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The President's
Post
 Athletics
are an important part of this campus. I also know that our athletes
respect the rigors of their academic challenges and classroom responsibilities.
I appreciate the coaches’ high standards for student-athletes and
their commitment to keeping our student-athletes’ priorities in
proper order. The classroom is always first.
I like the athletic conference we are in, the American
Southwest Conference, and I especially appreciate that we are a NCAA
Division III, non-athletic scholarship affiliate. Division III is the
cleanest, purest, most regulated, and best model of how collegiate athletics
should operate.
Sherée and I attend as many campus events as
possible, sometimes two or three within the same day. We enjoy each
event because we are able to watch our students and their diversified
talents. You always know when Sherée is in attendance at a sports
event. She’s the noisy one, sitting to my right, who’s always
an active and vocal cheerer. The Ozarks’ First Lady is also the
Ozarks’ First Fan.
An announcement is made before each conference sporting
event on campus, on behalf of Ozarks and the American Southwest Conference,
requesting our team members to participate fairly and our fans to demonstrate
good sportsmanship. I like the announcement, and I am asking for all
of us to continue to listen to the words carefully and to respond appropriately
during competitions. In the long run, a campus community is remembered
more for its character than for its winning and losing, and that’s
as it should be.
Every day you and I represent the University of the
Ozarks, on and off campus. We represent Ozarks in our behavior, actions,
and demeanor. We are Ozarks. Let’s continue to be Ozarks with pride,
responsibility, and positive enthusiasm.
Dr. Rick Niece
President
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