N.C. A&T Says No to Division I

By Tiffany Jones
Black College Wire

The football team at North Carolina A&T will not seek to move to Division I-A because it would be too expensive, A&T Chacellor James C. Renick told the university's board of trustees as he also announced adoption of a compact designed to show that the university is more than a party school.

"After careful consideration, I have decided that given the current state of the economy, the fiscal demands of making this move would be too great," Renick said of the Division I-A option at the trustees' Feb. 19 meeting.

Such a move would cost the university millions of dollars that it does not have, he explained.

"Our goal is to excel in the MEAC both athletically and academically," Renick said. "We will not be declaring our intent to move toward Division I-A in football."

The chancellor made it clear that the first priority of the university is to educate.

With education in mind, Renick also announced the adoption of the Aggie Pride Compact, a document that lists all the components of "Aggie Pride."

"It [the compact] is a great tool to offer incoming Aggies to show them what it means to be an Aggie before they get here," said Student Government Association President Nashett C. Garrett.

A&T has had a reputation for being a party school, and this compact declaress that Aggies are about Achieving Great Goals In Everything and Producing Renowned Individuals Dedicated to Excellence. That is what Aggie Pride is all about.

"We know how to party but we are also about business," Garrett said. The compact is nothing less than a list of standards that have been set forth for all Aggies, now and in the future, to follow.

Tiffany Jones is a student at North Carolina A&T University who writes for the A&T Register.