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Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association

The Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (originally the Colored Intercollegiate Athletic Association — CIAA) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level, whose member institutions consist entirely of historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs).[1]

The thirteen member institutions reside primarily along the central portion of the East Coast of the United States, in the states of Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina. Since a majority of the members are in North Carolina, the CIAA moved its headquarters to Charlotte, North Carolina from Hampton, Virginia in August 2015.[2]

The CIAA sponsors 14 annual championships and divides into north and south divisions for some sports. The most notable CIAA sponsored championship is the CIAA Basketball Tournament having become one of the largest college basketball events in the nation.[3]

History

Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association
150km
100miles
Bowie State
Bluefield State
Winston-Salem State
Virginia Union
Virginia State
St. Augustine's
Shaw
Livingstone
Lincoln
Johnson C. Smith
Fayetteville State
Elizabeth City State
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Claflin
  
Location of CIAA members: current, north division current, south division

The CIAA, founded on the campus of Hampton Institute (now Hampton University) in 1912, is the oldest African-American athletic conference in the United States. It was originally known as the Colored Intercollegiate Athletic Association and adopted its current name in December 1950. The conference composes predominantly of historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) spanning the east coast from Pennsylvania to South Carolina.[citation needed]

Founding leaders were Allen Washington and Charles H. Williams of Hampton Institute (now Hampton University); Ernest J. Marshall of Howard University; George Johnson of Lincoln University (PA); W. E. Atkins, Charles Frazier, and H. P. Hargrave of Shaw University; and J. W. Barco and J. W. Pierce of Virginia Union University.[4]

Football experiences a major resurgence after going through a period of decline at several member universities. Football was absent from the campus of Saint Augustine's University for nearly three decades, before the administration reinstated it in 2002. Shaw University then brought back its football program in 2003, following a hiatus of 24 years.[5]

Lincoln University, a charter member, added varsity football in 2008 and was readmitted to the CIAA after nearly three decades in Division III. Chowan University joined the CIAA in 2008 for football only. On October 14, 2008, the CIAA Board of Directors admitted Chowan as a full member effective July 1, 2009, the first non-HBCU to play in the conference.[6]

On August 27, 2012, the CIAA announced the appointment of Jacqie Carpenter, the first African-American female commissioner to hold the position.[7]

In 2014, a collection of records, including the original 1912 documents leading to the formation of the CIAA and meeting minutes from 1913 to 1922, were sold at auction after being discovered in a storage locker. The lot sold for $11,500 to an unnamed bidder.[8]

On May 22, 2018, Chowan University announced its athletic department will realign with the Conference Carolinas as a full member while maintaining an associate relationship with the CIAA for both football and women's bowling.[9]

Chronological timeline

Member schools

Current members

The CIAA currently has 13 full members, seven are public schools and six are private schools:

Notes
  1. ^ Bluefield State left the CIAA after the 1954–55 school year before re-joining in the 2023–24 school year.
  2. ^ Lincoln (Pa.) left the CIAA after the 1959–60 school year before re-joining in the 2008–09 school year.
  3. ^ Winston-Salem State left the CIAA after the 2005–06 school year to join the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, before re-joining in the 2010–11 school year.

Former members

The CIAA had 12 former full members, all but 5 were public schools:

Notes
  1. ^ Delaware State is officially defined as a "privately governed, state-assisted" institution. This status is similar to that of New York State's statutory colleges, mostly housed at Cornell University, or members of Pennsylvania's Commonwealth System of Higher Education.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Currently an NCAA Division I athletic conference.
  3. ^ UMES has a Princess Anne mailing address, but is physically located in unincorporated Somerset County.
  4. ^ North Carolina Central previously withdrew from the CIAA from 1970–71 to 1979–80.
  5. ^ Saint Paul's discontinued its athletic program after the 2010–11 school year, before the school closed in 2013.

Former associate members

The CIAA had one former associate member, which was also a private school:

Notes
  1. ^ Chowan was a full member of the CIAA from 2009–10 to 2018–19, before joining the Conference Carolinas (CC); but had prior to that competed for football only during the 2008 fall season (2008–09 school year).

Membership timeline

Claflin UniversityChowan UniversityBowie State UniversityNorfolk State UniversityElizabeth City State UniversityUniversity of Maryland Eastern ShoreFayetteville State UniversityWinston Salem State UniversityDelaware State UniversityWest Virginia State UniversitySt. Augustine's University (North Carolina)Bluefield State CollegeLivingstone CollegeMorgan State UniversityNorth Carolina Central UniversityJohnson C. Smith UniversityNorth Carolina A%26T State UniversitySaint Paul's College (Virginia)Virginia University of LynchburgVirginia State UniversityVirginia Union UniversityShaw UniversityLincoln University (Pennsylvania)Howard UniversityHampton University

 Full member (all sports)  Full member (non-football)  Associate member (football-only)  Associate member (sport) 

Sports

Men's sponsored sports by school

Women's sponsored sports by school

Other sponsored sports by school

  1. ^ Saint Augustine's will not be fielding a football team in 2024 due to financial issues.[10]
  2. ^ Joining Conference Carolinas as an associate member and will become part of the new "South Atlantic Conference Carolinas" women's wrestling league in 2023–24.

Conference facilities

CIAA Basketball Tournament

The CIAA is the first NCAA Division II conference to have its tournament televised as part of Championship Week on ESPN. Over 100,000 fans and spectators are in attendance annually and it has become one of the largest college basketball events in the nation. During the week of the tournament, there are many high-profile social and celebratory events associated with the event.[11][12] The last day of the tournament is known as "Super Saturday" in which the men's and women's tournament champions are crowned. For 15 years, the tournament had an annual $55 million economic impact on Charlotte, North Carolina and was consistently the largest event held in the city every year.[13] The conference was offered better incentives to move it to Baltimore, Maryland, in 2021,[14][15] where it will remain at least through 2025.[16]

CIAA cheerleading

One of the signature events of "Super Saturday" at the CIAA Basketball Tournament is the Cheer Exhibition. At the exhibition, CIAA cheer squads showcase elaborate routines to entertain spectators and display their talents.[19][20] Every cheerleading team in the CIAA is a "Stomp-N-Shake" squad which is a unique style of cheer that is most common among historically Black colleges and schools located in the East Coast region.

The CIAA is one of the only conferences in the country that has an annual All-Conference Cheerleading Team. The All-Conference Cheerleading Team is a recognition bestowed on select cheerleaders in the conference that exemplify the epitome of school spirit, leadership, athleticism, and academic excellence.[21]

References

  1. ^ "About the CIAA".
  2. ^ Burkins, Glenn (March 3, 2014). "CIAA headquarters will move to Charlotte; tournament stays 6 more years". Qcitymetro.com. Archived from the original on September 16, 2015. Retrieved August 4, 2015.
  3. ^ "'We go perfect together': CIAA basketball tournament is coming to Baltimore, bringing spirit and tourism with it". February 21, 2022.
  4. ^ Raymond Schmidt, Shaping College Football: The Transformation of an American Sport, 1919–1930 (Syracuse University Press, 2007) p133
  5. ^ "NCCU Eagles Fan Forum!-Shaw and St. Augustine's Football 2002". August 16, 2002.
  6. ^ "CIAA votes to add Chowan as a full member for 2009 - Restoration NewsMedia". October 15, 2008.
  7. ^ "Carpenter Named New CIAA Commissioner". Abclocal.go.com. August 27, 2012. Retrieved August 27, 2012.[dead link]
  8. ^ "Saunders: This CIAA treasure trove fails to bring in big money at auction". February 26, 2014. Archived from the original on March 8, 2014. Retrieved February 26, 2014.
  9. ^ "Chowan Announces Conference Realignment". gocuhawks.com. May 22, 2018. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
  10. ^ Gaither, Steven (April 4, 2024). "HBCU football program suspended as school fights for survival". HBCU Gameday. Retrieved April 4, 2024.
  11. ^ "2007 CIAA Tournament Week is Largest Ever". CIAA. April 2, 2007. Archived from the original on September 22, 2015. Retrieved August 4, 2015.
  12. ^ Marusakjmarusak, Joe (February 23, 2016). "CIAA basketball tournament declared an 'extraordinary event'". The Charlotte Observer. Retrieved September 1, 2016.
  13. ^ "CIAA brings big business to uptown Charlotte". February 22, 2016. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved February 24, 2016.
  14. ^ "CIAA tournament to leave Charlotte for Baltimore in 2021". WBTV.com. January 7, 2019. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
  15. ^ "75th CIAA tournament to be 15th, final year in Charlotte". WSOCTV.com. January 10, 2020. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
  16. ^ "CIAA extends contract with Baltimore to host basketball tournament through 2025". WBAL-TV. June 1, 2022. Retrieved June 1, 2022.
  17. ^ "All-Time CIAA Men's Basketball Champions". Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
  18. ^ "CIAA Basketball Tournament Site History". Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
  19. ^ "CIAA Basketball Tournament Preview". Charlotte's got a lot. Archived from the original on September 21, 2017. Retrieved October 25, 2017.
  20. ^ "SAU BlueChips Perform Well At CIAA Cheerleading Competition On Super Saturday". Saint Augustine's University. March 1, 2015. Archived from the original on September 20, 2017. Retrieved October 25, 2017.
  21. ^ "2018–19 All-CIAA Cheerleading Team". CIAA. January 11, 2019. Retrieved December 1, 2019.

External links