Top of Iowa Conference

The Top of Iowa Conference is a high school athletic conference in north central Iowa. The schools range in size from 1A (the smallest classification in Iowa) to 3A (the second largest). With the addition of Algona Bishop Garrigan, Eagle Grove, and North Union the conference has increased to 11 teams. Prior to those three joining, the 8 members of the conference included Belmond-Klemme, Forest City, Garner-Hayfield/Ventura, Lake Mills, Mason City Newman, North Iowa (Buffalo Center), Osage, and West Hancock (Britt).

Beginning in 2015-16, the North Iowa Conference and the Corn Bowl Conference will be combining into on super conference with two divisions. The new Top of Iowa Conference - West will include Eagle Grove, Belmond-Klemme, Garner-Hayfield-Ventura, West Hancock, Forest City, Lake Mills, North Iowa, Algona Bishop Garrigan, and North Union. The Top of Iowa Conference - East will include Osage, Mason City Newman, West Fork, North Butler, Central Springs, Northwood-Kensett, Rockford, Saint Ansgar, and Nashua-Plainfield.

In 2002, Northwood-Kensett High School left the conference for the Corn Bowl Conference. Newman Catholic High School, formerly of the Iowa Star Conference, replaced them. 9 of the 11 schools are public, with the exception being Mason City Newman and Algona Bishop Garrigan.

On Monday, November 26, 2012, the North Iowa Conference superintendents voted 8-0 to have North Union and Bishop Garrigan join the league, moving the number of league members to 10. Eagle Grove was also approved. All three schools became NIC members in 2014. Clarion-Goldfield-Dows has been involved in discussions with the NIC but has not acted on pursuing it at this time.

Reorganization and whole grade sharing have changed the landscape of the NIC over the years. Belmond and Klemme began whole grade sharing in the early 1990s before reorganizing. West Hancock is made up of the former Britt and Kanawha districts. Garner-Hayfield and Ventura began a two-way whole grade sharing agreement in 2012 that includes a shared high school at Garner and a shared middle school at Ventura. Garner-Hayfield and Venture will officially be consolidating in 2015. Forest City and Woden-Crystal Lake have reorganized in recent years. One of the new members set to join in 2014, North Union, is made up of the old North Kossuth, Sentral Fenton, and Armstrong-Ringsted districts.