Dr. Arvid Johnson elected as chair for the NAIA's Council of Presidents

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) is excited to announce that Dr. Arvid Johnson, University of St. Francis president, has been elected as the new chair for the NAIA’s Council of Presidents (COP), effective July 1.

Johnson has been the president of the University of St. Francis (Ill.) since June 2013 and served on the COP Board for five years, as well as the Executive Committee for four years. As a COP board member, he chairs the audit review committee, is a member of the Financial Aid Task Force, and serves as the chair of the Chicagoland Conference Council of Presidents.

“As a member of the COP, Arvid has already made significant contributions to the NAIA,” said NAIA President Jim Carr. “His leadership in higher education, paired with time spent in the private sector, allow him to provide a unique perspective that will continue to benefit our association.”

Prior to joining the University of St. Francis, Dr. Johnson served as the dean of the Brennan School of Business at Dominican University. Before entering into higher education in 2001, he worked as a principal at a management consulting firm and has over 15 years of engineering, manufacturing, and senior management experience.

The COP is composed of 23 institutional presidents who represent the 21 NAIA conferences, plus two at-large members. As part of the NAIA’s shared governance model, the COP is designated as a governing body and has authority over membership, all fiscal matters, and conference operations.

The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), headquartered in Kansas City, Mo., is a governing body of small athletics programs that are dedicated to character-driven intercollegiate athletics. Since 1937, the NAIA has administered programs dedicated to championships in balance with the overall college educational experience. Each year more than 65,000 NAIA student-athletes have the opportunity to play college sports, earn over $600 million in scholarships, and compete for a chance to participate in 26+ national championships. www.naia.org | @NAIA