Heart of America Athletic Conference

Heart of America Athletic Conference
Association	NAIA
Founded	1971
Commissioner	Nik Rule (since 2024)
Sports fielded	23 men's: 12; women's: 11; ;
No. of teams	13 (15 in 2025)
Headquarters	Overland Park, Kansas
Region	West North Central
Official website	www.haacsports.com
Locations

The Heart of America Athletic Conference (HAAC or The Heart)^[1] is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). Member institutions are located in Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska in the United States.

History

100km
62miles

Baker

William Woods

Missouri Baptist

Park

Mount Mercy

Clarke

William Penn

Grand View

Peru State

Benedictine

MidAmerica Nazarene

Culver–Stockton

Central Methodist

Missouri Valley

Graceland

Location of HAAC members:

current,

future

The HAAC's earliest ancestor was the Missouri College Athletic Union (MCAU), which was formed in 1924 when the Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association (now the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association or MIAA) split in two. The old MIAA's private schools formed the Athletic Union, while the state teachers' colleges stayed in the MIAA.^[2] It was reorganized as the HAAC in 1971 when it began admitting schools outside Missouri. However, the HAAC does not presently claim the Athletic Union's history as its own.

In early 2014, Grand View University and William Penn University were announced as members for the 2015–16 school year.^[3] In April 2015, Clarke University and Mount Mercy University were also announced as members for the 2016–17 school year.^[4] In October 2019, Park University was approved for HAAC membership and joined in the 2020–21 school year.^[5] On February 10, 2022, long-serving Evangel University accepted its invitation to join the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference, also Kansas-based, in 2023–24.^[6]

On July 24, 2023, William Woods University (alongside St. Ambrose) announced they would join the conference as associate members in football beginning in the 2024 fall season (2024 25 academic year). The expansion made it NAIA's largest football conference with 14 teams playing in two divisions.^[7]

The current commissioner of the conference is Lori Thomas. Thomas, the first female commissioner in NAIA history, began her term in 2014,^[8] succeeding Larry Lady who retired after 22 years as commissioner.^{[citation needed]}

Chronological timeline

1971 – The Heart of America Athletic Conference (HAAC) was founded. Charter members included Baker University, Central Methodist College (now Central Methodist University), the College of Emporia, Graceland College (now Graceland University), Missouri Valley College, Ottawa University, Tarkio College and William Jewell College beginning the 1971–72 academic year.
1974 – The College of Emporia left the HAAC as the school announced that it would close after the 1973–74 academic year.
1980 – Culver–Stockton College and Mid-America Nazarene College (now MidAmerica Nazarene University) joined the HAAC in the 1980–81 academic year.
1982 – Ottawa left the HAAC to re-join the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) after the 1981–82 academic year.
1986 – Central Methodist left the HAAC to become an NAIA Independent after the 1985–86 academic year.
1987 – Evangel College (now Evangel University) joined the HAAC in the 1987–88 academic year.
1991 – Benedictine College joined the HAAC (with Central Methodist re-joining), both effective in the 1991–92 academic year.
1996 – Lindenwood College (now Lindenwood University) joined the HAAC in the 1996–97 academic year.
2000 – Avila College (now Avila University) joined the HAAC in the 2000–01 academic year.
2011 – Two institutions left the HAAC and the NAIA to join the Division II ranks of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA): Lindenwood as an NCAA D-II Independent (which would later join the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) in the 2012–13 academic year), and William Jewell to the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC), both effective after the 2010–11 academic year.
2011 – Peru State College joined the HAAC in the 2011–12 academic year.
2015 – Grand View University and William Penn University (both coming from the defunct Midwest Collegiate Conference (MCC)) joined the HAAC in the 2015–16 academic year.
2016 – Clarke University and Mount Mercy University (also both coming from the defunct Midwest Collegiate (MCC) after spending a season as NAIA Independents) joined the HAAC in the 2016–17 academic year.
2017 – Dickinson State University joined the HAAC as an affiliate member for men's wrestling in the 2017–18 academic year.
2018 – Avila left the HAAC to join the KCAC after the 2017–18 academic year.
2020 – Park University joined the HAAC in the 2020–21 academic year.
2020 – Three institutions joined the HAAC as affiliate members: Missouri Baptist University and the University of Health Sciences and Pharmacy in St. Louis (UHSP) for men's volleyball, and Waldorf University for men's & women's wrestling, all effective in the 2020–21 academic year.
2021 – Two institutions joined the HAAC as affiliate members: St. Ambrose University for only men's wrestling, and Iowa Wesleyan University for men's & women's wrestling, both effective in the 2021–22 academic year.
2022 – Mount Vernon Nazarene University joined the HAAC as an affiliate member for men's lacrosse (alongside St. Ambrose adding both men's and women's lacrosse within its affiliate membership), both effective in the 2022–23 academic year.
2023 – Evangel left the HAAC to join the KCAC after the 2022–23 academic year.
2023 – Missouri Baptist added football within its affiliate membership in the 2023 fall season (2023–24 academic year).
2024 – Three institutions will join the HAAC as affiliate members: Columbia College for men's lacrosse, and both Midland University and Ottawa University in men's and women's lacrosse (alongside Missouri Baptist adding both sports and USHP adding only women's lacrosse within their respective affiliate memberships), all effective in the 2024–25 academic year.
2024 – William Woods University will join the HAAC as an affiliate member for both football (alongside St. Ambrose to add the sport within its affiliate membership) and men's lacrosse, both effective beginning the 2024–25 academic year.
2025 – Missouri Baptist and William Woods will both join the HAAC as full members, effective in the 2025–26 academic year.

Member schools

Current members

The HAAC currently has thirteen full members, all but one are private schools: All but one of the private schools are religiously affiliated.

Institution	Location	Founded	Affiliation	Enrollment	Nickname	Joined^[a]
Baker University	Baldwin City, Kansas	1858	United Methodist	989	Wildcats	1971
Benedictine College	Atchison, Kansas	1858	Catholic (Benedictines)	2,189	Ravens	1991
Central Methodist University	Fayette, Missouri	1854	United Methodist	1,094	Eagles	1971; 1991^[b]
Clarke University	Dubuque, Iowa	1843	Catholic (B.V.M.)	1,075	Pride	2016
Culver–Stockton College	Canton, Missouri	1853	Disciples of Christ	1,066	Wildcats	1980
Graceland University	Lamoni, Iowa	1895	Community of Christ	2,301	Yellowjackets	1971
Grand View University	Des Moines, Iowa	1896	Lutheran ELCA	1,988	Vikings	2015
MidAmerica Nazarene University	Olathe, Kansas	1966	Nazarene	1,884	Pioneers	1980
Missouri Valley College	Marshall, Missouri	1889	Presbyterian (PCUSA)	1,728	Vikings	1971
Mount Mercy University	Cedar Rapids, Iowa	1928	Catholic (R.S.M.)	1,877	Mustangs	2016
Park University	Parkville, Missouri	1875	Nonsectarian	2,340	Pirates	2020
Peru State College	Peru, Nebraska	1865	Public	2,422	Bobcats	2011
William Penn University	Oskaloosa, Iowa	1873	Quakers	1,550	Statesmen & Lady Statesmen	2015

Notes

^ Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.
^ Central Methodist left the HAAC after the 1985–86 school year; before re-joining back in the 1991–92 school year.

Future members

The HAAC will have two new members, both are private schools as well as current HAAC affiliate members.

Institution	Location	Founded	Affiliation	Enrollment	Nickname	Joining^[a]	Current conference
Missouri Baptist University	Creve Coeur, Missouri	1957	Baptist	5,309	Spartans	2025	American Midwest
William Woods University	Fulton, Missouri	1870	Disciples of Christ	2,300	Owls	2025	American Midwest

Notes

^ Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.

Affiliate members

The HAAC currently has five affiliate members, all but one are private schools:

Institution	Location	Founded	Affiliation	Enrollment	Nickname	Joined	HAAC sport	Primary conference
Dickinson State University	Dickinson, North Dakota	1918	Public	1,392	Blue Hawks	2017^m.wr. 2023^w.wr.	men's wrestling; women's wrestling	North Star (NSAA)
Missouri Baptist University	Creve Coeur, Missouri	1957	Baptist	5,309	Spartans	2020^m.vb. 2023^fb	men's volleyball; football	American Midwest
Mount Vernon Nazarene University	Mount Vernon, Ohio	1964	Nazarene	2,622	Cougars	2023^m.lac.	men's lacrosse	Crossroads
St. Ambrose University	Davenport, Iowa	1882	Catholic (Diocese of Davenport)	3,607	Fighting Bees	2021^m.wr. 2023^m.lac. 2023^w.lac.	men's wrestling; men's lacrosse; women's lacrosse	Chicagoland (CCAC)
University of Health Sciences and Pharmacy in St. Louis	St. Louis, Missouri	1864	Nonsectarian	1,350	Eutectics	2020	men's volleyball	American Midwest
Waldorf University	Forest City, Iowa	1903	For-profit^[a]	4,500	Warriors	2020^m.wr. 2020^w.wr.	men's wrestling; women's wrestling	North Star (NSAA)

Notes

^ Formerly affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) until 2010.

Future affiliate members

Institution	Location	Founded	Affiliation	Enrollment	Nickname	Joining	HAAC sport	Primary conference
Columbia College	Columbia, Missouri	1851	Nonsectarian	4,000	Cougars	2025^m.lac.	men's lacrosse	American Midwest
Midland University	Fremont, Nebraska	1883	Lutheran ELCA	1,394	Warriors	2025^m.lac. 2025^w.lac.	men's lacrosse; women's lacrosse	Great Plains (GPAC)
Missouri Baptist University	Creve Coeur, Missouri	1957	Baptist	5,309	Spartans	2025^m.lac. 2025^w.lac.	men's lacrosse; women's lacrosse	American Midwest
Ottawa University	Ottawa, Kansas	1865	Baptist	726	Braves	2025^m.lac. 2025^w.lac.	men's lacrosse; women's lacrosse	Kansas (KCAC)
St. Ambrose University	Davenport, Iowa	1882	Catholic (Diocese of Davenport)	3,607	Fighting Bees	2024	football	Chicagoland (CCAC)
University of Health Sciences and Pharmacy in St. Louis	St. Louis, Missouri	1864	Nonsectarian	1,350	Eutectics	2025	women's lacrosse	American Midwest
William Woods University	Fulton, Missouri	1870	Disciples of Christ	2,300	Owls	2024	football; men's lacrosse	American Midwest

Former members

The HAAC has seven former full members, all were private schools:

Institution	Location	Founded	Affiliation	Enrollment	Nickname	Joined	Left	Subsequent conference	Current conference
Avila University	Kansas City, Missouri	1916	Catholic (C.S.J.)	1,676	Eagles	2000	2018	Kansas (KCAC) (2018–present)
College of Emporia	Emporia, Kansas	1882	Presbyterian	N/A	Fighting Presbies	1971	1974	Closed in 1974
Evangel University	Springfield, Missouri	1955	Assemblies of God	1,511	Valor	1987	2023	Kansas (KCAC) (2023–present)
Lindenwood University	St. Charles, Missouri	1827	Presbyterian (PCUSA)	4,822	Lions	1996	2011	various	Ohio Valley (OVC)^[a] (2022–present)
Ottawa University	Ottawa, Kansas	1865	American Baptist	726	Braves	1971	1982	Kansas (KCAC) (1982–present)
Tarkio College	Tarkio, Missouri	1883	Presbyterian (UPCUSA)	N/A	Owls	1971	1992	Closed in 1992
William Jewell College	Liberty, Missouri	1849	Nonsectarian	738	Cardinals	1971	2011	Great Lakes Valley (GLVC)^[b] (2011–present)

Notes

^ Currently an NCAA Division I athletic conference.
^ Currently an NCAA Division II athletic conference.

Former affiliate members

The HAAC had one former affiliate member; which was also a private school:

Institution	Location	Founded	Affiliation	Nickname	Joined	Left	HAAC sport	Current primary conference	Conference in former HAAC sport
Iowa Wesleyan University	Mount Pleasant, Iowa	1842	United Methodist	Tigers	2021	2023	men's wrestling; women's wrestling	N/A^[a]

Notes

^ Iowa Wesleyan closed at the end of the 2022–23 school year, ending its affiliation status.

Membership timeline

Full member (all sports) Full member (non-football) Associate member (football) Associate member (sport)

Sports

The conference also sponsors co-ed varsity sports of dance and cheer.

A divisional format is used for baseball, men's and women's basketball, football, and women's volleyball.
North Clarke Culver–Stockton Graceland Grand View Peru State William Penn Mount Mercy (non-football)	South Baker Benedictine Central Methodist MidAmerica Nazarene Missouri Valley Park (non-football)

Conference sports
Sport	Men's	Women's
Baseball	Y
Basketball	Y	Y
Bowling	Y	Y
Cross Country	Y	Y
Football	Y
Golf	Y	Y
Lacrosse	Y	Y
Soccer	Y	Y
Softball		Y
Tennis	Y	Y
Track & Field Indoor	Y	Y
Track & Field Outdoor	Y	Y
Volleyball		Y
Wrestling	Y	Y

Notes

References

^ "Heart unveils new brans, logo". Heart of America Athletic Conference. May 7, 2015. Archived from the original on March 9, 2016. Retrieved August 4, 2015.
^ MIAA Archived July 9, 2012, at archive.today
^ "Heart of America Conference adds two Iowa members". The Kansas City Star. January 10, 2014. Retrieved July 20, 2015.
^ "Clarke, Mount Mercy approved for membership". Heart of America Athletic Conference. April 2, 2015. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved July 20, 2015.
^ "Park set to join Heart of America in 2020". Victory Sports Network. October 9, 2019. Retrieved March 18, 2020.
^ "Evangel University Accepts Invitation to Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference". Evangel Valor. February 10, 2022. Retrieved February 26, 2022.
^ "William Woods football joins Heart of America conference" ABC 17 News. Retrieved 2023-07-26.
^ "About us". Heart of America Athletic Conference. 2015. Archived from the original on July 22, 2015.