Skip To Main Content
Skip To Main Content
Logo Loader

Central Washington University Athletics

THE OFFICIAL ATHLETICS SITE OF THE
CENTRAL WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY WILDCATS
President Wohlpart

General By: David Leder (CWU Associate Director of Strategic Communications)

CWU president appointed to NCAA Division II Executive Board

Central Washington University President Jim Wohlpart was appointed as a new member of the NCAA Division II Executive Board this fall and will begin his two-year term on January 18, 2026.

Wohlpart will serve as a voting member on the 13-member board and will be eligible for reappointment in 2028. Committee members' responsibilities include:

  • helping sustain and advance the association's mission, traditions, values, and reputation;
  • regularly participating in committee meetings and conference calls;
  • committing to serving the association as a whole, rather than any part of it;
  • disclosing any potential or actual conflicts of interest, and maintaining exemplary personal and ethical standards;
  • supporting the consensus of the committee after fully exercising the responsibility to debate and disagree; and
  • serving as an advocate for the association while only speaking publicly on behalf of the committee as authorized to do so.
President Jim Wohlpart head shot

Wohlpart said he is honored to have been selected for the national governing body, and he is proud to represent CWU at the table.

"Joining the NCAA Division II Executive Board gives CWU a great opportunity to make our voice heard among our peer institutions around the country," he said. "In these times of great disruption and transition in college athletics, it is important to safeguard the special role that Division II athletics plays."

At last month's meeting, the board elected Sandra Woodley, president of The University of Texas Permian Basin, as its chair, and Tim Collins, president of Walsh, as vice chair. Woodley and Collins will begin their one-year terms after the 2026 NCAA Convention is held in January.

The board also re-elected five members to a second two-year term and appointed five new members, including Wohlpart, who will serve as the West Region's representative.

The four other new members for 2026-28 are Thomas Newsom, president at Pittsburg State (Central); Frank Wu, president at Queens (East); Doug Searcy, president at Barton (Southeast); and Bill Pink, president at Ferris State (at-large).

Wohlpart's predecessor at CWU, President Emeritus Jim Gaudino, was named to the NCAA Division II Presidents Council in 2010, becoming just the second university president in the history of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) to serve on the council.

Gaudino's four-year term on the national governing board began in early 2011 and ran through the end of 2015.

View Leder's full story HERE

View the NCAA release HERE

Print Friendly Version