Northwest Missouri State University is a state university in Maryville, Missouri. Founded in 1905 as a teachers college, it is a university offering undergraduate and graduate classes. The campus, based on the design for Forest Park (Forest Park (St. Louis)) at the 1904 St. Louis Worlds Fair, is the official Missouri State Arboretum. The school is governed by a state-appointed Board of Regents (Board of Governors) and headed by President Dr. John Jasinski. Northwest competes in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (Division II) and Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic Association for mens and womens sports. The mascot is a Bearcat. The Bearcats have won three NCAA Division II football national championships (1998, 1999, and 2009) and finished as runner-up (2005, 2006, 2007, and 2008) in American football.