As the Big 12 Conference approaches the end of its first decade of intercollegiate activity, dedication to several tenets of the finer points of athletics helps in the continued establishment of a strong tradition.

The Big 12 reached the 10-year mark of its founding--Feb. 25, 1994-in 2004 and celebrates student-athletes, top-flight competition, academic reform measures, scholarship, sportsmanship, and competitive success with equity as it comes closer to the 10th anniversary of intra-conference activity on Aug. 31, 2006.

Baylor, Colorado, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas, Texas A&M, and Texas Tech combined forces in '94 and formed the Big 12 Conference-a league covering seven states and encompassing over 40 million people (2000 U.S. census).

The conference pays particular attention to sportsmanship and a level field of play for the 4,500-plus student-athletes in 21 sports. Those competing and coaching in the Big 12 seek maximum training on the fields and courts as well as in the classroom and community.

Along with this competitive excellence, scholarship has been and continues to be a point of emphasis with the Big 12. There are 19 academic honor teams (first and second units), and the semiannual Commissioner's Honor Roll salutes student-athletes who have achieved 3.0 averages (4.0 grading scale) in the semester previous to the announcement. Annually, as many as 50-60 student-athletes from the league make these teams with perfect 4.0 grade point averages.

Each member institution also nominates a male or female student-athlete for one of the prestigious Big 12 Conference postgraduate scholarships at the end of the academic year. A total of 100-plus (88 in the first seven years of the program) aspiring scholars have received more then $500,000 in postgraduate financial aid during the first eight years of the program.

Sportsmanship has been an item high on the Big 12 agenda since Commissioner Kevin L. Weiberg became the league's third chief executive in Dec., 1998. The Conference developed and has maintained a Sportsmanship Statement which applies to all student-athletes, coaches and administrators throughout the league. The Big 12 also honors one male and female student-athlete each year as Big 12 Sportspersons of the Year.

The level playing field for participants in all Big 12 sports also figures into competitive equity. This does not deny the potential for national team or individual champions in any sport but seeks to provide an avenue in which up-and-coming student-athletes can display their top individual talents within the framework of Conference and NCAA sports' guidelines.

Big 12 schools and the Conference office seek to provide national-class facilities for all levels of league championships, postseason tournaments and NCAA venues. They utilize Big 12 campus sites as well as buildings such as Kansas City's Kemper Arena, Arrowhead Stadium and Municipal Auditorium, Houston's Reliant Stadium, San Antonio's Alamodome, St. Louis' Edward Jones Dome, Irving's Texas Stadium, Oklahoma City's SBC Bricktown Ballpark, The Ballpark in Arlington, Dallas' American Airlines Center, and Reunion Arena, among others. The Conference also has agreements with eight bowl entities for 2003-04-the Bowl Championship Series, SBC Cotton, Pacific Life Holiday, MasterCard Alamo, MainStay Independence, EV1.net Houston, PlainsCapital Fort Worth, and Mazda Tangerine Bowls.

Not only has the Big 12 fostered a spirit of conviviality and excitement with newfound rivalries, but the Conference organization has given rise to several related, cooperative ventures-Big 12 cities, libraries, campus security organizations, Chambers of Commerce, tourism/visitors' bureaus, information exchanges, sports medicine associations, and campus public information offices, among others.

The solid athletics' traditions at the 12 schools are evident as student-athletes/alumni have claimed more than 900 NCAA crowns and over 170 national team championships through July, 2004. Commissioner Weiberg, acting in accord with the Big 12 Board of Directors, first contracted most major championship sites and dates through the 2004-05 academic year in 1999. The Big 12 continued the process of determining future championships' dates and sites-potentially through the 2007-08 academic (and beyond) years during the 2003-04 academic year.

The league office also has negotiated critical media (television/radio/print) contracts and ongoing bowl agreements. Added in 2002-03 were agreements with TBS Superstation to carry Big 12 football games in prime time slots, with College Sports Television (CSTV) for more regional and national telecasts, and expanded video streaming opportunities for several Olympic sports within the league with Fox Sports Net and FoxSports.com.

Almost six million fans who attended championships or tournaments in Big 12 postseason activity since 1996 can attest that they are viewing some of the nation's finest student-athletes, coaches and officials. Through television financial agreements, high levels of competition, postseason play, football bowl, and NCAA invitations, the Big 12 has distributed over $550 million to its members since the 1996-97 fiscal year.

Commissioners of the conference have included Steve Hatchell from Mar., 1995-May, 1998, Dave Martin (interim) from May-Dec., 1998, and Kevin L. Weiberg from Dec., 1998-present.