Colonial States Athletic Conference

The Colonial States Athletic Conference was an NCAA Division III collegiate athletic conference in the Mid-Atlantic United States that existed from 1992 to 2023. There were nine full member institutions when the conference. The conference's membership, as with most Middle Atlantic conferences, was shaken as a result of the formation of the Landmark Conference and its ensuing domino effect. The conference, founded in 1992 as the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference, changed its name in 2008.
The CSAC experienced another shakeup in 2018 when five members departed the conference to join with two other institutions to form a new Division III conference that eventually became the Atlantic East Conference. In July 2018, the CSAC added two new members. The conference added its 10th member on July 1, 2019, and its 11th on the same day in 2020, but was reduced to 10 members when on June 18, 2021, Centenary University published its move to Atlantic East, starting July 1 that year, but its lacrosse teams would start competing in their new conference's 2022 season.
On December 19, 2022, the United East Conference and the Colonial States Athletic Conference announced their intent to merge beginning with the 2023–24 academic year. The conference officially ceased to exist when its ten remaining members were absorbed by the United East Conference on July 1, 2023.

WWW Official Site 𝕏 csacsports

History

Chronological timeline

1991 – On November 4, 1991, the CSAC was founded as the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference. Charter members included Alvernia College, Beaver College, Cabrini College, Cedar Crest College, Eastern University, Gwynedd-Mercy College, Immaculata University, Marywood University, College Misericordia, and Rosemont College, beginning the 1992–93 academic year.
1992 – Neumann College joined the PAC alongside the other 10 charter members in September 1992.
1993 – On April 28, 1993, the PAC was granted affiliate membership within the National Collegiate Athletic Association in the 1993–94 academic year.
1993 – Allentown College joined the PAC in the 1993–94 academic year.
1995 – The PAC had achieved full membership within the NCAA Division III ranks in the 1995–96 academic year.
1997 – DeSales left the PAC to join the Middle Atlantic Conferences after the 1996–97 academic year.
1997 – Wesley College joined the PAC in the 1997–98 academic year.
2001 – Shenandoah University and Villa Julie College joined the PAC as associate members for men's lacrosse in the 2002 spring season.
2006 – Stevenson left the PAC as an associate member for men's lacrosse after the 2006 spring season.
2007 – Arcadia and Wesley left the PAC to join the Middle Atlantic Conferences after the 2006–07 academic year.
2007 – Centenary College of New Jersey and the College of Notre Dame of Maryland joined the PAC in the 2007–08 academic year.
2008 – Alvernia, Eastern, and Misericordia left the PAC to join the Middle Atlantic Conferences after the 2007–08 academic year.
2008 – The PAC was re-branded as the Colonial States Athletic Conference, beginning the 2008–09 academic year.
2008 – Baptist Bible College, Keystone College and Philadelphia Biblical University joined the CSAC in the 2008–09 academic year.
2012 – Shenandoah left the CSAC as an associate member for men's lacrosse after the 2012 spring season.
2015 – Franciscan University of Steubenville and Pennsylvania State University at Erie, The Behrend College joined the CSAC as associate members for men's and women's indoor and outdoor track & field in the 2016 spring season.
2018 – Cabrini, Gwynedd Mercy, Immaculata, Marywood, and Neumann left the CSAC to join the newly-formed Atlantic East Conference after the 2017–18 academic year.
2018 – Bryn Athyn College and Wilson College joined the CSAC in the 2018–19 academic year.
2018 – Alfred State College joined the CSAC as an associate member for men's and women's indoor and outdoor track & field in the 2019 spring season.
2018 – Kean University, Montclair State University, and Stockton University joined the CSAC as associate members for men's lacrosse in the 2019 spring season.
2018 – The University of Valley Forge joined the CSAC as an associate member for baseball in the 2019 spring season.
2019
* Franciscan left the CSAC as an associate member for men's and women's indoor and outdoor track & field after the 2019 spring season.
* The College of Saint Elizabeth joined the CSAC in the 2019–20 academic year.
* Lancaster Bible College joined the CSAC as an associate member for field hockey in the 2019 fall season.
2020
* Valley Forge would later upgrade to join the CSAC for all sports in the 2020–21 academic year.
* Gallaudet University joined the CSAC as an associate member for men's and women's indoor and outdoor track & field in the 2021 spring season.
2021
* Centenary left the CSAC to join Atlantic East Conference after the 2020–21 academic year; although its field hockey and women's lacrosse teams would remain in the CSAC as associate members until the 2022 spring season.
* Pratt Institute joined the CSAC as an associate member for men's volleyball in the 2022 spring season.
2022
* The CSAC and the United East Conference announced their intent to merge, beginning in the fall 2023 season.
* Lancaster Bible added men's volleyball to its CSAC membership in the 2023 spring season.
2023
* Notre Dame of Maryland would add men's sports for the 2023–24 academic year.
* The CSAC and United East officially announced that the merged conference would retain the United East name, officially ending the CSAC on July 1, 2023.

Member schools

Final members

The CSAC had ten final full members, all were private schools:

Institution	Location	Founded	Affiliation	Enrollment	Nickname	Joined	Left	Current conference
Bryn Athyn College	Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania	1877	New Church	303	Lions	2018	2023	United East (UEC)
Cairn University	Langhorne, Pennsylvania	1913	Nondenominational	2,200	Highlanders	2008	2023	United East (UEC)
Cedar Crest College	Allentown, Pennsylvania	1867	United Church of Christ	1,820	Falcons	1992	2023	United East (UEC)
Clarks Summit University	Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania	1932	Baptist	1,142	Defenders	2008	2023	United East (UEC)
Keystone College	La Plume, Pennsylvania	1868	Nonsectarian	1,600	Giants	2008	2023	United East (UEC)
Notre Dame of Maryland University	Baltimore, Maryland	1873	Catholic	3,824	Gators	2007	2023	United East (UEC)
Rosemont College	Rosemont, Pennsylvania	1922	Catholic	903	Ravens	1992	2023	United East (UEC)
Saint Elizabeth University	Morristown, New Jersey	1899	Catholic	1,200	Eagles	2019	2023	United East (UEC)
	Phoenixville, Pennsylvania	1939	Assemblies of God	742	Patriots	2020	2023	United East (UEC)
Wilson College	Chambersburg, Pennsylvania	1869	Presbyterian	1,098	Phoenix	2018	2023	United East (UEC)

;Notes:

Final affiliate members

The CSAC had nine affiliate members when it dissolved:

Institution	Location	Founded	Affiliation	Enrollment	Nickname	Joined	Primary conference	CSAC sport
Alfred State College	Alfred, New York	1908	Public	3,737	Pioneers	2018–19	Allegheny Mountain (AMCC)	men's outdoor track and field women's outdoor track and field
Nazarene College">Church of the Nazarene">Nazarene College	Quincy, Massachusetts	1900	Nazarene	772	Lions	2022–23	North Atlantic (NAC)	men's lacrosse
Gallaudet University	Washington, D.C.	1864	Quasigovernmental	1,138	Bison	2020–21	United East (UEC)	men's outdoor track and field women's outdoor track and field
Lancaster Bible College	Lancaster, Pennsylvania	1933	Nondenominational	1,499	Chargers	2019–20	United East (UEC)	field hockey
Lancaster Bible College	Lancaster, Pennsylvania	1933	Nondenominational	1,499	Chargers	2022–23	United East (UEC)	men's volleyball
Mitchell College	New London, Connecticut	1938	Nonsectarian	572	Mariners	2022–23	Great Northeast (GNAC)	men's lacrosse
New England College	Henniker, New Hampshire	1946	Nonsectarian	4,327	Pilgrims	2022–23	Great Northeast (GNAC)	men's lacrosse
Penn State–Behrend	Erie, Pennsylvania	1948	State-related	4,700	Lions	2015–16	Allegheny Mountain (AMCC)	men's outdoor track and field women's outdoor track and field
Pratt Institute	Brooklyn, New York	1887	Private	5,137	Cannoneers	2021–22	Coast to Coast (C2C)	men's volleyball
Sweet Briar College	Sweet Briar, Virginia	1901	Private	353	Vixens	2021–22	Old Dominion (ODAC)	field hockey women's lacrosse

;Notes:

Former members

The CSAC had 12 former full members, all were private schools:

Institution	Location	Founded	Affiliation	Enrollment	Nickname	Joined	Left	Current conference
Alvernia University	Reading, Pennsylvania	1958	Catholic	2,900	Crusaders	1992–93	2007–08	MAC Commonwealth Conference\|Commonwealth]
Arcadia University	Glenside, Pennsylvania	1853	Presbyterian	4,021	Knights	1992–93	2006–07	MAC Freedom Conference\|Freedom]
Cabrini University	Radnor Township, [Delaware County, Pennsylvania\|Radnor, Pennsylvania]	1957	Catholic	1,759	Cavaliers	1992–93	2017–18	Atlantic East (AEC)
Centenary University	Hackettstown, New Jersey	1867	United Methodist	1,597	Cyclones	2007–08	2020–21	Atlantic East (AEC)
DeSales University	Center Valley, Pennsylvania	1965	Catholic	2,499	Bulldogs	1993–94	1996–97	MAC Freedom
Eastern University	St. Davids, Pennsylvania	1925	Baptist Churches USA\|Baptist]	5,235	Eagles	1992–93	2007–08	MAC Commonwealth
Gwynedd Mercy University	Gwynedd Valley, Pennsylvania	1948	Catholic	2,017	Griffins	1992–93	2017–18	Atlantic East (AEC)
Immaculata University	Immaculata, Pennsylvania	1940	Catholic	1,043	Mighty Macs	1992–93	2017–18	Atlantic East (AEC)
Marywood University	Scranton, Pennsylvania	1915	Catholic	2,470	Pacers	1992–93	2017–18	Atlantic East (AEC)
Misericordia University	Dallas, Pennsylvania	1924	Catholic	2,355	Cougars	1992–93	2007–08	MAC Freedom
Neumann University	Aston, Pennsylvania	1965	Catholic	3,000	Knights	1992–93	2017–18	Atlantic East (AEC)
Wesley College	Dover, Delaware	1873	United Methodist	2,320	Wolverines	1997–98	2006–07	N/A

;Notes:

Former affiliate members

The CSAC had seven former affiliate members, four were private and three were public schools:
;Notes:

Membership timeline

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Period = from:1992 till:2025
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Colors =
id:barcolor value:rgb

id:line value:black

id:bg value:white
id:Full value:rgb # Use this color to denote a team that is a member in all sports
id:FullxF value:rgb # Use this color to denote a team that is a member in all sports except for football
id:AssocF value:rgb # Use this color to denote a team that is a member for football only
id:AssocOS value:rgb # Use this color to denote a team that is a member in some sports, but not all
id:OtherC1 value:rgb # Use this color to denote a team that has moved to another conference
id:OtherC2 value:rgb # Use this color to denote a team that has moved to another conference where OtherC1 has already been used, to distinguish the two
PlotData=
width:15 textcolor:black shift: anchor:from fontsize:s
bar:1 color:FullxF from:1992 till:2008 text:Alvernia
bar:1 color:OtherC1 from:2008 till:end text:MAC-C
bar:2 color:FullxF from:1992 till:2007 text:Arcadia
bar:2 color:OtherC1 from:2007 till:2008 text:MAC-F
bar:2 shift: color:OtherC2 from:2008 till:2020 text:MAC-C
bar:2 color:OtherC1 from:2020 till:end text:MAC-F
bar:3 color:FullxF from:1992 till:2018 text:Cabrini
bar:3 color:OtherC1 from:2018 till:2024 text:AEC, then acquired
bar:4 color:FullxF from:1992 till:2023 text:Cedar Crest
bar:4 color:OtherC1 from:2023 till:end text:UEC
bar:5 color:FullxF from:1992 till:2008 text:Eastern (Pa.)
bar:5 color:OtherC1 from:2008 till:2020 text:MAC-F
bar:5 color:OtherC2 from:2020 till:end text:MAC-F
bar:6 color:FullxF from:1992 till:2018 text:Gwynedd Mercy
bar:6 color:OtherC1 from:2018 till:end text:AEC
bar:7 color:FullxF from:1992 till:2018 text:Immaculata
bar:7 color:OtherC1 from:2018 till:end text:AEC
bar:8 color:FullxF from:1992 till:2018 text:Marywood
bar:8 color:OtherC1 from:2018 till:end text:AEC
bar:9 color:FullxF from:1992 till:2008 text:Misericordia
bar:9 color:OtherC1 from:2008 till:end text:MAC-F
bar:10 color:FullxF from:1992 till:2018 text:Neumann
bar:10 color:OtherC1 from:2018 till:end text:AEC
bar:11 color:FullxF from:1992 till:2023 text:Rosemont
bar:11 color:OtherC1 from:2023 till:end text:UEC
bar:12 color:FullxF from:1993 till:1997 text:DeSales
bar:12 shift: color:OtherC1 from:1997 till:1999 text:MAC
bar:12 color:OtherC2 from:1999 till:end text:MAC-F
bar:13 color:FullxF from:1997 till:2007 text:Wesley (Del.)
bar:13 color:OtherC1 from:2007 till:2018 text:CAC
bar:13 color:OtherC2 from:2018 till:2021 text:AEC, then acquired
bar:14 color:AssocOS from:2001 till:2012 text:Shenandoah
bar:15 color:AssocOS from:2001 till:2006 text:Villa Marie
bar:16 color:FullxF from:2007 till:2021 text:Centenary (N.J.)
bar:16 color:AssocOS from:2021 till:2022 text:AEC
bar:16 color:OtherC1 from:2022 till:end text:
bar:17 color:FullxF from:2007 till:2023 text:Notre Dame (Md.)
bar:17 color:OtherC1 from:2023 till:end text:UEC
bar:18 color:FullxF from:2008 till:2023 text:Cairn
bar:18 color:OtherC1 from:2023 till:end text:UEC
bar:19 color:FullxF from:2008 till:2023 text:Clarks Summit
bar:19 color:OtherC1 from:2023 till:end text:UEC
bar:20 color:FullxF from:2008 till:2023 text:Keystone
bar:20 color:OtherC1 from:2023 till:end text:UEC
bar:21 color:AssocOS from:2015 till:2019 text:Franciscan (Oh.)
bar:22 color:AssocOS from:2015 till:2023 text:Penn State–Erie
bar:23 color:FullxF from:2018 till:2023 text:Bryn Athyn
bar:23 color:OtherC1 from:2023 till:end text:UEC
bar:24 color:FullxF from:2018 till:2023 text:Wilson
bar:24 color:OtherC1 from:2023 till:end text:UEC
bar:25 color:AssocOS from:2018 till:2023 text:Alfred State
bar:26 color:AssocOS from:2018 till:2022 text:Kean
bar:27 color:AssocOS from:2018 till:2022 text:Montclair State
bar:28 color:AssocOS from:2018 till:2022 text:Stockton
bar:29 color:AssocOS from:2018 till:2020 text:Valley Forge
bar:29 color:FullxF from:2020 till:2023 text:
bar:29 color:OtherC1 from:2023 till:end text:UEC
bar:30 color:AssocOS from:2019 till:2023 text:Lancaster Bible
bar:31 color:FullxF from:2019 till:2023 text:Saint Elizabeth
bar:31 color:OtherC1 from:2023 till:end text:UEC
bar:32 color:AssocOS from:2020 till:2023 text:Gallaudet
bar:33 color:AssocOS from:2021 till:2023 text:Sweet Briar
bar:34 color:AssocOS from:2022 till:2023 text:Eastern Nazarene
bar:35 color:AssocOS from:2022 till:2023 text:Mitchell
bar:36 color:AssocOS from:2022 till:2023 text:New England College
bar:37 color:AssocOS from:2022 till:2023 text:Pratt
bar:N color:powderblue from:1992 till:2008 text:Pennsylvania Athletic Conference
bar:N color:blue from:2008 till:2023 text:Colonial States Athletic Conference
ScaleMajor = gridcolor:line unit:year increment:2 start:1992

Staff

Marie Stroman - Commissioner
Antonio "Tone" Cockrell - Assistant Commissioner of Strategic Initiatives