It's official. Centenary College of Shreveport, La., is leaving The Summit League.
Summit League officials said on Tuesday they received paperwork from outgoing Centenary President Ken Schwab notifying the league it will leave in 2011.
Centenary interim president Michael Easton confirmed the move and said the decision was permanent, according to a story in the Shreveport Times.
"The main reasons were financial and to find a conference more geographically appropriate," Easton said.
The country's economic downturn has led Centenary officials to seek ways to save money. Centenary's endowment is down 20 percent and the school is seeking implementation of $1.5 million in budget reductions.
ADVERTISEMENT
Some Centenary officials are pushing for a drop to the NCAA Division III level in athletics as a way to save even more money.
"We respect Centenary's decision to re-evaluate the direction of their athletic program," said Summit League commissioner Tom Douple. "In difficult economic times, hard decisions have to be made and we wish them all the best in the future."
Centenary has been a member of the Summit (formerly known as the Mid-Continent Conference) since 2003. Centenary teams have rarely contended for league titles, with only the softball team winning two postseason league crowns.
The move, according to Easton, doesn't necessarily mean Centenary is headed toward Division III status.
"We're still investigating options out there," Easton said.
Despite Centenary leaving, the Summit will still have 10 members with South Dakota joining the league in 2011.
Other members are North Dakota State, South Dakota State, Oral Roberts, Missouri-Kansas City, Southern Utah, Western Illinois, Oakland (Mich.), Indiana Purdue-Fort Wayne and Indiana Purdue-Indianapolis.
"We are a league that is moving forward with a bright future," Douple said. "We have nine strong members and a tenth member (South Dakota) joining our league for the 2011-12 season."
