The school took a major step toward fixing that issue by naming Dr. Donald Reed as the Panthers new athletic director to end an 11-month search.

Reed comes to Prairie View after a 13-year stint at the University of Buffalo, where he had served as the senior associate athletic director for athletic & academic performance since 2010.

His expertise in the area of academics will be critical to an athletic department that saw APR sanctions placed on both the football and women’s basketball programs last month for failing to meet minimum standards.

Reed takes over a Prairie View athletic department that has 18 sports and a $17 million operating budget.

“Pete stepped in as interim athletic director and has ably led the department for the past eleven months,” PVAMU President Ruth Simmons said in a statement.