Notre Dame (Md.) has accepted an invitation to join the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference for the 2007-2008 academic year, school president Mary Pat Seurkamp announced today.

The Gators will be a full member of the PAC in six of the seven sports the school currently sponsors, as well as softball, which will be a varsity sport beginning that year. The PAC does not sponsor swimming.

“The College is excited to join the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference,” Seurkamp said. “We are pleased to align Notre Dame with other strong academic institutions that hold similar values and goals as we do.”

Centenary also joins the league. The Cyclones are currently a member of the Skyline Conference. “We are delighted that Centenary College has been invited to join the PAC,” school president Kenneth L. Hoyt said. “We know the students who participate in intercollegiate athletics enhance their educational experience. We look forward to active participation in the PAC, with institutions that share our commitment to student-athletes.”

“Inviting Centenary College and College of Notre Dame to the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference advances the mission and goals of the Conference,” Neumann president Rosalie Mirenda said. “The PAC Presidents welcome Dr. Mary Pat Seurkamp and Dr. Ken Hoyt to the Board of Directors and look forward to working with them into the future.”

The PAC currently has 12 full members: Alvernia, Arcadia, Cabrini, Cedar Crest, Eastern, Gwynedd-Mercy, Immaculata, Marywood, Misericordia, Neumann, Rosemont and Wesley. Arcadia will be joining the MAC and Wesley the CAC in 2007-08.

“Joining the PAC gives us an outstanding opportunity to compete with institutions that have similar academic and athletic philosophies to Notre Dame,” athletic director Scot Reisinger said. “Many of the current institutions in the conference have traditions of being single-sex and religiously affiliated schools.

“At Notre Dame, we believe that participation in athletics is integral to the development of the whole student. That philosophy is shared by the conference, and we look forward to the high levels of athletic competition we will have in the PAC.”

Notre Dame was a charter member of the Atlantic Women's Colleges Conference in 1995-1996. The conference announced plans to disband after the 2006-2007 season as several members have decided to transition to co-educational status or have found other conferences to join. The Gators have won 44 of 72 AWCC championships (61%) in which they have competed.