SHEPHERDSTOWN, W.Va. – Shepherd University announced today that it has elected to join the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference for full-time membership, following approval of an invitation to join the conference by the PSAC Board of Directors on May 31. Shepherd is slated to join the PSAC for the 2019-20 season.

"We are pleased to welcome the Shepherd Rams to the PSAC family of institutions. Shepherd University brings with it an outstanding athletic and academic tradition plus a perfect match for the PSAC's geographic footprint," said PSAC Commissioner Steve Murray. "We have made the PSAC an even stronger conference today."

The PSAC approached Shepherd after Cheyney announced it would be leaving NCAA II after the 2017-18 season. The PSAC will enter the 2018-19 season with 17 members. The membership includes: Bloomsburg University, California University of Pennsylvania, Clarion University, East Stroudsburg University, Edinboro University, Gannon University, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Kutztown University, Lock Haven University, Mansfield University, Mercyhurst University, Millersville University, Seton Hill University, Shippensburg University, Slippery Rock University, University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown, and West Chester University. Shepherd will be in the PSAC East along with Bloomsburg, East Stroudsburg, Kutztown, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Millersville, Shippensburg, and West Chester.

"We are delighted that the success of our student-athletes--in competition and in the classroom--has been recognized by the prestigious invitation to join the PSAC. We are proud to join our neighbors and represent West Virginia," said Shepherd's President, Dr. Mary J.C. Hendrix.

Shepherd has been a member of the Mountain East Conference since it began in July 2013. A charter member of the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WVIAC) in 1924, Shepherd remained a member throughout the league's history (1924-2013). The Rams briefly held a dual conference affiliation as a member of the Mason-Dixon Conference from 1964-68.

"We are extremely excited about our transition into the PSAC in the fall of 2019," said Shepherd vice president for athletics Chauncey Winbush. "Our goal is to provide our student-athletes with the best possible experience both academically and athletically and we believe this move will allow us to fulfill that goal."

Shepherd University is a public liberal arts university offering more than 80 undergraduate programs and select graduate programs. Accredited by the Higher Learning Commission, Shepherd is a member of the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges (COPLAC). Located in Shepherdstown, the oldest town in West Virginia, Shepherd is 90 minutes from Washington, D.C., and Baltimore. Because of the contrasts in geographic locations of MEC members and PSAC members, Shepherd will achieve decreased travel burdens for its teams when it joins the new conference.

PSAC Release