The Embry-Riddle Athletics administration recently announced that the university was accepted into the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division II membership process. “This next step toward achieving full membership in the NCAA Division II reflects the excellence and integrity that Embry-Riddle’s athletics program is known for nationwide,” said John P. Johnson, the university's president and CEO. “Being a part of the Sunshine State Conference is a natural partnership for us because of our shared commitment to excellence in academics going hand-in-hand with excellence in athletics.” Achieving full NCAA Division II membership typically takes three years, provided the athletic department successfully completes each phase of the membership process. The NCAA committee reviews each school in the process annually to determine if the institution should repeat any year in the process. There is not a guarantee to move from one year to the next. Embry-Riddle will spend two years in candidacy status and then one year as a provisional member of NCAA Division II before gaining full membership status. The process of becoming an NCAA II member got a boost last December when the ERAU Athletics program accepted an invitation to join the very competitive Sunshine State Conference. Embry-Riddle will continue to be an active member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and The Sun Conference for the 2014-15 season while it serves its first year of candidacy, during which time the program will familiarize itself with the structure, processes and expectations of NCAA II membership. If the Eagles are successful in Candidacy Year One, the program will move into a Candidacy Year Two in 2015-16 and will no longer be able to compete as a member of the NAIA or The Sun Conference. ERAU will also not be eligible for postseason competition in either NAIA or NCAA II during the second year. In 2016-17, Embry-Riddle will enter a provisional year in the NCAA. During this season, the Eagles must follow all NCAA rules and regulations while playing a full NCAA II and Sunshine State schedule. However, the program will still not be eligible for postseason competition. Assuming all expectations have been met, Embry-Riddle will be a full NCAA member in 2017-18. The NCAA Division II membership process prepares institutions for membership as a successful Division II athletics program. The process includes opportunities for education, assessment and growth as institutions integrate the Division II philosophy, strategic positioning platform and best practices to be a model Division II institution. "This is an exciting time for Embry-Riddle – not only for Athletics, but for the entire University as we officially begin the NCAA membership process,” said John Phillips, the university's director of athletics. "The Division II values of academic achievement, high-level athletics competition and service to the community, fit in perfectly with the Student-Person-Player model that we've established over the last 26 years. It will be incredibly challenging moving into the best Division II conference in the country, but I know our coaches and staff are eager to take on this new challenge.” Embry-Riddle expects to sponsor 20 sports when it begins competing at the NCAA level. These will include the 17 sports that currently compete in the NAIA, in addition to men’s and women’s lacrosse and women’s rowing, which will come on board during the course of the next three seasons. As a long-standing member of the NAIA and The Sun Conference, the Eagles have finished in the top 15 in the NAIA Director's Cup for 13 straight seasons and have claimed 15 consecutive Sun Conference Commissioner's Cups. ERAU has earned team national titles in men's basketball (2000) and men's tennis (2013), and has won 26 individual national championships, including two in women's tennis, nine in men's tennis, 12 in women's track and field and three in men's track and field. The Eagle Athletics program has captured 97 Sun Conference regular season crowns and 27 conference tournament titles in its 26 seasons of existence. In 2013-14, ERAU had 51 student-athletes receive All-America recognition, bringing the number of All-Americans in ERAU history to 351. Nearly 300 student-athletes have been named NAIA Scholar-Athletes and the program, which logged 1,953 hours of community service in 2013-14 alone, has garnered numerous Champions of Character awards from the NAIA.