Heart of America Athletic Conference explained


Color:	002d72
Font Color:	white
Founded:	1971
Association:	NAIA
Teams:	13 (15 in 2025)
Sports:	23
Mens:	12
Womens:	11
Region:	West North Central
Headquarters:	Overland Park, Kansas
Commissioner:	Nik Rule
Since:	2024
Map:	HAAC-USA-states.PNG
Map Size:	250

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

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.

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
Baker University	Baldwin City, Kansas	1858	United Methodist	989	Wildcats	1971
Benedictine College	Atchison, Kansas	1858	Catholic	2,189	Ravens	1991
Central Methodist University	Fayette, Missouri	1854	United Methodist	1,094	Eagles	1971; 1991
Clarke University	Dubuque, Iowa	1843	Catholic	1,075	Pride	2016
Culver–Stockton College	Canton, Missouri	1853	Disciples of Christ	1,066	Wildcats	1980
Graceland University		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	1,728	Vikings	1971
Mount Mercy University	Cedar Rapids, Iowa	1928	Catholic	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 &<br>Lady Statesmen	2015

Notes:

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	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:

Affiliate members

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

Institution	Location	Founded	Affiliation	Enrollment	Nickname	Joined	HAAC sport	Primary conference
Columbia College	Columbia, Missouri	1851	Nonsectarian	4,000	Cougars	2024	men's lacrosse	American Midwest
Dickinson State University	Dickinson, North Dakota	1918	Public	1,392	Blue Hawks	2017 2023	men's wrestling; women's wrestling	North Star (NSAA)
Midland University	Fremont, Nebraska	1883	Lutheran ELCA	1,394	Warriors	2024 2024	men's lacrosse; women's lacrosse	Great Plains (GPAC)
Missouri Baptist University	Creve Coeur, Missouri	1957	Baptist	5,309	Spartans	2020 2023 2024 2024	men's volleyball; football; men's lacrosse; women's lacrosse	American Midwest
Mount Vernon Nazarene University	Mount Vernon, Ohio	1964	Nazarene	2,622	Cougars	2023	men's lacrosse	Crossroads
Ottawa University	Ottawa, Kansas	1865	Baptist	726	Braves	2024 2024	men's lacrosse; women's lacrosse	Kansas (KCAC)
St. Ambrose University	Davenport, Iowa	1882	Catholic	3,607	Fighting Bees	2021 2023 2023 2024	men's wrestling; men's lacrosse; women's lacrosse; football	Chicagoland (CCAC)
University of Health Sciences and Pharmacy in St. Louis	St. Louis, Missouri	1864	Nonsectarian	1,350	Eutectics	2020 2024	men's volleyball women's lacrosse	American Midwest
Waldorf University	Forest City, Iowa	1903	For-profit	4,500	Warriors	2020 2020	men's wrestling; women's wrestling	North Star (NSAA)
William Woods University	Fulton, Missouri	1870	Disciples of Christ	2,300	Owls	2024 2024	football; men's lacrosse	American Midwest

Notes:

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	1,676	Eagles	2000	2018	Kansas (KCAC) (2018–present)
	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	4,822	Lions	1996	2011	various	Ohio Valley (OVC) (2022–present)
Ottawa University	Ottawa, Kansas	1865	American Baptist	726	Braves	1971	1982	Kansas (KCAC) (1982–present)
Tarkio College	Tarkio, Missouri	1883	Presbyterian	N/A	Owls	1971	1992	Closed in 1992
William Jewell College	Liberty, Missouri	1849	Nonsectarian	738	Cardinals	1971	2011	Great Lakes Valley (GLVC) (2011–present)

Notes:

Former affiliate members

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

Notes:

Membership timeline

DateFormat = yyyyImageSize = width:900 height:auto barincrement:20Period = from:1971 till:2027TimeAxis = orientation:horizontalPlotArea = right:5 left:5 bottom:40 top:5

Colors = id:line value:black id:bg value:white id:Full value:rgb(0.7,0.9,0.8) # Use this color to denote a team that is a member in all sports id:FullxF value:rgb(0.9,0.8,0.7) # Use this color to denote a team that is a member in all sports except for football id:AssocF value:rgb(0.9,0.7,0.8) # Use this color to denote a team that is a member for football only id:AssocOS value:rgb(0.8,0.9,0.7) # Use this color to denote a team that is a member for another sport only id:OtherC1 value:rgb(0.996,0.996,0.699) # Use this color to denote a team that has moved in another conference id:OtherC2 value:rgb(0.988,0.703,0.383) # Use this color to denote a team that has moved in another conference when the other color has already been used

PlotData = width:15 textcolor:black shift:(5,-5) anchor:from fontsize:s

bar:1 color:Full from:1971 till:end text:Baker (1971–present)

bar:2 color:Full from:1971 till:1986 text:Central Methodist (1971–1986) bar:2 color:OtherC1 from:1986 till:1991 text:NAIA Ind. bar:2 color:Full from:1991 till:end text:(1991–present)

bar:3 color:Full from:1971 till:1974 text:College of Emporia (1971–1974)

bar:4 color:Full from:1971 till:end text:Graceland (1971–present)

bar:5 color:Full from:1971 till:end text:Missouri Valley (1971–present)

bar:6 color:Full from:1971 till:1982 text:Ottawa (1971–1982) bar:6 color:OtherC1 from:1982 till:end text:KCAC

bar:7 color:Full from:1971 till:1992 text:Tarkio (1971–1992)

bar:8 color:Full from:1971 till:2011 text:William Jewell (1971–2011) bar:8 color:OtherC1 from:2011 till:end text:GLVC

bar:9 color:Full from:1980 till:end text:Culver–Stockton (1980–present)

bar:10 color:Full from:1980 till:end text:MidAmerica Nazarene (1980–present)

bar:11 color:Full from:1987 till:2023 text:Evangel (1987–2023) bar:11 color:OtherC1 from:2023 till:end text:KCAC

bar:12 color:Full from:1991 till:end text:Benedictine (1991–present)

bar:13 color:Full from:1996 till:2011 text:Lindenwood (1996–2011) bar:13 shift:(-20) color:OtherC1 from:2011 till:2012 text:D-II Ind. bar:13 color:OtherC2 from:2012 till:2019 text:MIAA bar:13 color:OtherC1 from:2019 till:2022 text:GLVC bar:13 color:OtherC2 from:2022 till:end text:OVC

bar:14 color:FullxF from:2000 till:2001 text:Avila (2000–2018) bar:14 color:Full from:2001 till:2018 bar:14 color:OtherC1 from:2018 till:end text:KCAC

bar:15 color:Full from:2011 till:end text:Peru State (2011–present)

bar:16 color:Full from:2015 till:end text:Grand View (2015–present)

bar:17 color:Full from:2015 till:end text:William Penn (2015–present)

bar:18 color:FullxF from:2016 till:2018 text:Clarke (2016–present) bar:18 color:Full from:2018 till:end text:

bar:19 color:FullxF from:2016 till:end text:Mount Mercy (2016–present)

bar:20 color:AssocOS from:2017 till:end text:Dickinson State (2017–present)

bar:21 color:FullxF from:2020 till:end text:Park (2020–present)

bar:22 shift:(-40) color:AssocOS from:2020 till:2023 text:Missouri Baptist (2020–present) bar:22 color:AssocF from:2023 till:2025 bar:22 color:Full from:2025 till:end

bar:23 color:AssocOS from:2020 till:end text:UHSP (2020–present)

bar:24 color:AssocOS from:2020 till:end text:Waldorf (2020–present)

bar:25 shift:(-50) color:AssocOS from:2021 till:2023 text:Iowa Wesleyan (2021–2023)

bar:26 shift:(-40) color:AssocOS from:2021 till:2024 text:St. Ambrose (2021–present) bar:26 color:AssocF from:2024 till:end

bar:27 shift:(-80) color:AssocF from:2024 till:2025 text:William Woods (2024–future) bar:27 color:Full from:2025 till:end

ScaleMajor = gridcolor:line unit:year increment:5 start:1971

TextData = fontsize:M textcolor:black pos:(0,25) tabs:(400-center) text:^"Heart of America Athletic Conference membership history"

> If the chart uses more than one bar color, add a legend by selecting the appropriate fields from the following three options (use only the colors that are used in the graphic.) Leave a blank line after the end of the timeline, then add a line with the selected values from the list, separated by a space.

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.
width=50%	Clarke Culver–Stockton Graceland Grand View Peru State William Penn Mount Mercy (non-football)	width=50%	Baker Benedictine Central Methodist MidAmerica Nazarene Missouri Valley Park (non-football)

Notes and References

Web site: Heart unveils new brans, logo . Heart of America Athletic Conference . May 7, 2015 . August 4, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160309052545/https://www.heartofamericaconference.com/article/2806.php . March 9, 2016 . dead.
http://community-2.webtv.net/SEKSPORTS2/SEKSPORTS2/page5.html MIAA
Web site: Heart of America Conference adds two Iowa members . The Kansas City Star . January 10, 2014 . July 20, 2015.
Web site: Clarke, Mount Mercy approved for membership . Heart of America Athletic Conference . April 2, 2015 . July 20, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160304033349/https://www.heartofamericaconference.com/article/2773.php . March 4, 2016 . dead.
News: Park set to join Heart of America in 2020 . March 18, 2020 . Victory Sports Network . October 9, 2019.
News: Evangel University Accepts Invitation to Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference . February 26, 2022 . Evangel Valor . February 10, 2022.
https://abc17news.com/sports/2023/07/24/william-woods-football-joins-heart-of-america-conference/ "William Woods football joins Heart of America conference"
Web site: About us . Heart of America Athletic Conference . 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150722001941/http://www.haacsports.com/f/About_Us.php . July 22, 2015.