After nine seasons with the Purdue North Central basketball program, including the past five as the head coach, Kristofer Schnatz has accepted the position of Director of Athletics for Fredericksburg Academy in Fredericksburg, VA.

"This is an exciting opportunity and I am looking forward to working with all the students at the Academy" said Schnatz.

Founded in 1992, Fredericksburg Academy is a college preparatory school that provides a strong liberal arts education for students K - 12th grade. The Academy fields 24 teams: soccer, field hockey, cross-country, swimming, basketball, dance team, tennis, golf, and lacrosse.   

Schnatz will bring over 12 years of coaching, administrative and business management experience to Academy and will lead them through a significant period of growth.

"I will miss coaching at the collegiate level, but this is a unique professional opportunity" said Coach Schnatz. "I value the time that I have spent here at PNC" he added.

Schnatz began his collegiate coaching career in 2003 as a volunteer assistant coach under then head coach Grayling Gordon. Schnatz then spent four years as an assistant before accepting the promotion to head coach following the 2006-07 season.

"After taking over this basketball team in the summer of 2007 I was focused on one thing: building a program" said Schnatz. "I wanted this to be more than just a team; our young men needed to commit to everything associated with being a student-athlete at the collegiate level" he added.

Schnatz challenged his student-athletes on and off the court and urged his young men to become well-rounded students by joining student government, university leadership programs and clubs on campus while participating in community service events. 

"Our staff always encouraged our student-athletes to become a positive role model on campus and in the community to further enhance their experience at PNC," said Schnatz. "I believe we reached this goal and our program has grown tremendously over the past five years. I'm proud to have been a part of this program and I wish PNC the best of luck in the future," added Schnatz.

"Kris has made a tremendous impact within and beyond our campus community," said John Weber, PNC's Director of Athletics. "He was always a team player and a pleasure to work with. We will miss him immensely but know he will find future success in this next chapter of his life."

Weber indicated a search for a new coach will begin immediately with the hopes of announcing a new coach sometime in May. 

"Kris has left the program with a sound foundation with a strong returning cast and solid recruiting class," said Weber. "Although this is a part-time position, we expect significant interest in this opportunity."