Tarleton identified as a potential candidate by multiple Division l conferences for an invitation

By Channing Flatt—

Sports Writer

In an email sent out last Friday, President Dominic Dottavio announced that Tarleton State University is being considered for an invitation to move to Division I. Dottavio made clear that Tarleton has not yet received an invitation but if they are invited, the move would be within the near future.

In the e-mail, Dottavio wrote, “It is our understanding that Tarleton has been identified by DI conferences as a potential candidate.  To be clear, we have not received an invitation but if we do, it may be on the near horizon.”

Later in that e-mail, Dottavio mentioned that he has charged a task force to focus on answering any questions related to the potential move. The task force has a website (https://tarleton.edu/division1/) to help keep the Tarleton community informed about the work the task force has been doing.

“I have recently charged a task force with the responsibility of providing an objective, unbiased assessment that can help the university reach the most informed decision.  Its efforts are focusing upon identifying and answering questions related to a potential move,” he wrote.

Tarleton’s Division I hopes have spanned more than a decade. In 2003, Tarleton tried to join the Southland Conference, but was not accepted. Since then, some former Lone Star Conference members made the move to Division I, but Tarleton was still without an invite.

President Dottavio wants to encourage all students, faculty and staff to participate in the process by staying up-to-date with the task force website, attending open forums on the topic and responding to requests by the task force.

Dottavio concluded, “If we do receive an invitation from a DI conference, we will need to make a decision in a timely manner.  Either way the decision goes, it will likely impact the university’s future for many years to come,”