BOSTON -- Northeastern University student-athletes continue to excel academically and achieve at a level higher than their Division I peers, according to data released Wednesday by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).
 
This latest Academic Progress Rate (APR) report comes one week after the women's basketball team was recognized by the NCAA with Public Recognition Awards for high academic achievement by posting multi-year APR scores in the top 10 percent of all squads in their respective sport.

Among Division I institutions, student-athletes improved academically for the 13th consecutive year, earning another all-time high four-year Academic Progress Rate. The 2015-16 overall four-year rate is 981, up two points from the four-year rate announced last year. 
 
Highlights from Northeastern's 2015-16 APR report include:
• For the second straight year, Northeastern had nine teams (baseball, women's basketball, men's cross country, women's ice hockey, women's rowing, men's soccer, women's soccer, men's track and field) earn a perfect APR score of 1000.
 
• Of the 15 Northeastern teams included in the APR report, 13 posted a four-year APR score at or above the national average for their respective sports (indoor and outdoor track and field combined).
 
• The men's basketball team posted an APR 25 points above the national average. It's the 10th straight year that the team's APR has been above the national average.
 
• Every Northeastern team had an APR score above 970 (40 points above the NCAA's 930 figure for possible penalties)
 
NCAA President Mark Emmert applauded Division I student-athletes for their continued academic achievement and dedication to earning a degree.
 
"I am so pleased that the Academic Progress Rates continue to rise, but I am more excited about what those numbers mean: Thousands of college athletes continue to make real progress toward earning their degrees," Emmert said. "A college degree, combined with the skills they learn while participating in sports, will provide countless opportunities for them later in life."
 
Every Division I sports team across the nation calculates its Academic Progress Rate each academic year, like a report card. Scholarship student-athletes each semester earn one point for remaining eligible and one point for staying in school or graduating. At schools that don't offer scholarships, recruited student- athletes are tracked.
 
Rates are an average of each school's performance for the past four years. National aggregates are based on all teams with usable data at the time of analysis. APRs for each team, lists of teams receiving public recognition and those receiving sanctions are available online through the NCAA's searchable database. The national analysis is based on member-provided data from April 5.

Last week, more than 55 student-athletes earned their degrees at Northeastern University's 115th Commencement at TD Garden. During their time on Huntington Avenue, the members of the Class of 2017 achieved unprecedented success both on the competition field and in the classroom. Five graduates completed their coursework with cum laude honors (3.5-3.69 GPA), three earned magna cum laude honors (3.7-3.849 GPA) and two achieved summa cum laude honors (3.85-4.0 GPA).
 
Representing programs of study such as communications, engineering and criminal justice, this year's senior student-athletes walked across the stage with a combined 3.175 GPA. The group has also contributed to a combined 3.0 GPA or greater for each of the last 19 semesters, including the highest on record during the spring and fall of 2016. Nationally, the Huskies own an NCAA Graduation Success Rate (GSR) well above the national average including eight programs with a perfect GSR of 100 percent.
 
Mackenzie Dowd, Caton Downey, John Stevens and Margaret Walsh earned the prestigious Huntington 100 honor, which recognizes students across the university based on criteria that are commensurate with the university's mission, ideals, values and academic plan. The selection committee considered students for their impact on the campus community, record of service, global engagement, demonstrated leadership, entrepreneurial spirit and commitment to the ideals and values of Northeastern.