NCAA Conference Accepts Lee University Athletics
Cleveland, Tenn.–Lee University’s athletic program is taking what University President Dr. Paul Conn terms as the beginning of a process that “we believe will raise the level of athletics at Lee.”
Gulf South Conference (GSC) Commissioner Nate Salant announced on May 25 the GSC Executive Committee’s unanimous approval of an invitation to Lee University to apply for membership. The approval comes on the heels of a recommendation from the GSC Expansion Committee, which visited Lee’s campus last week. The Executive Committee also endorsed sending a letter to the NCAA Division II leadership indicating that the GSC plans to add Lee University upon its acceptance into the DII membership process.
Commissioner Salant expressed his excitement about Lee’s acceptance. “I am pleased to make this announcement because we know we’ve added one of the best NAIA schools in the country, not only from an athletic perspective but also from an academic one. Lee is not your typical private school in that it is very large, has a tremendous following in the community and is in very good financial shape.
“The stability and steady growth that is the cornerstone of President Conn’s 26 years at the helm impressed us, as did the overall quality of its athletic facilities. Lee puts significant emphasis on women’s athletics, another important item in the evaluation process, and any time you can add a four-time defending champion women’s soccer program, you want to do so. They field very strong teams in two sports in which we need them, men’s soccer and women’s golf, and will also strengthen our volleyball league.”
“We will file an official application with the NCAA this week,” said Conn, “and are optimistic that they will act favorably, although that is far from a sure thing.”
Conn added, “We enjoy our relationship with the SSAC (Southern States Athletic Conference). It is a fine conference, and we hate to leave it. But we feel that Lee’s trajectory for the past two decades has been always to become better and to operate at a higher level in every way, including athletics, and moving to the NCAA DII is the natural way for us to do that.
“This move will be a big challenge for all of us. We will be competing against some very strong institutions. I believe our athletes and our coaches have earned an opportunity to test themselves at this level.”
After gaining final approval from the NCAA, Lee will compete in the NAIA and the SSAC for the upcoming 2012-13 year then begin competing in the new conference in the fall of 2013.
A look back at the athletic history shows Lee being a member of the NAIA since 1975, competing first in the TVAC conference, then in the TranSouth, and for the past several years in the Southern States Athletic Conference.
Under the leadership of Athletic Director Larry Carpenter, Lee has won the Commissioners Cup, for the best overall athletic program in the SSAC six out of the last seven years, including the last three years in a row.
”We have been discussing the move to NCAA DII for the last two years, and very intently for the past year,” pointed out Conn. “I discussed it with the Board of Directors in its January 2012 meeting, and in its meeting on May 4, I recommended that we pursue DII membership in the Gulf South, and they voted to authorize me to do so.
”We explored membership in two other DII conferences, and had positive conversations with each,” he noted. “Ultimately, however, we decided that the Gulf South is the strongest conference in this region, and the best fit for us, because of the size of its schools, the mix of public and private institutions, the high quality of athletic competition at the national level, and its strong tradition of presidential leadership.”
A four-man GSC committee made a site visit to Lee early this month and did a thorough review of the university school and athletic program. The team was led by the president of University of West Alabama and the commissioner of the GSC, as well as the athletic directors from Alabama-Huntsville and Delta State University. That team made its report to the Expansion Committee, which recommended to the GSC Executive Committee that Lee be invited to join the conference.
In its visit, the site team also met with several community leaders, including Mayor Tom Rowland, radio personality Steve Hartline, bank president Lee Stewart, and others.
Carpenter, in talking about the move said he has been part of Lee athletics for 37 years and witnessed many historic events during that time as a player, coach and athletic director. “The invitation to join the Gulf South Conference marks yet another event,” he said. “We’ve enjoyed a tremendous amount of success in the SSAC and NAIA but understand the challenge that comes by playing in the most competitive conference in NCAA II.
“The GSC schools are consistently vying for national championships and this year alone have already won one national title and had a national finalist,” he pointed out. ”I’ve been very impressed with commissioner Salant and the members of the expansion committee. I look forward to meeting and working with the other member institutions. My staff and I are excited about what the future holds for Lee athletics.”
(Source: Lee University)
