California Collegiate Athletic Association

The California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. All of its current members are public universities, but two private institutions will join in July 2026.

It was founded in December 1938 and began competition in 1939. The commissioner of the CCAA is Allen Hardison. CCAA offices are located in Aliso Viejo, California. The CCAA is the most successful conference in NCAA Division II, as its former and current members have won 155 National Championships.

History

Recent events

On November 14, 2023, the University of California, Merced had accepted an invitation to join the CCAA, beginning the 2025–26 academic year.

On January 22, 2025, Sonoma State University announced that it would be ceasing all athletic operations following the conclusion of the 2024–25 athletic year.

On June 13, 2025, Fresno Pacific University received an invitation to join the CCAA, beginning the 2026–27 academic year.

Chronological timeline

• 1938 – The California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) was founded. Charter members included Fresno State Normal School (now California State University, Fresno or Fresno State University), San Diego State College (now San Diego State University), San Jose State College (now San Jose State University) and Santa Barbara State College (now the University of California, Santa Barbara), beginning the 1939–40 academic year.
• 1945 – George Pepperdine College (now Pepperdine University) and California State Polytechnic College (now California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo) joined the CCAA in the 1945–46 academic year.
• 1946 – The College of the Pacific (now the University of the Pacific) joined the CCAA in the 1946–47 academic year.
• 1949:
• Pacific (Cal.) left the CCAA to join the University Division ranks of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) as an NCAA Independent after the 1948–49 academic year.
• San Jose State left the CCAA to join the NCAA University Division ranks as an NCAA Independent after the 1949–50 academic year.
• 1950 – The Los Angeles State College of Applied Arts and Sciences (now California State University, Los Angeles) joined the CCAA in the 1950–51 academic year.
• 1954 – Pepperdine left the CCAA to join the NCAA University I ranks as an NCAA Independent after the 1953–54 academic year.
• 1956 – Long Beach State College (now California State University, Long Beach) joined the CCAA in the 1956–57 academic year.
• 1961 – San Fernando Valley State College (now California State University, Northridge) joined the CCAA in the 1961–62 academic year.
• 1967 – California State College at Fullerton (now California State University, Fullerton) and California State Polytechnic College, Kellogg-Voorhis (now California State Polytechnic University, Pomona) joined the CCAA in the 1967–68 academic year.
• 1969:
• Cal State–Los Angeles, Fresno State, Long Beach State, San Diego State and UC Santa Barbara left the CCAA to join the NCAA University Division ranks and form the Pacific Collegiate Athletic Association (PCAA; now known as the Big West Conference) after the 1968–69 academic year.
• The University of California, Riverside joined the CCAA in the 1969–70 academic year.
• 1972 – California State College, Bakersfield (now California State University, Bakersfield) joined the CCAA in the 1972–73 academic year.
• 1974:
• Cal State–Fullerton left the CCAA to join the PCAA after the 1973–74 academic year.
• Cal State–Los Angeles rejoined the CCAA in the 1974–75 academic year.
• 1978 – Chapman College (now Chapman University) joined the CCAA in the 1978–79 academic year.
• 1980 – California State University, Dominguez Hills joined the CCAA in the 1980–81 academic year.
• 1990 – Cal State–Northridge left the CCAA to join the NCAA Division I ranks as an NCAA D-I Independent (who would later join the American West Conference, beginning the 1994–95 academic year) after the 1989–90 academic year.
• 1991 – California State University, San Bernardino joined the CCAA in the 1991–92 academic year.
• 1993 – Chapman left the CCAA to join the NCAA Division III ranks as an NCAA D-III Independent after the 1992–93 academic year.
• 1994:
• Cal Poly–San Luis Obispo left the CCAA to join the NCAA Division I ranks and the American West after the 1993–94 academic year.
• Grand Canyon University joined the CCAA in the 1994–95 academic year.
• 1998 – California State University, Chico (Chico State), California State University, Stanislaus (Stanislaus State), San Francisco State University, Sonoma State University and the University of California, Davis (UC Davis) joined the CCAA in the 1998–99 academic year.
• 2000:
• UC Riverside left the CCAA to join the NCAA Division I ranks and the Big West Conference after the 1999–2000 academic year.
• The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego) joined the CCAA in the 2000–01 academic year.
• 2004:
• Two institutions left the CCAA to join their respective new home primary conferences, both effective after the 2003–04 academic year:
• Grand Canyon as an NCAA D-II Independent (who would later join the Pacific West Conference (PacWest), beginning the 2005–06 school year)
• and UC Davis to join the NCAA Division I ranks as an NCAA D-I Independent (who would later join the Big West, beginning the 2007–08 school year)
• California State University, Monterey Bay joined the CCAA in the 2004–05 academic year.
• 2006 – Humboldt State University (now California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt) joined the CCAA in the 2006–07 academic year.
• 2007 – Cal State–Bakersfield left the CCAA to join the NCAA Division I ranks as an NCAA D-I Independent (who would later join the Western Athletic Conference (WAC), beginning the 2013–14 school year) after the 2006–07 academic year.
• 2009 – California State University, East Bay (formerly California State University, Hayward) joined the CCAA in the 2009–10 academic year.
• 2015 – California State University, San Marcos joined the CCAA in the 2015–16 academic year.
• 2020 – UC San Diego left the CCAA to join the NCAA Division I ranks and the Big West after the 2019–20 academic year.
• 2025:
• Sonoma State left the CCAA after the 2024–25 academic year; as the school announced that it had ceased all athletic programs.
• The University of California, Merced (UC Merced) joined the CCAA in the 2025–26 academic year
• 2026 – Fresno Pacific University and Menlo College will join the CCAA, beginning the 2026–27 academic year. They will become the first private non-UCal or non-Cal State schools to join the conference since Grand Canyon (who was a full member from fall 1994 to spring 2004).

Member schools

Current members

, the CCAA has 12 full members, all of which are public schools. Reclassifying members listed in yellow.

Notes:

Future members

Notes:

Former members

The CCAA had 17 former full members, all but four were public schools. Institutional names and nicknames reflect those used in the final academic year of CCAA membership:

Notes:

Membership timeline

Sports sponsored

The CCAA sponsors seven sports for women and six sports for men. Cross country, soccer, and volleyball are fall sports; basketball is a winter sport; golf, outdoor track & field, softball, and baseball are spring sports. Throughout the years, CCAA teams have won 155 NCAA championships in their sports, which is best among all Division II conferences.

The CCAA has a Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, which is made up of student-athletes from each member institution.

Men's sponsored sports by school

Men's varsity sports not sponsored by the California Collegiate Athletic Association which are played by CCAA schools:

Women's sponsored sports by school

Women's varsity sports not sponsored by the California Collegiate Athletic Association which are played by CCAA schools:

CCAA championships

Basketball

Football

NCAA championships

Conference facilities

See also

• Big West Conference, a Division I conference that consists predominantly of California schools. Of its 11 current members, nine (Hawaii and UC Irvine being the exceptions) are former members of the CCAA.
• California Pacific Conference, an NAIA conference that consisted entirely of California schools from its formation in 1996 until 2012.
• Golden State Athletic Conference, an NAIA conference that consisted entirely of California schools from its formation in 1986 until 2012.

References

External links