OSKALOOSA — Nik Rule, who has served as the Athletics Director at William Penn University since 2017, will step down at the end of January and will transition into the role of Commissioner of the Heart of America Athletic Conference.
Throughout his tenure, Rule’s leadership has been characterized by significant achievements and contributions to the growth and success of the athletic department.
Under Rule’s guidance, the athletic department reached unprecedented heights, while navigating the COVID pandemic with few disruptions. Notably, academic achievement soared as the number of teams with a GPA above 3.0 increased from four to an impressive 16. The entire department also achieved a 3.0 GPA, the first time in the department’s history within the NAIA that such a milestone was attained.
Rule oversaw record-breaking athletic enrollment and the introduction of six new collegiate programs, enriching the student experience and expanding the university’s athletic offerings. His leadership propelled the department to tie for first place in the Heart Commissioner’s Cup for the first time in the school’s history, while also achieving its highest point total ever in the Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup.
Rule’s visionary approach extended to comprehensive branding initiatives, fostering greater brand unity and fan engagement throughout his tenure, while elevating the experience among student-athletes with gameday programming and several facility enhancements.
“It has been an honor to lead our incredible student-athletes and dedicated staff and coaches at William Penn University,” Rule said. “I am immensely proud of our collective accomplishments that were only done because of great people cultivating a high-achieving team. We are grateful for the support we have received from the university community, including our alumni, and the Oskaloosa community. This department is in a great position and has excellent leaders within who will continue to build on what has been accomplished.”
Beyond his role as Athletics Director, Rule has shown a deep commitment to collegiate athletics by serving on various NAIA committees and selection committees for multiple sports. He has been actively involved in the Heart as a liaison to different sports as well as the Association of Student-Athletes. His dedication was recognized by his peers when he was honored as the 2020-2021 Heart Director of the Year.
Prior to becoming Athletics Director, Rule served as the Head Women’s Golf Coach from 2010-2017 and in the spring of 2019. His tenure as coach cultivated a culture that resulted in a 100% retention and graduation rate. His teams won six conference titles, made multiple appearances in national tournaments, and achieved six consecutive years of representation in the NAIA top-25 poll. His outstanding coaching efforts were acknowledged with Conference Coach of the Year honors four times and the Heart Coach of Character laurel in 2015.
Rule, who is a 2010 graduate of William Penn with degrees in History/Government and Communications, also received his Master’s of Business Leadership from WPU in 2016. He earned a Master’s of Sports Administration from Liberty University in 2015 as well.
“Nik has been successful in every area in which he has served at William Penn,” William Penn President John Ottosson said. “During his tenure in athletics our teams have improved in almost every metric; the two most important, in my mind, are academic success and student experience. These improvements are demonstrated by more scholar-athletes and scholar teams, student retention, and support for each other at events. I am grateful to Nik for all he has done for William Penn.”
The university announced the next William Penn University Athletics Director yesterday as well. Aleesha Rabedeaux, who is currently serving as the Associate Athletics Director and Senior Women’s Leader at William Penn, will take over starting on February 1.
