St. Leo Director of Athletics Fran Reidy got the best report card of his institution’s history recently when the fall 2008 grades of his student-athletes revealed a cumulative grade-point average of higher than 3.0 for the first time since the NCAA began requiring institutions to submit grade reports in the 1980s.

Eleven of the institution’s 16 teams posted GPAs of higher than 3.0, and no program was lower than 2.79.

“What I am most happy about is that as our athletics success has grown with regional appearances, all-American awards and championships, our academic success has also steadily improved,” said Reidy. “We are proud of our students-athletes and the great balance they have shown in academic and athletics success.”

The highest team GPA was a 3.41 from women’s cross country. Women’s swimming posted a 3.23 and softball a 3.19.

“This is a great achievement for both the athletics department and St. Leo as a whole,” Reidy said.

The news comes as Division II continues to celebrate the academic success of its student-athletes, who over time have graduated at significantly higher rates than the general student body at Division II institutions. Division II in fact recently released graduation-rate data from the 1999-2001 freshman cohorts reflecting similar success.

-Courtesy St. Leo Sports Information Director Evan Ortiz.