TULSA, Okla. -- Completing a nine-month search that began with 41 potential host communities, the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) announces today that Olathe, Kan., has been selected as the new home of the NAIA National Office.    The NAIA's Relocation Committee cited the fit between the mission of the organization and that of Olathe, a city of nearly 100,000 located on the southwestern edge of the Kansas City metropolitan area. The need for a new home for the NAIA was spurred by the organization's commitment to sportsmanship and character development through its new Champions of Character initiative. Olathe, which belongs to an association of 93 municipalities known as "Cities of Character", had a character council in place prior to the NAIA's interest.    "While there were other communities that would have served the NAIA well, Olathe showed incredible promise as a partner in advancing our character initiative among NAIA institutions and their respective communities," said NAIA President and CEO Steve Baker. "Olathe is more in tune with the needs of our organization and committed to education and character development. We were pleased with the bids from Fort Wayne (Ind.) and O'Fallon (Mo.) and the commitment to character in those communities, but the overall consensus was that Olathe would be the best place for us to be.    "Through our local Olathe character initiative and national championships, we will bring great value to the Olathe community, a necessity as we see this as a true, long-term partnership."    "We are excited about what the NAIA brings to our community, both in terms of its economic impact and its programming," said Frank Taylor, President of the Olathe Chamber of Commerce.  "We look forward to participating in the Champions of Character program and to the strong, positive effect the NAIA's character initiatives will have in Olathe within the business community and the School District.  We especially appreciate the high degree of integrity with which the NAIA Relocation Committee and staff have conducted their search process, and we anticipate an Olathe partnership with the NAIA for many years to come."    In the summer of 2001, the NAIA plans to move its national office and staff into temporary office space in Olathe provided by Honeywell Corporation, which will be at Honeywell's headquarters. A permanent NAIA National Office and Character Center may be ready for groundbreaking as early as May with construction time estimated at 18 months. The site at Cedar Creek in Olathe will house the NAIA National Office with space for 30 employees and will incorporate the NAIA Character in Sport Center. The site will consist of two buildings, a 12,000-square foot office and a 20,000-square foot Character Center. A suitable site will be determined later for the third piece, an interactive sport museum and NAIA Hall of Fame.    In addition to the National Office, the NAIA has agreed to conduct at least one national championship in the Olathe/Kansas City area in each of its sports seasons of fall, winter and spring. The NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship, which was held in Kansas City from 1937-93, is under consideration with Municipal Auditorium in downtown Kansas City as a potential site.    Olathe's bid was produced by a steering committee that consisted of representatives from the The City of Olathe, NAIA member institution MidAmerica Nazarene University, the State of Kansas, Olathe Area Chamber of Commerce, the Olathe School District, Ashgrove Cement Company and the Sunderland Foundation, the Kansas City Sports Commission, and the Kansas City Area Development Council.    To spearhead a capital campaign for the new facility and to assist in the selection of a suitable host community, the NAIA hired DataFund Services of Springfield, Mo. Partners and Associates, Inc., a real estate development firm based in Knoxville, Tenn., and an NAIA corporate partner, assessed the facility needs of the new office and provided the preliminary design concept for prospective cities.    Included in the Relocation Committee were 10 individuals from NAIA member institutions or conferences: Dr. William Crouch, President of Georgetown College (Ky.); Dr. Barry Dorsey, President of the University of Rio Grande (Ohio); Dr. G. Blair Dowden, President of Huntington College (Ind.); Dr. Greg Feris, Athletics Director of Wayland Baptist University (Texas); Sister Grace Mary Flickinger, Faculty Athletics Representative of Xavier University of Louisiana; Larry Lady, Commissioner of the Heart of America Athletic Conference; Dr. Joe Lee, President of Tougaloo College (Miss.); Dr. Charles Lyons, President of the University of Maine at Fort Kent; Dr. Charles Schlimpert, President of Concordia University (Ore.); Dr. Christopher Thomforde, former President of Bethany College (Kan.). In addition, Ronald Watkins, President of Partners and Associates, was a member of the committee, and David Spilman, President of DataFund Services, contributed his time and expertise.    Tulsa, Okla., has served as the home of the NAIA national headquarters since 1993. From 1957-93, the office was located in Kansas City, Mo., and, prior to that, it was housed on the campus of Pepperdine College in Los Angeles. The NAIA traces its roots to 1937 and its first men's basketball tournament, which spawned the National Association of Intercollegiate Basketball and, in 1952, the NAIA.    Founded as a small-college basketball tournament in 1937, the NAIA is a leader in the world of intercollegiate athletics. The NAIA was the first intercollegiate organization to offer athletic opportunities to all student-athletes, regardless of race or ethnic background, and the first intercollegiate organization to conduct championships for both men and women. The NAIA currently offers 23 separate championships in 13 sports, and has 328 colleges and universities in 44 states and three Canadian provinces as member institutions.