West Liberty University President Robin C. Capehart has been elected to serve as Region 1 representative to the National Collegiate Athletics Association’s Division II Presidents Council.

NCAA Division II Vice President Mike Racy announced the election following a meeting in Indianapolis on Oct. 28. Capehart’s four-year term will begin in January 2012 following the conclusion of the organization’s annual convention. He replaces Molloy College President Drew Bogner.

“This selection is a tribute to the respect our athletic department has earned over the years under the leadership of Athletic Director Jim Watson in terms of its dedication to its student athletes,” Capehart said.

“College athletics is facing a number of significant challenges and undergoing substantial changes.  It will be an honor to represent West Liberty University and the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference during this time of great transition.”

Capehart currently serves as the Vice Chair of the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference and Vice Chair of the President’s Council for the Higher Education Policy Commission in West Virginia.

The 14-member President’s Council serves as the governing body for NCAA Division II athletics. The NCAA’s Division II is comprised of 302 institutions of higher education. According to the NCAA website, Division II provides a balance between athletic performance and the traditional academic collegiate experience. “This balance – in which students are recognized for their academic success, athletics contributions and campus/community involvement – is at the heart of the Division II student-athlete experience,” the NCAA reports.

Fifteen colleges and universities in West Virginia and Pennsylvania constitute the membership of the WVIAC.

WLU’s student athletes participate in 15 men’s and women’s sports: football, women’s volleyball, men’s and women’s tennis, men’s and women’s cross country, men’s and women’s basketball, men’s wrestling, women’s softball, men’s baseball, men’s and women’s track, and men’s and women’s golf.