The Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) is an intercollegiate athletic conference which competes in the NCAA's Division III. All member institutions are located in Ohio. Formed in 1902, it is the third oldest athletic conference in the United States. In its history, 31 schools have been members of the OAC. The enrollments of the current ten member institutions range from around 1,000 to 4,500. Its current commissioner is Sarah Otey. Former commissioners include Mike Cleary, who was the first General Manager of a professional basketball team to hire an African American head coach, and would later run the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA).

History

The Ohio Athletic Conference was found in 1902 with six charter members—Case Tech, Kenyon, Oberlin, Ohio State, Ohio Wesleyan, and Western Reserve. By 1934, the conference reached an all-time high of twenty-four members, seeing many schools come and go throughout the upcoming decades. By 2000, the conference solidified to its current form with the addition of its final school, Wilmington, to ten members. On January 18, 2024, John Carroll University announces departure from the OAC to the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC), beginning in the 2025–26 academic year.

Conference timeline

Member schools

Current members

The OAC currently has ten full members, all are private schools:

Former members

The OAC had 20 former full members, all but seven were private schools:

Former associate members

The OAC had three former associate members, all private schools. This included the only schools outside of Ohio that had any level of OAC membership.

Membership timeline

Sports

In 2023–24, the OAC sponsors the following championships:

Facilities

Departing member in pink.

OAC Tournament Championship History

Men's Swimming & Diving

Women's Swimming & Diving

Men's Basketball

Women's Basketball

Football

Baseball

Men's Soccer

Women's Soccer

Women's Volleyball

Men's Golf

Men's Wrestling

Men's Cross Country

Women's Cross Country

Men's Lacrosse

Women's Lacrosse