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For the fourth consecutive year, Penn State student-athletes have broken the school record for the number of students with a 3.0 grade point average or higher during the fall semester. A record 516 Nittany Lion student-ath- letes earned at least a 3.0 GPA during the 2015 fall semester, breaking the mark of 500 high achievers set in 2014. The number of student-athletes posting at least a 3.0 GPA during the fall semester has in- creased 10.5 percent the past three years from the total of 463 in 2012. Among the 516 student- athletes earning at least a 3.0 GPA, 234 garnered Dean's List honors during the 2015 fall semester by posting a GPA of 3.50 or higher, the second-highest total in school history. The record is 241 during the 2014 fall semester. A minimum 12 credits are required for Dean's List recognition. The 516 student-athletes earning at least a 3.0 GPA represent 63 percent of Penn State's 822 student-athletes enrolled dur- ing the fall semester. The efforts of the student-athletes resulted in a record- tying 23 teams earning a semester GPA of 3.0 or higher (tied with 2014 fall semes- ter). The combined average GPA was 3.11 among Penn State's 31 varsity sports last fall, an increase from the 3.08 average GPA during the 2014 fall semester. "This excellent academic performance is a tribute to the effort our talented stu- dent-athletes direct towards their aca- demic pursuits, the priority placed on ac- ademic achievement by our coaches, and the support they receive from our dedi- cated Morgan Academic Center staff, fac- ulty and administration," athletic director Sandy Barbour said in a prepared state- ment. "Developing well-rounded and well-educated citizens of the world is our top priority, and these results make our alumni and donors who have invested mightily in that premise very proud." Penn State student-ath- letes, who have captured a conference-best 22 Big Ten championships and six NCAA titles since Septem- ber 2012, consistently have been among the nation's most successful in earning their degrees. Among some of the recent academic ac- complishments are: Eighty Penn State stu- dent-athletes earned Fall Academic All-Big Ten hon- ors, an increase from 72 in the fall of 2014. During the 2014-15 academic year, Penn State had 277 Academic All-Con- ference honorees, its third-highest total all-time, and has had more than 5,100 Academic All-Big Ten honorees all-time. Last October, the NCAA's annual study of institutions nationwide revealed Penn State student-athletes at the University Park campus earned a Graduation Success Rate of 88 percent compared to the 83 percent average for all Division I institu- tions for students entering from 2005- 06 through '08-09. Thirty Penn State student-athletes from 10 sports earned their degrees in December, bringing the total number of graduates to 176 since December 2014. Penn State's 191 CoSIDA Academic All- Americans all-time rank No. 4 among all Division I institutions. Haleigh Washington (women's volleyball) and Tyler Yazujian (football) were Academic All-America honorees last fall. ■ ACADEMICS Student-athletes set GPA record during Penn State's fall semester STUDENT-ATHLETES WITH 3.0 OR BETTER GPA Fall 2015....................... 516 Fall 2014......................500 Fall 2013......................468 Fall 2012...................... 463 STUDENT-ATHLETES MAKING DEAN'S LIST Fall 2015...................... 234 Fall 2014....................... 241 Fall 2013....................... 197 Fall 2012........................ 211 C L A S S R O O M P E R F O R M A N C E

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