# New England Collegiate Conference

The New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) is an NCAA Division III men's volleyball and esports college athletic conference based in the Northeastern United States. The NECC was formerly an all-sports conference from 2008 to 2023. The conference rebranded as New England Volleyball Conference (NEVC) starting in 2023–24 year after becoming a men's volleyball-only conference.

## History

In June 2007, nine colleges from New England announced the creation of a new athletic conference under the same NECC name.
The conference, which began operations July 1, 2008, in Division III, currently includes Lesley University (Cambridge), Mitchell College (New London, Connecticut), Eastern Nazarene College (Quincy) and New England College (Henniker, New Hampshire) as members. Their indicated locations are in Massachusetts unless otherwise noted.
Southern Vermont and Newbury both announced they would cease operations after the 2018–19 academic year, and founding member Becker College announced the same after the 2020–21 school year. Elms College joined the Great Northeast Athletic Conference, where it had competed as a swimming and diving affiliate since 2008, in the 2021-22 academic year. In July 2021, original member Bay Path was admitted to the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA), implicitly leaving the conference and the NCAA.
Within the past year, there have been changes. Bard College joined the NECC for men's volleyball as an associate member beginning the spring of 2023. Lesley received and accepted an invitation to join the North Atlantic Conference (NAC), while Mitchell and New England College both accepted an invitation to the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC), all beginning the 2023-24 season. In 2023 it was announced that Eastern Nazarene College would also be joining the NAC.
The NECC may remain in operation for men's volleyball and the non-NCAA sport of esports. The conference has nine men's volleyball members in the current 2023 season, and the NCAA's official membership database lists all nine NECC men's volleyball teams as being members of the "New England Volleyball Conference". Over 25 schools are affiliate members in esports.

### Chronological timeline

* 2007 – On May 31, 2007, The New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) was founded. Charter members included Bay Path College (now Bay Path University), Becker College, Daniel Webster College, Elms College, Lesley University, Mitchell College, Newbury College, Southern Vermont College and Wheelock College, beginning the 2008–09 academic year.
* 2008 – Springfield College and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) joined the NECC as associate members for men's golf in the 2008 fall season (2008–09 academic year).
* 2009 – Massachusetts Tech (MIT) left the NECC as an associate member for men's golf as the school dropped the sport (due to budget cuts) after the 2008–09 academic year.
* 2009 – Babson College joined the NECC as an associate member for men's golf in the 2009 fall season (2009–10 academic year).
* 2011 – Regis College joined the NECC in the 2011–12 academic year.
* 2011 – Endicott College joined the NECC as an associate member for men's volleyball in the 2012 spring season (2011–12 academic year).
* 2016 – Eastern Nazarene College joined the NECC as an associate member for men's volleyball in the 2017 spring season (2016–17 academic year).
* 2017 – Two institutions left the NECC to join their respective new home primary conferences, both effective after the 2016–17 academic year:
** Regis joined the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC)
** the second, Daniel Webster, ceased operations
* 2017 – Dean College joined the NECC in the 2017–18 academic year.
* 2018 – Wheelock left the NECC as the school announced that it would be merged into Boston University after the 2017–18 academic year.
* 2018 – New England College join the NECC (with Eastern Nazarene upgrading for all sports), both effective in the 2018–19 academic year.
* 2018 – Nichols College joined the NECC as an associate member for men's volleyball in the 2019 spring season (2018–19 academic year).
* 2019 – Newbury and Southern Vermont left the NECC as both schools announced that they ceased operations after the 2018–19 academic year.
* 2019 – Springfield and Babson left the NECC as associate members for men's golf after the 2018–19 academic year.
* 2019 – Five institutions joined the NECC as associate members, all effective in the 2019–20 academic year:
** Husson University, the University of Maine at Farmington, Manhattanville College and Thomas College for field hockey
** and Northern Vermont University–Johnson for men's volleyball
* 2020 – Dean left the NECC to join the GNAC after the 2019–20 academic year.
* 2020 – Russell Sage College joined the NECC as an associate member for men's volleyball in the 2021 spring season (2020–21 academic year).
* 2021 – Three institutions left the NECC to join their respective new home primary conferences, all effective after the 2020–21 academic year; thus leaving the conference with four institutions to compete in the 2021–22 school year:
** Bay Path would leave the NCAA to join the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA)
** and Elms joined the GNAC
** the third, Becker, ceased operations
* 2021 – The State University of New York Polytechnic Institute (SUNY Poly) and the State University of New York at Potsdam (SUNY Potsdam) joined the NECC as associate members for men's volleyball in the 2022 spring season (2021–22 academic year).
* 2022 – Manhattanville left the NECC as an associate member for field hockey to join the Atlantic East Conference (AEC) after the 2021 fall season (2021–22 academic year).
* 2023 – Three institutions left the NECC to join their respective new home primary conferences, all effective after the 2022–23 academic year:
** Lesley to join the North Atlantic Conference (NAC)
** and Mitchell and New England College (NEC) to join the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC)
* 2022 – Bard College joined the NECC as an associate member for men's volleyball in the 2023 spring season (2022–23 academic year).
* 2023 – Eastern Nazarene left the NECC to join the NAC after the 2022–23 academic year. This effectively ended the NECC as an all-sports conference. However, Eastern Nazarene remained as an associate member in men's volleyball.
* 2024 – Eastern Nazarene left the NEVC after the 2024 spring season (2023–24 academic year) due to ceasing operations, consequently the school left as a men's volleyball-only member.

## Member schools
### Final full members

The NECC had four full members when it disbanded as an all-sports conference, all were private schools.
| Institution | Location | Founded | Affiliation | Enrollment | Nickname | Joined | Left | Current conference |
| Eastern Nazarene College | Quincy, Massachusetts | 1900 | Nazarene | 772 | Lions | 2018 | 2023 | Closed in 2024 |
| Lesley University | Cambridge, Massachusetts | 1909 | Nonsectarian | 6,593 | Lynx | 2008 | 2023 | North Atlantic (NAC) |
| Mitchell College | New London, Connecticut | 1938 | Nonsectarian | 572 | Mariners | 2008 | 2023 | Great Northeast (GNAC) |
| New England College | Henniker, New Hampshire | 1946 | Nonsectarian | 4,327 | Pilgrims | 2018 | 2023 | Great Northeast (GNAC) |

#### Notes

* ↑ Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.
* ↑ Represents the calendar year when spring sports competition ends.
* ↑ This institution is a former women's college, which has eventually turned into a co-educational college (Lesley since 2005–06).

### Current men's volleyball members

The NECC has seven current associate members in men's volleyball:
| Institution | Location | Founded | Affiliation | Enrollment | Nickname | Joined | NECC sport | Primary conference |
| Bard College | Annandale-on-Hudson, New York | 1860 | Private | 2,051 | Raptors | 2022 | men's volleyball | Liberty |
| Endicott College | Beverly, Massachusetts | 1939 | Nonsectarian | 4,600 | Gulls | 2011 | men's volleyball | New England (CNE) |
| Nichols College | Dudley, Massachusetts | 1815 | Nonsectarian | 1,915 | Bison | 2018 | men's volleyball | New England (CNE) |
| Northern Vermont University–Johnson | Johnson, Vermont | 1828 | Public | 1,333 | Badgers | 2019 | men's volleyball | North Atlantic (NAC) |
| Russell Sage College | Albany/Troy, New York | 1916 | Nonsectarian | 1,600 | Gators | 2020 | men's volleyball | Empire 8 |
| State University of New York Polytechnic Institute (SUNY Poly) | Marcy, New York | 1913 | Public | 3,061 | Wildcats | 2021 | men's volleyball | North Atlantic (NAC) |
| State University of New York at Potsdam (SUNY Potsdam) | Potsdam, New York | 1816 | Public | 3,098 | Bears | 2021 | men's volleyball | S.U. New York (SUNYAC) |

#### Notes

* ↑ Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.
* ↑ Northern Vermont University was founded in 2018 by the merger of Johnson State College, founded in 1828, and Lyndon State College, founded in 1911. The two campuses continue to operate separate athletic programs.
* ↑ The Sage Colleges, which were recognized by the NECC, NCAA, and the state of New York as a single institution, rebranded as Russell Sage College in July 2020 after consolidating the three components Sage previously consisted of—the women-only Russell Sage, the coeducational Sage College of Albany (SCA), and the Sage Graduate Schools. In the context of the NECC, Russell Sage's team consists mostly of former SCA students, since SCA was the only Sage component that enrolled male undergraduates.
* ↑ Russell Sage has campuses in both Albany and Troy, New York, but the former SCA operated only in Albany.
* ↑ The Sage Colleges dated their history to the establishment of Russell Sage College in 1916. SCA was established in 1949 and adopted its historical name in 2002.
* ↑ Reflects Russell Sage's overall undergraduate enrollment. Enrollment in the former SCA, the only Sage component from which men's volleyball drew players, was about 850.
* ↑ Part of the State University of New York System.

### Esports members

The NECC currently has twenty-seven associate members for esports, all but eight are private schools:
| Institution | Location | Founded | Affiliation | Enrollment | Nickname | Joined | Primary conference |
| Boise State University | Boise, Idaho | 1932 | Public | 25,540 | Broncos | 2020 | Mountain West (MW) |
| California State University, Dominguez Hills (Cal State Dominguez Hills) | Carson, California | 1960 | Public | 17,027 | Toros | 2020 | California (CCAA) |
| Carroll University | Waukesha, Wisconsin | 1846 | Presbyterian | 3,358 | Pioneers | 2020 | Illinois–Wisconsin (CCIW) |
| Central Methodist University | Fayette, Missouri | 1854 | United Methodist | 3,382 | Eagles | 2020 | Heart of America (HAAC) |
| Champlain College | Burlington, Vermont | 1878 | Nonsectarian | 2,900 | Beavers | 2020 | N/A |
| Hocking College | Nelsonville, Ohio | 1968 | Public | 3,671 | Hawks | 2020 | Ohio (OCCAC) |
| Hood College | Frederick, Maryland | 1893 | United Church of Christ | 2,052 | Blazers | 2020 | MAC Commonwealth |
| Howard Community College | Columbia, Maryland | 1966 | Community college | 29,894 | Dragons | 2020 | Maryland (MDJUCO) |
| Illinois Wesleyan University | Bloomington, Illinois | 1850 | Nonsectarian | 1,893 | Titans | 2020 | Illinois–Wisconsin (CCIW) |
| Jackson College | Jackson, Michigan | 1928 | Community college | 5,487 | Jets | 2020 | Michigan (MCCAA) |
| Kansas Wesleyan University | Salina, Kansas | 1886 | United Methodist | 710 | Coyotes | 2020 | Kansas (KCAC) |
| Lakeland University | Plymouth, Wisconsin | 1862 | United Church of Christ | 3,973 | Muskies | 2020 | Northern (NACC) |
| Midland University | Fremont, Nebraska | 1883 | Lutheran ELCA | 1,394 | Warriors | 2020 | Great Plains (GPAC) |
| Monroe College | New York City, New York | 1933 | For-profit | 6,794 | Mustangs | 2020 | Mid Hudson (MHC) |
| University of Montana | Missoula, Montana | 1893 | Public | 10,962 | Grizzlies & Lady Griz | 2020 | Big Sky (BSC) |
| Mount St. Mary's University | Emmitsburg, Maryland | 1808 | Catholic | 2,240 | Mountaineers | 2020 | Metro Atlantic (MAAC) |
| Newberry College | Newberry, South Carolina | 1856 | Nonsectarian | 1,250 | Wolves | 2020 | South Atlantic (SAC) |
| Northcentral Technical College | Wausau, Wisconsin | 1912 | State technical college | 6,395 | Timberwolves | 2020 | N/A |
| Northern Essex Community College | Essex County, Massachusetts | 1961 | Community college | 6,600 | Knights | 2020 | Massachusetts (MCCAA) |
| Randolph–Macon College | Ashland, Virginia | 1830 | United Methodist | 1,419 | Yellow Jackets | 2020 | Old Dominion (ODAC) |
| University of Rio Grande | Rio Grande, Ohio | 1876 | Nonsectarian | 2,300 | RedStorm | 2020 | River States (RSC) |
| California State University, Sacramento (Sacramento State) | Sacramento, California | 1947 | Public | 31,156 | Hornets | 2020 | Big Sky (BSC) |
| St. Ambrose University | Davenport, Iowa | 1882 | Catholic | 3,607 | Fighting Bees | 2020 | Chicagoland (CCAC) |
| Tiffin University | Tiffin, Ohio | 1888 | Nonsectarian | 4,282 | Dragons | 2020 | Great Midwest (G-MAC) |
| Upper Iowa University | Fayette, Iowa | 1857 | Nonsectarian | 6,158 | Peacocks | 2020 | Northern Sun (NSIC) |
| Valparaiso University | Valparaiso, Indiana | 1859 | Lutheran | 4,500 | Beacons | 2020 | Missouri Valley (MVC) |
| Westcliff University | Irvine, California | 1993 | Nonsectarian | 2,779 | Warriors | 2020 | California Pacific (CalPac) |

#### Notes

* ↑ Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.
* 1 2 3 4 5 Currently an NCAA Division I athletic conference.
* 1 2 3 4 Currently an NCAA Division II athletic conference.
* 1 2 3 4 5 6 Currently an NAIA athletic conference.
* 1 2 This institution has no varsity sports program.
* 1 2 3 4 5 Currently an NJCAA athletic conference.

### Former members

The NECC had nine former full members, all were private schools:
| Institution | Location | Founded | Affiliation | Enrollment | Nickname | Joined | Left | Current conference |
| Bay Path University | Longmeadow, Massachusetts | 1897 | Nonsectarian | 3,298 | Wildcats | 2008 | 2021 | USCAA Independent |
| Becker College | Worcester, Massachusetts | 1784 | Nonsectarian | N/A | Hawks | 2008 | 2021 | Closed in 2021 |
| Dean College | Franklin, Massachusetts | 1865 | Nonsectarian | 1,055 | Bulldogs | 2017 | 2020 | Great Northeast (GNAC) |
| Daniel Webster College | Nashua, New Hampshire | 1965 | For-profit | N/A | Eagles | 2008 | 2017 | Closed in 2017 |
| Elms College | Chicopee, Massachusetts | 1899 | Catholic (S.S.J.) | 1,713 | Blazers | 2008 | 2021 | Great Northeast (GNAC) |
| Newbury College | Brookline, Massachusetts | 1962 | Nonsectarian | N/A | Nighthawks | 2008 | 2019 | Closed in 2019 |
| Regis College | Weston, Massachusetts | 1927 | Catholic (S.S.J.) | 2,748 | Pride | 2011 | 2017 | Great Northeast (GNAC) |
| Southern Vermont College | Bennington, Vermont | 1926 | Nonsectarian | N/A | Mountaineers | 2008 | 2019 | Closed in 2019 |
| Wheelock College | Boston, Massachusetts | 1888 | Nonsectarian | N/A | Wildcats | 2008 | 2018 | N/A |

#### Notes

* ↑ Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.
* ↑ Represents the calendar year when spring sports competition ends.
* ↑ This institution was a women's college, therefore it did not compete in men's sports.
* ↑ Wheelock was merged with Boston University in 2018.

### Former associate members

The NECC had eight former associate members, all but one were private schools.
| Institution | Location | Founded | Affiliation | Enrollment | Nickname | Joined | Left | NECC sport | Primary conference |
| Babson College | Wellesley, Massachusetts | 1919 | Nonsectarian | 3,340 | Beavers | 2009 | 2019 | men's golf | New England (NEWMAC) |
| Eastern Nazarene College | Quincy, Massachusetts | 1900 | Nazarene | 772 | Lions | 2016 | 2018 | men's volleyball | Closed in 2024 |
| Eastern Nazarene College | Quincy, Massachusetts | 1900 | Nazarene | 772 | Lions | 2023 | 2024 | men's volleyball | Closed in 2024 |
| Husson University | Bangor, Maine | 1898 | Nonsectarian | 3,476 | Eagles | 2019 | 2023 | field hockey | North Atlantic (NAC) |
| University of Maine at Farmington | Farmington, Maine | 1863 | Public | 1,861 | Beavers | 2019 | 2023 | field hockey | North Atlantic (NAC) |
| Manhattanville College | Purchase, New York | 1841 | Catholic (RSCJ) | 2,494 | Valiants | 2019 | 2022 | field hockey | Skyline |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) | Cambridge, Massachusetts | 1861 | Nonsectarian | 10,253 | Engineers | 2008 | 2009 | men's golf | New England (NEWMAC) |
| Springfield College | Springfield, Massachusetts | 1919 | Nonsectarian | 5,062 | Pride | 2008 | 2019 | men's golf | New England (NEWMAC) |
| Thomas College | Waterville, Maine | 1894 | Nonsectarian | 1,949 | Terriers | 2019 | 2023 | field hockey | North Atlantic (NAC) |

#### Notes

* ↑ Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.
* ↑ Represents the calendar year when spring sports competition ends.
* ↑ Eastern Nazarene competed as a full member of the NECC from 2018–19 to 2022–23.
* ↑ Part of the University of Maine System.
* ↑ MIT dropped the sport after just one season due to budget cuts.

### Membership timeline
## Sports

Conference sports :
| Sport | Men's | Women's |
| Baseball | 4 | - |
| Basketball | 4 | 4 |
| Cross Country | 4 | 4 |
| Esports | 29 | 29 |
| Field hockey | - | 4 |
| Golf | - | - |
| Lacrosse | 3 | 3 |
| Soccer | 4 | 4 |
| Softball | - | 4 |
| Volleyball | 9 | 4 |