UNI Director of Athletics Rick Hartzell Receives Two-Year Extension

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The contract will run through June 30, 2009.

UNI Director of Athletics Rick Hartzell received a two-year contract extension through 2009.

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa - University of Northern Iowa Director of Athletics Rick Hartzell has signed a contract extension through June 30, 2009, UNI President Benjamin Allen announced today.

Hartzell, 54, will receive a base salary of $147,124. There are also incentive clauses built into the contract, tied to both student-athletes' academic and athletic performance. Hartzell's current contract was set to expire in June of 2007, and by the time this new deal is completed, Hartzell will have spent 10 years at the helm of the Panther athletic department. He began his tenure as the Panthers' athletic director in August 1999.

"Under Rick's leadership and guidance our athletic programs and student athletes, both on the field and in the classroom, have set high standards," said UNI President Benjamin Allen. "We're confident Rick will continue to lead our athletic department to even higher levels of excellence and achievement."

"I'm very appreciative of this contract put together by President Allen and Vice President Schellhardt," said Hartzell. "Their confidence in me means a great deal and I look forward to doing my best to continue to lead Panther athletics to even higher levels of success in the upcoming years. Our coaches and student-athletes have accomplished some terrific things in the past few years and we all will continue to do our best to make Panther alumni, fans and everyone in the Cedar Valley and the state of Iowa proud of UNI athletics."

Under Hartzell's leadership the past seven years, the Panther athletic program has achieved success by several measures. On the field of competition, UNI student-athletes and the coaching staff have accomplished the following, to name a few:

In 2006-07, UNI finished 70th in the U.S. Sports Academy Director's Cup Top 100 standings, the highest of any Missouri Valley Conference or Gateway school. The Panthers have ranked in the top 100 of those standings six of the past eight seasons.

The Panther football team has claimed three conference titles, including advancing to the NCAA I-AA championship game in 2005. The men's basketball team won its first-ever Missouri Valley Conference championship in 2004, and has made three straight NCAA tournament appearances. UNI volleyball has won six of the past eight conference championships, and made three appearances in the NCAA tournament's Sweet 16 during that span. Panther wrestling crowned its first Division I national champion in 2000, and has placed as high as 11th in the national tournament. Track and field and cross country have claimed numerous conference titles, including the last seven indoor men's crowns, while placing 18th at the 2006 NCAA indoor championship.

Academically, UNI student-athletes continue to excel:

UNI has more than 400 student-athletes, and their overall grade-point average for the spring 2006 semester was 3.08.

Graduation rates are annually at the top of the Missouri Valley and Gateway Conferences.

UNI's women's basketball team placed eighth in the nation in Division I academic standings this past season.

The Panther Scholarship Club also had a record-setting year, as it raised more than $1 million for the first time ever. Both annually funded and endowed scholarships saw marked increases.

"With the excitement of a new school year and the revitalization of UNI intercollegiate athletics, what more fitting recognition to Rick and his accomplishments these seven years than to extend his contract here at his alma mater, UNI," said Tom Schellhardt, UNI vice president for administration & finance. "He is the right leader for UNI Athletics at this juncture in our history."

Hartzell has been a key figure involved in several facility upgrades, including the construction of the McLeod Center, which will open Nov. 18 and the start of construction of a new Human Performance Center connected to the north end of the UNI-Dome.

Hartzell, who played football and baseball for the Panthers, is a 1974 graduate of UNI with bachelor's degrees in physical education and English. He received his master's in educational administration, also from UNI, in 1977.