The UNA board of trustees has approved a set of goals to reach on the road to the NCAA Division I status, according to a press release from the Office of University Communications.

One of those goals is to get a D-I conference invite, which has not happened yet.

“We have been in contact with two conferences,” said Mark Linder, athletic director. “Division I conference affiliations are really fluid, really fluid.”

Linder said a key for the move to D-I can be found on the hardwood.

“Obviously everybody knows about football and wanting to be good at football,” he said. “As far as Division I and success there, it is really driven by basketball.”

As of Jan. 16, UNA’s basketball teams are ranked second in the GSC, only because UAH has played one more game than the Lions.

Linder said being in D-I would benefit the students by providing a higher quality of events.

“Playing a Jacksonville State (in football) at home or playing a UT Martin, a Belmont or a Lipscomb (in basketball), which the students see playing in the NCAA tournament, really adds value to being a student here,” Linder said.

The success of the basketball teams is very important to the move, while the facilities are very helpful in the cause.

“Our big facility push right now is a weight room,” Linder said. “We need to expand our weight room because right now it is too small. Even as a Division II, it is too small, and so that is the project pressing us right now.”

The other facilities for UNA are not as much of a concern, while improvement is always in the minds of the athletic department.

“We had a conference representative come in a year and a half ago; everybody knew about their visit,” Linder said. “Facilities were not a concern for them. But whether we go Division I or stay Division II, we are always going to have to be looking to improve the facilities.”

As for other requirements, D-I schools have to have 14 sports, which UNA has for the first time this year.

UNA had a goal of reaching $3 million in funds, which includes the $1.42 million application for becoming a D-I institution.

“We are right around 95 percent there,” Linder said. “And we are hitting a little bit of a lull right now, and I think a lot of it has to do with that Division I invite. I think when that happens, we will see an uptick back on the fundraising side of it.”

The scheduling of D-I games for teams prior to the move is also a requirement. The UNA football team scheduled a game against D-I Jacksonville State for next season, which appeared to be a step toward fulfilling that requirement, but Linder said it was because of scheduling difficulties.

“We have to play 10 games in order to play in the post-season,” he said. “The 10th game — it didn’t matter whether it was Division I, II, III or NIAI — we just needed to have a 10th game. And in talking to the Jacksonville State folks, they had an open date, we had an open date, and that is how it all worked out.”

One of the biggest concerns of the move is the possible increase in cost of attending the University of North Alabama.

“I know that the costs are always a place of concern whenever we are adding programs or looking at different ways to grow,” he said.

Linder’s solution is found in the amount of students who attend the university.

“We have to find a better way to do business in higher education, and we all know that,” Linder said. “This is a part of the puzzle, if (the move) can help us add students to enrollment, then we believe it would also keep the costs down.”

The process was supposed to be finished by the 2017-2018 athletic seasons, but without the conference invite the process has been delayed.

“We are trying to stay on the radar screen of the Division I scene and just let people know that we are looking for a Division I conference,” Linder said.