Kansas University senior staffer Jay Hinrichs will take over as athletic director at Northern Colorado University Aug. 30.

Hinrichs, KU’s associate AD for facilities planning, was named UNC’s new athletic boss Monday.

“Jay Hinrichs brings significant energy, enthusiasm and experience to UNC’s intercollegiate athletics endeavors,” UNC President Kay Norton said. “He is a leader who will not only help us meet the challenges of the coming year, but also will also create an environment that will allow our student-athletes to succeed in the classroom and in competition.”

Hinrichs, 46, also has directed KU’s Williams Fund, the athletic department’s donor organization. Hinrichs also has been assistant general manager and later vice president for ballpark operations and development for the Kansas City Royals.

“It’s a very exciting challenge,” Hinrichs told a booster group at Coors Field. “Taking a school from Division Two to Division One is a great opportunity.”

Hinrichs beat out UNC associate AD Mark Harlan and former Utah State AD Rance Pugmire in the Greeley, Colo., school’s search to replace Jim Fallis, who became AD at Northern Arizona University in June.

Hinrichs will oversee UNC’s 16-sport program, which has an annual budget of about $4.5 million. UNC is starting the third year of a five-year NCAA reclassification process from Division Two to Division One, including Div. I-AA in football.

“I think we can make a lot of impact if we do things slowly and do things the right way and try to make an immediate impact for UNC athletics,” Hinrichs said.

According to the Greeley (Colo.) Tribune, Hinrichs will be paid a salary comparable to Fallis, who earned $90,700 annually. Hinrichs had been earning $85,000 a year at Kansas.

One of Hinrichs’ early orders of business is to look into the possibility of joining the Big Sky Conference. Northern Colorado became an original member of the football-only Great West Football Conference on Feb. 25, but the Big Sky has expressed interest in considering the university in its next expansion.

“Any information regarding a conference as we move forward needs to be digested quickly because we have to be pro active in the process,” Hinrichs said. “Remember, there are a lot of schools looking for conferences at this point in time.”