MUW Academic Profile

INSTITUTIONAL INFORMATION

I. Please outline your institution's mission and philosophy statements. How is intercollegiate athletics incorporated into the institutional mission?

University Mission Vision, Mission, Guiding Principles Excellence, Leadership, Personalized Learning

Vision

Building on its long tradition of excellence in liberal arts and professional education, as well as its historic focus on academic and leadership development for women, Mississippi University for Women will continue to be a university that prepares both women and men for successful lives by providing a highquality education in a personalized learning environment.

Mission

Mississippi University for Women provides high quality undergraduate and graduate education for women and men in a variety of liberal arts and professional programs while maintaining its historic commitment to academic and leadership development for women. Emphasizing a personalized learning experience, the University engages in a variety of instructional methodologies to provide educational opportunities in a diverse and inclusive environment. The institution promotes research, scholarship, and creativity to enhance student development and achievement as a platform for lifelong education and growth.

Guiding Principles

MUW provides high-quality instructional programs that emphasize teaching and learning. With faculty and staff of the highest caliber, MUW is dedicated to providing a campus environment that encourages lifelong learning, strong career preparation, and personal growth. Graduates are expected to have skills in communication, technology, and critical thinking, as well as an awareness of self, gender-related issues, cultural diversity, and responsible citizenship.

MUW is student oriented. MUW provides small classes and emphasizes personalized student attention, so that each student will have the opportunity to succeed. MUW offers a student-life program that stimulates learning and leadership development.

MUW values research, scholarship, and creativity. While MUW is primarily a teaching institution, the university supports research, scholarship, and creativity to enhance the professional development of faculty and staff in order to better prepare students.

MUW is committed to diversity among its faculty, staff, and students. The faculty, staff, and students of MUW represent the global society in which we live. MUW believes that diversity allows students to grow in their understanding of self and others.

MUW endorses sound organizational principles and is committed to operational efficiency, collaborative strategic planning, institutional effectiveness, and creative problem solving.

MUW meets regional, state, and national needs for higher education. The University responds to the needs of the local community by providing cultural activities; programs for intellectual, professional, and 7

social development; and by assisting in economic development. MUW extends its outreach to the state and nation using multiple delivery methods, including the internet and other advanced systems.

MUW is committed to public service. MUW forms partnerships with businesses, as well as with educational, governmental, public service, and charitable organizations, to create opportunities that provide economic and social advantages for the institution, community, and region.

As an integral part of the overall educational mission, the Athletics Program reflects the values of excellence, leadership, and personalized learning to which all of the University’s endeavors aspire.

The Athletics Program at MUW is an extra-curricular activity that supplements the academic programs and supports the institution’s educational mission by providing opportunities for students to participate in intercollegiate sports activities that support, equip and empower them throughout their growth and development. In particular, the Athletics Program enhances general life knowledge, skills and abilities, including physical fitness, self-confidence, leadership and teamwork while promoting diversity, equity and inclusive experiences. To this end, the Athletics Program measures its success by the extent to which its student-athletes develop as well-rounded individuals of intellect and character.

The University’s strategic plan recognizes the need to develop the sense of community among students, parents, alumni, employees, and friends. There are opportunities to create a vibrant campus community through the Athletics program both for those who participate directly in intercollegiate sports and those who, as spectators and fans, benefit from the camaraderie. This will be an important driver of the future development of the University.

Many times, athletics is the initial and continued motivation to sustain, explore and excel in academic throughout college. This vehicle gives individuals the opportunities to follow or find their passions and fulfill their pursuits. Athletics is intentional in its support of academics, from the beginning to include recruiting student-athletes searching for balance while competing at a high level and understanding that competing at our University is truly for love of the game.

This support continues throughout their collegiate career with the balanced schedules, mandatory days off during the traditional and non-traditional seasons, the proactive conversations of our staff to assist student-athletes with their overall schedules to identify opportunities to study, to inform them of the academic minimums, as well as inspiring them to reach the highest level and not to settle for less than their absolute best. We continuously communicate with the student-athletes, sharing information about the University’s resources from faculty guidance, availability of tutoring, mental health and overall well-being, acting accordingly and appropriately in support of positive responses associated with the reception of early alert warnings such as missing class, lack of engagement/preparation for class, poor 8

performance on projects and/or any grade reports. It is of the utmost importance we do all we can in an ethical manner to facilitate meaningful and lifelong positive impacts.

ATHLETICS’ MISSION:

The Department of Athletics conducts a broad-based Division III sports program for men and women that is an integral part of the University’s mission and adheres to the framework established by the NCAA. The overall development of each student-athlete is of paramount importance. The department will provide the necessary vision and leadership for student-athletes to participate at the highest level of their ability while pursuing a quality education. Participation on an intercollegiate team will provide student-athletes with the opportunity to learn and develop values which foster self-discipline, teamwork, leadership skills and fair play in an equitable and diverse environment. The goal is to attain and maintain competitive excellence in all sports programs, including participation in NCAA individual and team championship events, whenever possible.

ATHLETICS’ VISION STATEMENT

The Department of Intercollegiate Athletics is committed to:

• Providing all student-athletes with the highest quality academic, athletic and social experience; • Hiring and developing the best coaches and support staff to produce successful programs; • Developing the leadership potential of student-athletes and staff; • Providing a safe environment for the student-athletes; • Conducting programs and business with integrity and the highest ethical standards.

CORE PRINCIPLES:

The mission of the Department of Athletics at the Mississippi University for Women is to develop studentathletes who desire to excel in the four core principles of Athletics, Academics, Community, and Life. 9

II. Why are you seeking membership in the Collegiate Conference of the South (CCS)?

The Mississippi University for Women is enthusiastically seeking membership in the Collegiate Conference of the South (CCS). We have the utmost respect for the CCS member institutions and believe, like us, they are committed to upholding the NCAA III philosophy, policies, rules, codes of conduct, high academic, athletic and overall standards.

Athletics plays an integral role in supporting a diverse, equitable, inclusive environment and experience which allows student-athletes to thrive throughout their collegiate career in a number of areas. We want them to do so while staying committed to pursuing and obtaining their degree, which will prepare them to become citizens making a positive impact in our world. While all the CCS member institutions have their own distinct missions, visions, philosophies, priorities and core principles, we firmly believe that we share common values.

We are committed to the holistic student-athlete experience and the desire to do all we can in an ethical manner to maintain high-educational standards while participating in competitive sports. We recognize and appreciate the stability of the athletic programs, the geographic locations of the member institutions, the comparable staffing, facilities, the size of the undergraduate populations and the commitment to improving the strength and competitiveness of the conference in a strategic manner.

For all of these reasons - and more - we are excited for this opportunity. 10

III. How would the admission of your institution to the CCS benefit your institution? The CCS?

• Admission to the CCS would benefit MUW by providing competition against institutions with similar characteristics in closer proximity to our University. The geographic locations of the CCS member institutions would positively impact the student-athlete experience while providing a better long-term financial situation.

• Admission of MUW would benefit CCS because we would provide a broad-based athletic sport offering comparable to those provided by the CCS member institutions. MUW has 17 athletic teams overall with 8 men’s teams (Baseball, Basketball, Cross Country, Golf,

Soccer, Tennis, Track and Field Indoor and Track and Field Outdoor) and 9 women’s teams (Baseball, Basketball, Cross Country, Golf, Soccer, Tennis, Track and Field Indoor,

Track and Field Outdoor and Volleyball.

• Our teams will add to the stability of each of the sports in the CCS, enhance an already competitive regular season schedule, help to ensure the consistent offering of an automatic qualifier in a number of sports and our participation in women’s golf may assist with an automatic qualifier in that sport in the CCS in the future.

• We would provide an additional guaranteed opponent in the state of Mississippi with

CCS member institutions already competing in or against a fellow Mississippi institution which would be a fiscally responsible addition. 11