Bellarmine University is expected to announce Tuesday that its athletic department will make the jump to NCAA Division I and join the Atlantic Sun Conference, sources confirmed to the Courier Journal.

The university has called an 11:30 a.m. Tuesday press conference on campus to make a "significant announcement" about its athletic department. That announcement is to be broadcast live via ESPN Plus (the network's digital streaming service).

Bellarmine has for months been exploring a move to Division I and the Atlantic Sun. It competes in Division II in the Great Lakes Valley Conference in all of its 22 sports except men's lacrosse, which already competes in Division I.

This latest exploration, while not the first time Bellarmine has considered the possibility of a move to Division I, was part of a planned university-wide growth effort that has continued under President Susan Donovan. The school recently completed a $100 million capital campaign.

Related:How Bellarmine basketball can reach the NCAA Tournament in next 5 years

"The concerns that anyone had were the same concerns that I would have," Donovan said recently about the possible move to Division I. "Are you going to change the educational experience for our student-athletes? Is it going to take over the university? Is it going to be done right? Are there going to be ethical standards? Are there going to be academic standards? I think we can do all those."

Bellarmine's announcement that it has accepted an invitation from the Atlantic Sun would only be the first official step in a lengthy process for the university to attain full Division I membership.

The NCAA's process for reclassifying from Division II to Division I includes a four-year transitional period, during which a school can compete at the highest level but not be eligible for postseason play.

Representatives from the Atlantic Sun Conference visited Bellarmine's campus in April to discuss the Knights' potential addition.

The Atlantic Sun Conference has nine full-time members. Florida Gulf Coast University, Jacksonville University, Kennesaw State University, Lipscomb University, the New Jersey Institute of Technology, Liberty University, the University of North Alabama, the University of North Florida and Stetson University.

Also:How Bellarmine became the biggest little program in college basketball

The conference sponsors a championship in 19 sports but not football. The list includes baseball, softball, women's beach volleyball and indoor volleyball, men's and women's basketball, men's and women's golf, men's and women's tennis, men's and women's cross country, men's and women's soccer, men's and women's indoor and outdoor track and field and women's lacrosse.

Bellarmine's most successful and best-known program is men's basketball, which won an NCAA Division II national championship in 2011.

Donovan detailed recently to the Courier Journal a vision to make Bellarmine more than a "best-kept secret" in Louisville.

"It’s great to be a little jewel on the hill," she said, "but other people need to know about it."

Previously:Bellarmine president hopes to reveal Louisville's 'best-kept secret' in Division I push

Gentry Estes: 502-582-4205; gestes@courierjournal.com; Twitter: @Gentry_Estes. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: courier-journal.com/gentrye.