CHEYNEY, Pa. (EYT) – Cheyney University announced Tuesday that it is dropping its NCAA Division II status and withdrawing from the PSAC effective at the end of the school year.
(Photo courtesy of Cheyney Athletics)
According to Cheyney President Aaron Walton, the decision was made in order to help the university reach financial sustainability.
“These are extremely difficult but necessary decisions that are being made on behalf of our entire student population, and to help ensure the university’s future,” Walton said. “We want to continue to provide our student-athletes the opportunity to participate as part of the overall college experience.”
A statement released by the PSAC said the conference is fully aware of the decision by Cheyney to exit the NCAA and the PSAC membership requires all members to be in good standing with the NCAA. The statement said Cheyney’s withdrawal from the PSAC and the NCAA was “inevitable” given the financial requirements of membership in the NCAA.
“It is a sad loss for our entire PSAC family to have a charter member leave our membership,” PSAC Commissioner Steve Murray said. “These are difficult financial times in higher education throughout our nation and particularly in the Commonwealth, and very difficult decisions have to be made at every level.
“Cheyney has been a great member of our conference and we wish their administration, coaches, student-athletes and alumni well. They remain the only (PSAC) member institution to win an NCAA Division II Men’s Basketball Championship (1979) and they have proudly supported our conference throughout these many decades of membership.”
Cheyney officials said the school will seek to join another conference for men’s and women’s basketball volleyball and those teams will operate under an independent status during the 2018-19 academic year.
According to the PSAC’s statement, the PSAC Board of Directors will take formal action on the announcement from Cheyney during its annual meeting in May.
“The PSAC will take some time to review its membership options for the future, with every intention to return to 18 full-time members,” the conference’s statement said.
Cheyney is the nation’s oldest historically black college but it has been plagued by declining enrollment, low graduation rates, a limited offering of undergraduate degrees and a poor financial situation, according to PennLive.com. The financial difficulties have put the school’s accreditation with Middle States Commission on Higher Education in trouble for the second time in eight years this past May.
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