NJIT Welcomed as 10th America East Member Institution
BOSTON – Further strengthening its academic profile and geographic stronghold in the Northeast, the America East Conference Board of Presidents on Friday unanimously elected New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) as a full conference member, effective for the 2020-21 academic year. NJIT will officially join the conference as its 10th member institution on July 1, 2020.
“NJIT is a great fit for the America East Conference,” said UAlbany President and America East Board of Presidents Chair, Havidán Rodríguez. “Its reputation as an elite public research institution and its commitment to academic excellence perfectly matches the profile of the conference’s institutions. That status combined with its geographic location and athletic aspirations made this an obvious decision. We all look forward to collaborating with and competing against NJIT for years to come.”
The addition of NJIT solidifies America East’s status as one of the top academic and research-based conferences in the country. The conference, which has nine public institutions dedicated to research and one private, is now home to five Carnegie R1 institutions, one of just nine Division I conferences to make that claim, and joins the Ivy League and Big West as the only non-FBS conferences with that distinction. Additionally, America East is the only non-FBS conference with as many as nine R1 or R2 universities combined.
The conference is also home to three U.S. News & World Report Top 100 National Universities and three Top 50 Public Universities as well as four Top 75 QS USA institutions. Ninety percent of the membership consists of R1 or R2 universities that rank among the top 100 public universities in the country.
“NJIT looks forward to joining our new athletic home, the America East Conference,” said NJIT President, Dr. Joel Bloom. “The America East is comprised of both peer and aspirant universities, which similar to NJIT are classified among the highest national research universities-R1, nationally ranked in the top 100 of US News and in the top 50 of the public universities. For our student athletes, they will be playing closer to home, traveling less during this COVID-19 pandemic, and thereby producing cost savings for the university. It is with mixed emotions that we depart the ASUN conference who like NJIT and the America East focus on the success of our students academically and athletically.”
In a time where conference realignment has expanded the geographic footprints of leagues by hundreds of miles, NJIT’s arrival strengthens America East’s foothold in the Northeast and reinforces one of the conference’s greatest assets, the proximity of its campuses. The membership now spans eight neighboring states across the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions, including the greater metro areas of several of the region’s largest cities: New York City, Boston, Baltimore, Newark, Hartford.
“We are thrilled to welcome NJIT as America East’s 10th member institution,” said America East Commissioner, Amy Huchthausen. “We have always been steadfast in our approach to membership and have not wavered from our belief that our institutions should share similar profiles and core values and fall within a compact geographic footprint. NJIT meets all these requirements and will strengthen our conference in all facets. They will be a great addition to our league.”
NJIT, located in Newark, N.J., sponsors 19 sports at the Division I level, 14 of which are sponsored by the America East: baseball, men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s cross country, men’s lacrosse, men’s and women’s soccer, men’s swimming & diving, men’s and women’s indoor and outdoor track & field and women’s volleyball.
“We are very excited to begin this next chapter of NJIT athletics as a member of the America East Conference,” said NJIT Associate Vice President & Director of Athletics, Lenny Kaplan. “Since the beginning of our Division I journey 15 years ago, the goal has always been to be in a regional conference and aligned with like-minded institutions. The America East provides us with an exceptional opportunity and we are happy to call the America East our new athletics home.”
Athletically, NJIT has competed in the ASUN since the 2015-16 academic year. The Highlanders enjoyed their most successful men’s basketball season in 2018-19, winning 22 games, earning a vote in the AP Poll and qualifying for the CIT. NJIT has made three postseason appearances all-time, going 7-3 in the CIT. NJIT also enjoyed its most successful soccer seasons in 2019 as well, capturing its first-ever ASUN regular-season and tournament titles on the men’s side and reaching the ASUN semifinals on the women’s side for the first time.
“On behalf of my fellow America East athletics directors, I want to express my excitement as we welcome NJIT to our conference,” said Stony Brook Director of Athletics and America East Administration Group Chair, Shawn Heilbron. “The America East is well positioned and prepared to elevate our national profile as an elite conference that prioritizes academics and leadership initiatives while also exceling athletically. NJIT is a perfect match as our 10th member and we all look forward to building rivalries with the Highlanders in the years to come.“
Founded in 1888, NJIT is one of the nation’s leading public polytechnic universities and prepares its students to be leaders in the technology-dependent economy of the 21st century. With a total enrollment of over 11,000, including nearly 9,000 undergraduates, NJIT offers 126 degree programs through six professional schools. The university’s urban campus is located in the heart of Newark, New Jersey’s largest city, and is just several miles from New York City. Within the last four years, NJIT has opened a pair of state- of-the-art facilities in its Wellness and Events Center, home to its basketball and volleyball programs, as well as Lubetkin Field at Mal Simon Stadium, where its soccer and lacrosse teams play.
NJIT will join a rich tradition in the America East that centers around the conference’s #3Pillars: Academic Achievement, Athletic Excellence and Leadership, On and Off the Field. Academically, America East student-athletes have collectively averaged over a 3.0 grade-point average for 15 straight years and boast several Academic All-Americans and NCAA Elite 90 winners. Athletically, the league’s success has been highlighted by the greatest upset in NCAA men’s basketball tournament history (UMBC, 2018), individual national champions in track & field and deep NCAA championship runs, including Final Four berths in field hockey (UAlbany, 2014), men’s soccer (UMBC, 2014) and men’s lacrosse (UAlbany, 2018) as well as a College World Series appearance (Stony Brook, 2012). In the leadership area, America East is unrivaled, serving as trailblazers in the areas of diversity and inclusion by way of its #SpreadRespect campaign and in prioritizing mental health through its #BetterTo9ether campaign.
About America East: The America East provides its member schools and their athletic programs a platform upon which student-athletes can achieve both collegiate and life success through the promotion and nurturing of athletic excellence, academic achievement and leadership, on and off the field. One of the most comprehensive Division I conferences in the country and progressive in its approach to its more than 3,400 student-athletes, America East recognizes champions in each of its 18 sports and consists of 10 member institutions spanning from the Mid-Atlantic to Northeast regions of the United States including: University at Albany, Binghamton University, University of Hartford, University of Maine, UMBC, UMass Lowell, University of New Hampshire, New Jersey Institute of Technolgy, Stony Brook University and University of Vermont. For more information, visit www.AmericaEast.com or follow the America East Conference on Twitter @AmericaEast.
About New Jersey Institute of Technology: One of only 32 polytechnic universities in the United States, New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) prepares students to become leaders in the technology-dependent economy of the 21st century. NJIT’s multidisciplinary curriculum and computing-intensive approach to education provide technological proficiency, business acumen and leadership skills. NJIT is a top 100 national university, according to U.S. News and World Report. NJIT also is one of only 131 universities rated an “R1” research university by the Carnegie Classification®, which indicates the highest level of research activity. NJIT conducts approximately $170 million in research activity each year and has a $2.8 billion annual economic impact on the State of New Jersey. NJIT is ranked #1 nationally by Forbes for the upward economic mobility of its lowest-income students and is ranked 53rd out of more than 4,000 colleges and universities for the mid-career earnings of graduates, according to PayScale.com.
- #3Pillars – Building the Complete Student-Athlete -