Terrapin athletes who began college in 1998 graduated at a school record level of 70 percent, according to numbers released last week by the NCAA and the Department of Education.

The national average for Division I-A schools is 62 percent.

The figures measure how well teams graduate student-athletes on scholarship within a six-year window. Department-wide, Athletics has seen an upward trend in graduation numbers since 1993, when only 54 percent of student-athletes graduated within six years.

“[The graduate rate] is increasingly going up,” said Anton Goff, assistant athletics director in charge of academic support and career development. “They come here to be student-athletes and we want them all to graduate.”

For nine of the past 11 years, the Terps have been above 60 percent. Still, Goff called 70 percent a “mark of excellence” and a level the program wants to reach every time graduation rates are released.

“We have made it a departmental priority to continue to improve in this area,” Athletics Director Deborah Yow said in a press release. “Our unwavering goal is to have graduation rates for student-athletes at 70 percent or higher on a consistent basis.”

The rise in graduation rates has coincided with conference and national championships for the Terps. Since 1998, the Terps have won four national titles.

Goff attributed the change to university-wide improvements in advising and higher admission standards.

Among the school’s revenue sports, football players graduated at a 79 percent clip, the report said. Since Ralph Friedgen began coaching, he has successfully graduated 78 of 89 eligible seniors.

Goff said academic improvements to the Gossett Team House, including an academic center and tutoring facilities, coupled with Friedgen’s emphasis on schoolwork led to the higher graduation rate.

“Having a sport like football that’s so visible do well, that sheds a good light on the department,” Goff said.

Only 25 percent of eligible basketball players on the 1998-99 team graduated. While none of the three freshmen that year graduated, Steve Francis does not count toward the graduation rate because he was a junior college transfer. Lonny Baxter, another 1998 recruit, was a part of the 2002 national championship team.

“Basketball is a different phenomenon across the nation,” Goff said. “A lot of the time what happens with basketball is as soon as they finish their eligibility, they go to the pros.”

The gap between athletes and the general student body is continuing to shrink. According to the Department of Education statistics, 73 percent of students who entered in 1998 graduated.

During the past four years of studies (1995-98), student-athletes fared 12 percent better than the university’s general student body academically.

Field hockey, men’s and women’s track and field, men’s golf, men’s swimming and softball achieved 100 percent graduation rates with their 1998 classes.

These numbers don’t count teams that aren’t fully funded or athletes who do not receive athletic scholarships. Goff said the graduation rate would likely be higher than 70 percent if those teams were eligible for the study.

Academic progress rates, which measure the academic success of athletes while in school, should be released next month and Goff said he expects all of the university’s teams to be in compliance with the NCAA regulations.

Contact reporter Stephen Whyno at whynodbk@gmail.com.