In an effort to better inform faculty and staff members on campus about Division I, the faculty and staff senates are hosting several open forums throughout October regarding the D-I transition.

Vice President of Advancement Alan Medders and Director of Athletics Mark Linder are speaking to the groups to provide more information to UNA employees regarding the shift in athletics.

The first of the meetings was held Monday in Stevens Hall to an audience of approximately 20 faculty and staff members who were given the opportunity to voice their concerns, give ideas and ask questions about the move.

“It’s an opportunity for (faculty and staff members) to hear some updated information about the plans and the specific academic requirements for Division I athletics,” said Faculty Senate President Darlene Townsend. “It’s also an opportunity for faculty to ask specific questions and whatever may be on their minds.”

In the future, both Faculty and Staff senates would be open to hosting more meetings if new information arises, Townsend said.

Linder and Medders opened the meeting with a presentation they have given to almost 140 groups in the past. The two met with the Decatur Rotary Club just before

“This is not just an athletics decision, it’s an institutional decision,” Medders said.

The move is a growth model and is how UNA is looking to grow the institution, Medders said. Medders told the faculty and staff the main way to grow the university is to keep students here, and bring new ones in.

“People misunderstand, we are all an admissions counselor, we are all retention officers,” Medders said. ” We are all in the business of keeping our students and getting more students.”

Linder presented some new information regarding Academic Performance Rate or APR.

The APR for a Division I institution must be at 925 for each sport in the athletics department, Linder said. Currently UNA has eight sports ranking at or above the standard, and four that fall below the standard, he said.

“At the Division I level, we are going to have to commit more academic support (to our students),” Linder said. “APR really governs everything you do as a Division I program.”

UNA Athletics is currently working on bringing the four sports that fall below the needed APR up, Linder said.

“APR is a big deal, and we could get a lot better academically moving to Division I,” Linder said. “To have eight at the 925, I thought it was pretty good.”

Linder cleared up some misconceptions about UNA moving to the SEC, and that UNA will not be the “whipping boy” for the Division I institutions it plays.

“Ideally we would like to land in the Ohio Valley Conference,” Linder said. “A sport we are going to get a lot better on is basketball. The Ohio Valley Conference is known for their basketball.”

There has been a shift in athletics around the country and UNA can compete as a “mid-major” in Division I, Linder said.

“The only way we are going to grow is having a strategic plan,” Linder said. “Athletics can serve as a catalyst. There is quality product in our beakers right now.”

UNA as a whole does not want to go into this at a mediocre level, Medders said.

“It really effects everything,” Medders said. “We are starting to talk about that now, and how we are going to get there.”

Medders said every time Linder and he meet with groups they always ask about the old days of UNA playing Jacksonville State and Troy.

“Going back to the way it used to be is not an option any more,” he said. “UNA isn’t leaving Division II, Division II left UNA.”