exemplary ambassadors in modeling the benefits of Cleveland State University's engaged learning mission."
The APR provides a real-time look at a team's academic success each semester by tracking the academic progress of each student-athlete on scholarship. The APR accounts for eligibility, retention and graduation and provides a measure of each team's academic performance. The 2018-19 data covers teams' individual APR scores over the 2015-16, 2016-17, 2017-18 and 2018-19 academic years.
In addition to the Vikings' APR success, Cleveland State garnered a 95 percent Graduation Success Rate (GSR) this past November, marking the fourth consecutive year that Cleveland State broke its own school record in that category. Cleveland State's 95 GSR for 2018-19 is the top score in the Horizon League and is the second-highest rating of public NCAA Division I universities.