The College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) is a

college athletic conference In college athletics in the United States, institutions typically join in conferences for regular play under different governing bodies. Varsity sports There are several national and regional associations governing the varsity teams of colleges ...

which competes in the

Division III In sport, the Third Division, also called Division 3, Division Three, or Division III, is often the third-highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Association football *Belgian Thir ...

level of the

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges ...

(NCAA). CCIW schools have accounted for 50 national championships in NCAA Division III competition, including 15 in men's cross country; six in men's basketball; six in men's outdoor track and field; five in football; four in men's indoor track and field; three in women's soccer; two in women's outdoor track and field, women's basketball, men's soccer, men’s golf, and men's volleyball; and one apiece in baseball and women's indoor track and field. Elmhurst College won a pair of Division III women's volleyball championships (1983 and 1985), and North Central College won a women's basketball title (1983) before the conference began sponsorship of women's athletics in 1986–87. North Central men's cross country won its 13th national title in program history during the fall of 2009, while the North Central men's indoor track and field team captured the 2010 national championship. The Cardinals made their clean sweep by winning the men's outdoor track and field title in the spring of 2010. In addition, the Illinois Wesleyan women's outdoor track and field team, as well as the baseball team, took home national titles, giving the CCIW five national championships during the 2009–10 season. North Central defended its titles in men's indoor track and field and outdoor track and field in the spring of 2011 while the Cardinals won their second men's cross country title in three seasons in the fall of 2011 and their third-straight indoor track and field title in 2012. Illinois Wesleyan won the conference's second women's basketball national title in 2012. In 2019 Illinois Wesleyan Men’s Golf won their first National Championship. They followed that up with a second National Championship in 2021 after a one year break due to the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020. Coached by Jim Ott to both Championships and led by Drew Pershing and Ben Johnson in 2019 and Jimmy Morton, Andrew Abel and Rob Wuethrich in 2021. North Central Football won the 2019 National Championship and, after the COVID year of 2020 in which no championship was held, finished second in the nation in 2021. Carthage won consecutive men's volleyball titles in 2021 and 2022.

History

The conference was formed with nine charter members ( Augustana College, Carthage College,

Elmhurst College Elmhurst University is a private university in Elmhurst, Illinois. It has a tradition of service-oriented learning and an affiliation with the United Church of Christ. The university changed its name from Elmhurst College on July 1, 2020. Hist ...

Illinois College Illinois College is a private liberal arts college in Jacksonville, Illinois. It is affiliated with the United Church of Christ and the Presbyterian Church (USA). It was the second college founded in Illinois, but the first to grant a degree ( ...

Illinois Wesleyan University Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockford ...

Lake Forest College Lake Forest College is a private liberal arts college in Lake Forest, Illinois. Founded in 1857 as Lind University by a group of Presbyterian ministers, the college has been coeducational since 1876 and an undergraduate-focused liberal arts i ...

Millikin University Millikin University is a private university in Decatur, Illinois. It was founded in 1901 by prominent Decatur businessman James Millikin and is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA). Media Decaturian The ''Decaturian'', also known as ...

North Central College North Central College is a private college in Naperville, Illinois. It is affiliated with the United Methodist Church and has nearly 70 areas of study in undergraduate majors, minors, and programs through 19 academic departments organized in thre ...

and Wheaton College) on April 26, 1946, in

Jacksonville Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the List of United States cities by area, largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the co ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

, and opened competition in the 1946–47 academic year as the College Conference of Illinois. In 1967, the name was changed to the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin to recognize Carthage, which moved to

Kenosha, Wisconsin Kenosha () is a city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the seat of Kenosha County. Per the 2020 census, the population was 99,986 which made it the fourth-largest city in Wisconsin. Situated on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan, Kenos ...

in 1962, and

Carroll University Carroll University is a private university affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA) and located in Waukesha, Wisconsin. Established in 1846, Carroll was Wisconsin's first four-year institution of higher learning. History Prior to its estab ...

, which entered the conference in 1955. The CCIW sponsors 25 sports: baseball, men's and women's basketball, women's bowling, men's and women's cross country, football, men's and women's golf, men's and women's lacrosse, men's and women's soccer, softball, men's and women's swimming, men's and women's tennis, men's and women's indoor track and field, men's and women's outdoor track and field, men's and women's volleyball and wrestling. The most recently added sports are men's volleyball, which started play in the 2020 season, (2019–20 school year), bowling, which started play in 2020–21. and women's wrestling added for 2022–23 season. CCIW membership has experienced several changes since its inception. After Carthage left in 1952, Illinois College withdrew the following year (1953). Elmhurst and Wheaton withdrew following the 1959–60 academic year. Wheaton re-joined for all sports but football in 1967 (and for football in 1970). Elmhurst re-joined in the fall of 1967 for all sports but football (and for football in 1968). Carroll joined during the 1955 spring sports season (1954-55 academic season). Carthage returned in the fall of 1961, and

North Park University North Park University is a private Christian university in Chicago, Illinois. It was founded in 1891 by the Evangelical Covenant Church. It is located on Chicago's north side and enrolls more than 3,000 undergraduate and graduate students. His ...

entered the following fall (1962). Lake Forest dropped out at the end of the 1962–63 academic year. The last member to leave the CCIW was Carroll following the 1991–92 academic year. Carroll returned to the CCIW in 2016. In 2007, Rose–Hulman Institute of Technology, located in

Terre Haute Terre Haute ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Vigo County, Indiana, United States, about 5 miles east of the state's western border with Illinois. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 60,785 and its metropolitan area had a ...

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

, joined the CCIW as an associate member for men's and women's swimming. After 2017, Rose–Hulman left as an associate member shortly before its full-time home of the

Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference The Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) is an intercollegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division III. Member institutions are located in Indiana, Kentucky and Ohio. Founded as the Indiana Collegiate Athletic Confe ...

(HCAC) announced it would add swimming. The CCIW lost one affiliate member and gained two in 2020. Greenville University, which had moved its men's volleyball program from the single-sport Midwest Collegiate Volleyball League to the CCIW in 2019–20, downgraded the sport from varsity to club status after that school year. With the addition of bowling,

Lakeland University Lakeland University is a private university with its main campus in Plymouth, Wisconsin. Lakeland University is affiliated with the United Church of Christ. Lakeland also has seven evening, weekend, and online centers located throughout the st ...

, a wrestling affiliate since 2016–17, added bowling to its CCIW membership, while

Aurora University Aurora University (AU) is a private university in Aurora, Illinois. In addition to its main campus and the Orchard Center in Aurora, AU offers programs online, at its George Williams College campus in Williams Bay, Wisconsin, and at the Woods ...

and Marian University became affiliates in that sport.

Chronological timeline

* 1946 - On April 26, 1946, the CCIW was founded as the College Conference of Illinois (CCI). Charter members included Augustana College of Illinois, Carthage College,

, Illinois Wesleyan College (now Illinois Wesleyan University),

Lake Forest University Lake Forest College is a private liberal arts college in Lake Forest, Illinois. Founded in 1857 as Lind University by a group of Presbyterian ministers, the college has been coeducational since 1876 and an undergraduate-focused liberal arts inst ...

(now Lake Forest College),

Millikin College Millikin University is a private university in Decatur, Illinois. It was founded in 1901 by prominent Decatur businessman James Millikin and is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA). Media Decaturian The ''Decaturian'', also known as ...

(now Millikin University),

and Wheaton College, effective beginning the 1946-47 academic year. * 1952 - Carthage left the CCI, effective after the 1951-52 academic year. * 1963 - Illinois College left the CCI, effective after the 1952-53 academic year. * 1955 - Carroll College of Wisconsin (now Carroll University) joined the CCI, effective in the 1995-56 academic year. * 1960 - Elmhurst and Wheaton left the CCI, effective after the 1959-60 academic year. * 1961 - Carthage re-joined back to the CCI, effective in the 1961-62 academic year. * 1962 - North Park College (now North Park University) joined the CCI, effective in the 1962-63 academic year. * 1963 - Lake Forest left the CCI, effective after the 1962-63 academic year. * 1967 - The CCI has been rebranded as the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW), effective in the 1967-68 academic year. * 1967 - Elmhurst and Wheaton re-joined back to the CCIW, effective in the 1967-68 academic year. Elmhurst later re-joined back for football for the 1968 fall season while Wheaton did the same for the 1970 fall season. * 1992 - Carroll (Wisc.) left the CCIW to join the Midwest Conference (MWC), effective after the 1991-92 academic year. * 2016 - Carroll (Wisc.) re-joined back to the CCIW, effective in the 2016-17 academic year. * 2007 - Rose–Hulman Institute of Technology joined the CCIW as an affiliate member for swimming, effective in the 2007-08 academic year. * 2014 - The University of Dubuque joined the CCIW as an affiliate member for men's and women's lacrosse, effective in the 2015 spring season (2014-15 academic year). * 2016 - Concordia University of Wisconsin,

and the

Milwaukee School of Engineering The Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE) is a private university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The campus is in the List of neighborhoods of Milwaukee, East Town neighborhood of downtown Milwaukee. The school's enrollment of 2,820 includes 224 g ...

joined the CCIW as affiliate members for wrestling, effective in the 2016-17 academic year. * 2017 - Rose–Hulman left the CCIW as an affiliate member for swimming, effective after the 2016-17 academic year. * 2018 - Two institutions joined the CCIW as affiliate members: The

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chic ...

for women's lacrosse, and

Washington University in St. Louis Washington University in St. Louis (WashU or WUSTL) is a private research university with its main campus in St. Louis County, and Clayton, Missouri. Founded in 1853, the university is named after George Washington. Washington University is r ...

for football, both effective in the 2018-19 academic year. * 2020 - Dubuque left the CCIW as an affiliate member for women's lacrosse as the school announced that it would drop the sport, effective after the 2019 spring season (2018-19 academic year). * 2019 - Greenville University and

Loras College Loras College is a private Catholic college in Dubuque, Iowa. It has an enrollment of approximately 1,600 students and is the oldest post-secondary institution in the state of Iowa. The school offers both undergraduate and graduate degree ...

joined the CCIW as affiliate members for men's volleyball, effective in the 2020 spring season (2019-20 academic year). * 2020 - Greenville left the CCIW as an affiliate member for men's volleyball as the school announced that it would drop the sport, effective after the 2020 spring season (2019-20 academic year). * 2020 -

and Marian University of Wisconsin joined the CCIW as affiliate members for bowling, effective in the 2021 spring season (2020-21 academic year). * 2021 - Dubuque left the CCIW as an affiliate member for men's lacrosse to join the Midwest Lacrosse Conference (MLC), effective after the 2021 spring season (2020-21 academic year). * 2021 -

Transylvania University Transylvania University is a private university in Lexington, Kentucky. It was founded in 1780 and was the first university in Kentucky. It offers 46 major programs, as well as dual-degree engineering programs, and is accredited by the Southern ...

joined the CCIW as an affiliate member for men's lacrosse, effective in the 2022 spring season (2021-22 academic year).

Member schools

Current members

The CCIW currently has nine full members; all are private schools. ;Notes:

Affiliate members

The CCIW currently has nine affiliate members; all are private schools.

Former members

The CCIW has two former full members, both private schools.

Former affiliate members

The CCIW has two former affiliate members, both private schools. ;Notes:

Membership timeline

DateFormat = yyyy ImageSize = width:900 height:auto barincrement:20 Period = from:1946 till:2031 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal PlotArea = right:20 left:0 bottom:50 top:5 #> to display a count on left side of graph, use "left:20" to suppress the count, use "left:20"<# Colors = id:barcolor value:rgb(0.99,0.7,0.7) id:line value:black id:bg value:white id:Full value:rgb(0.742,0.727,0.852) # Use this color to denote a team that is a member in all sports id:FullxF value:rgb(0.551,0.824,0.777) # Use this color to denote a team that is a member in all sports except for football id:AssocF value:rgb(0.98,0.5,0.445) # Use this color to denote a team that is a member for football only id:AssocOS value:rgb(0.5,0.691,0.824) # Use this color to denote a team that is a member in some sports, but not all (consider identifying in legend or a footnote) id:OtherC1 value:rgb(0.996,0.996,0.699) # Use this color to denote a team that has moved to another conference id:OtherC2 value:rgb(0.988,0.703,0.383) # 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:(5,-5) anchor:from fontsize:s bar:1 color:Full from:1946 till:end text: Augustana (Ill.) (1946–present) bar:2 color:Full from:1946 till:1952 text:

Carthage Carthage was the capital city of Ancient Carthage, on the eastern side of the Lake of Tunis in what is now Tunisia. Carthage was one of the most important trading hubs of the Ancient Mediterranean and one of the most affluent cities of the cla ...

(1946–1952) bar:2 color:Full from:1961 till:end text:(1961–present) bar:3 color:Full from:1946 till:1960 text: Elmhurst (1946–1960) bar:3 color:FullxF from:1967 till:1968 text:(1967–present) bar:3 color:Full from:1968 till:end bar:4 color:Full from:1946 till:1953 text:

(1946–1953) bar:5 color:Full from:1946 till:end text: Illinois Wesleyan (1946–present) bar:6 color:Full from:1946 till:1963 text: Lake Forest (1946–1963) bar:7 color:Full from:1946 till:end text: Millikin (1946–present) bar:8 color:Full from:1946 till:end text: North Central (Ill.) (1946–present) bar:9 color:Full from:1946 till:1960 text: Wheaton (Ill.) (1946–1960) bar:9 color:FullxF from:1967 till:1970 text:(1967–present) bar:9 color:Full from:1970 till:end bar:10 color:Full from:1955 till:1992 text: Carroll (Wisc.) (1955–1992) bar:10 color:Full from:2016 till:end text:(2016–present) bar:11 color:Full from:1962 till:end text: North Park (1962–present) bar:12 color:AssocOS from:2007 till:2017 text: Rose–Hulman (RHIT) (2007–2017) bar:13 color:AssocOS from:2014 till:2021 text: Dubuque (2014–2021) bar:14 shift:(-5) color:AssocOS from:2016 till:end text: Concordia (Wisc.) (2016–present) bar:15 color:AssocOS from:2016 till:end text: Lakeland (2016–present) bar:16 color:AssocOS from:2016 till:end text: MSOE (2016–present) bar:17 color:AssocOS from:2018 till:end text:

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

(2018–present) bar:18 shift:(-20) color:AssocF from:2018 till:end text: Washington (Mo.) (2018–present) bar:19 color:AssocOS from:2019 till:2020 text: Greenville (2019–2020) bar:20 color:AssocOS from:2019 till:end text: Loras (2019–present) bar:21 color:AssocOS from:2020 till:end text:

Aurora An aurora (plural: auroras or aurorae), also commonly known as the polar lights, is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly seen in high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic). Auroras display dynamic patterns of bri ...

(2020–present) bar:22 color:AssocOS from:2020 till:end text:

Marian Marian may refer to: People * Mari people, a Finno-Ugric ethnic group in Russia * Marian (given name), a list of people with the given name * Marian (surname), a list of people so named Places * Marian, Iran (disambiguation) * Marian, Queenslan ...

(2020–present) bar:23 color:AssocOS from:2021 till:end text:

Transylvania Transylvania ( ro, Ardeal or ; hu, Erdély; german: Siebenbürgen) is a historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and south its natural border is the Carpathian Mountains, and to the west the Ap ...

(2021–present) bar:N color:powderblue from:1946 till:1967 text:College Conference of Illinois (CCI) bar:N color:blue from:1967 till:end text:College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) ScaleMajor = gridcolor:line unit:year increment:5 start:1950

Sports

In 2015, men's and women's lacrosse were added as sanctioned sports by the CCIW. The CCIW announced the inclusion of men's volleyball for the 2020 season (2019–20 school year), with bowling (an NCAA sport for women only) added in 2020–21. The CCIW sponsors championships in the following sports:

National championships

References

External links

* {{NCAA Division III football conference navbox College sports in Illinois College sports in Wisconsin