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Less than 3 years after joining PacWest, Dominican becomes full Division II member
SAN RAFAEL, CA — Less than three years
after joining the Pacific West Conference, Dominican University of
California received notification that it has been granted full
Division II membership privileges by the NCAA.
Beginning tis fall, Dominican will be eligible to compete in
post-season competition. Dominican also will be able to participate
in the National Letters of Intent program under the auspices of the
NCAA.
“We are delighted that the NCAA has recognized our athletics
program with this certification. Our student-athletes will
thrive in this new arena,” Dominican President Mary
B. Marcy said. “So many people at Dominican,
led by Athletics Director Terry Tumey,
deserve recognition for their work on this signal
project.”
Dominican successfully completed the exploratory and provisional
cycles of the certification process after applying for Division II
membership in 2008. An NCAA membership sub-committee visited
Dominican in March for an on-campus assessment to determine if the
university met guidelines and all benchmarks for full status.
The certification process, mandated in 1993, is carried out to
ensure the integrity of an institution’s athletic department
and to assist institutions in improving their athletic departments.
Self studies are required in the areas of governance and commitment
to rules compliance, academic integrity, gender equity and
diversity and student-athlete well-being.
“It’s important to note that the process is really set
for an institution to be evaluated and to get better," Leslie
Schumann, assistant director of academic and membership affairs
with the NCAA, said. "Dominican really along the way had the
ability to take the feedback that the committee gave them and have
continuous improvement throughout the process. Dominican
understood Division II, the philosophies of Division II and really
embraced being a Division II member.”
Being granted full Division II status is an historic moment for
Dominican.
“This achievement moves Dominican toward its goal of becoming
an institution of choice for California, the region, the nation and
beyond,” Tumey said. “NCAA certification is reflective
of a commitment made by the university three years ago to grow its
athletics program and offer Dominican’s student-athletes an
exciting new level of challenges and competition. Today’s
announcement is the culmination of hard work and determination to
push the university to new heights. It is a watershed moment for
Dominican.”
Dominican currently sponsors 12 intercollegiate sports –
men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and
women’s soccer, men’s and women’s golf,
women’s volleyball, softball, women’s tennis,
men’s lacrosse, and men’s and women’s cross
country.
Prior to applying for NCAA Division II membership, Dominican
competed in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
(NAIA) and California Pacific Conference. The Penguins won 20 Cal
Pac championships, one NAIA Region II championship, and one
National Small College championship, compiling a total of nine NAIA
Region II and seven NAIA Division II national tournament
appearances in the process.
In the past two seasons, Dominican’s athletic teams have
competed against NCAA Division I opponents such as the University
of San Francisco, San Jose State University, Santa Clara
University, UC Davis, and Sacramento State.
