Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference The Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference ( SCAC ) , founded in 1962 , is an athletic conference which competes in the NCAA ' s Division III . Member institutions are located in Colorado , Louisiana , and Texas . Difficulties related to travel distances led seven former members to announce the formation of a new Southeastern US - based conference , the Southern Athletic Association , starting with the 2012 – 13 academic year . Prior to 1991 , the conference was known as the College Athletic Conference . The current commissioner of the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference is Dwayne Hanberry . The current chair of the Executive Committee of the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference is Dr . Dennis Ahlburg , current Trinity University ( Texas ) president . Member schools . Future members . Two schools will join the SCAC in the 2013 – 14 academic year : Conference overview . Prior to the 2012 conference split , the SCAC fielded competition in baseball , basketball , cross country , field hockey , football , golf , lacrosse , soccer , softball , swimming and diving , tennis , outdoor track and field and volleyball . With membership greatly reduced and in flux , some of these sports ( field hockey , women ' s lacrosse ) no longer have enough participants ( zero and two , respectively ) to allow the conference to sponsor them . Unlike many Division III conferences , where geography is the primary determining factor for membership , the SCAC is made up of private institutions where the primary focus is on academics ; the New England Small College Athletic Conference and University Athletic Association are other athletic associations with similar academic emphasis . Almost all members sport Phi Beta Kappa chapters . Member schools are prominently featured in annual " Best College " rankings ; admissions are highly selective . In an unusual move for the conference , Colorado College , which offers two Division I ( scholarship ) sports , was accepted as a member beginning in the 2006 – 07 season . It is the only SCAC school to offer any sort of scholarship athletics , though the Division I programs — namely men ' s ice hockey and women ' s soccer — do not compete in the SCAC . ( The conference does not sponsor ice hockey for either men or women . ) The conference had previously announced its desire to expand to a total of twelve members , which would ease scheduling issues and allow the conference to divide into eastern and western divisions spread across the southern US . On May 26 , 2006 , Birmingham - Southern College , one of the smallest Division I schools in the country , announced its intentions to drop scholarship athletics and join the SCAC . This is a multi - year process subject to final approval by the NCAA . The SCAC approved BSC ' s application , pending NCAA approval , on June 8 , 2006 . Due to the unusual ( for Division III ) distances between member institutions , travel costs and durations must be factored into any decision to join the conference . Rose – Hulman cited these factors as reasons for leaving the conference when it rejoined the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference in 2006 – 07 . Austin College readily took RHIT ' s place , moving from the American Southwest Conference before the 2006 – 07 season . On June 9 , 2010 , DePauw University announced that it was departing the SCAC for the North Coast Athletic Conference . Like Rose - Hulman , DePauw cited " a less strenuous and more environmentally friendly travel regimen for our teams . " DePauw became a member of the NCAC for the 2011 - 2012 season except for football , which will join for the 2012 season . On September 22 , 2010 , the University of Dallas announced that it had accepted an invitation to join the SCAC at the beginning of the 2011 – 12 academic year . The May 10 , 2011 issue of the DePauw college newspaper , " The DePauw " , reported that four schools ( Centre , , Hendrix , and Rhodes ) were considering leaving the conference at the end of the 2011 – 2012 school year , ostensibly due to travel issues and issues relating to the conference splitting into two divisions . As the two reasons were somewhat exclusive ( e . g . divisions would reduce overall travel ) , and other regional conferences would offer similar issues , it remained to be seen at that time what the schools planned in a post - SCAC world . After the conclusion of the June 7 , 2011 SCAC Presidents ' meeting , the conference announced that seven of the twelve schools would be leaving to form a new , more compact conference based in the Southeastern US . This transition was effective at the conclusion of the 2011 - 12 academic year . The schools departing include founding SCAC [ CAC ] members Centre , Sewanee , and Rhodes , in addition to Birmingham - Southern , Hendrix , Millsaps , and Oglethorpe . Berry College will also join the newly formed Southern Athletic Association . The SCAC intends to remain a viable entity , enlisting other schools which subscribe to the SCAC charter . Commissioner D . Dwayne Hanberry will remain with the conference to oversee that effort , which will be complicated by the paucity of unaffiliated Division III schools in the SCAC ' s new region of Texas and Colorado . Reflecting that challenge , the conference has sought new members from the American Southwest Conference , whose geographical footprint is similar to that of the " new " SCAC . On September 28 , 2011 , Centenary College of Louisiana announced it will be joining the SCAC beginning in the 2012 – 2013 season . Two more ASC schools will join the SCAC for the 2013 – 14 season : Schreiner University announced their decision on January 23 , 2012 , and on February 16 , 2012 , Texas Lutheran University announced it too would join the SCAC . President ' s Trophy . Each year , the " President ' s Trophy , " a 300 - pound railroad bell , is awarded to the school with the best overall sports record . Teams are awarded points for their final position in each sport ; the school with the most points is declared the winner . For the 2011 – 12 school year , the President ' s Trophy was awarded to Trinity University . National championship teams and individuals . SCAC members have won a total of seven team championships and 31 individual championships . Team champions : Individual champions : This list does not include championships won by schools outside of their period of membership in the SCAC . Overall success on the national level . While championships come infrequently , overall SCAC athletic programs rate favorably when compared against the diverse Division III membership . The NACDA Director ' s Cup provides one representation of any school ' s athletic success as compared to its peers . Trinity has ranked in the top five nationally twice , most recently in 2004 – 2005 when it placed fourth . 2011 – 12 was another challenging year for the conference ; Trinity ' s 34th , ahead of Birmingham - Southerm ' s 45th , was the best showing the conference could muster . The SCAC and Division I . On several occasions the SCAC has been used as a role model for academically high - achieving Division I programs considering a move to non - scholarship athletics . In 2004 , Rice considered a move to Division III with Trinity cited as a possible model by the Houston Chronicle . That program eventually remained in Division I . In 2006 , Birmingham - Southern College elected to leave Division I for Division III , and stated that they would seek membership in the SCAC . This represented the first time since 1988 that a Division I school has changed affiliation to Division III . In 2012 , Centenary College of Louisiana will be joining the SCAC , after leaving Division I in 2011 ; however , its initial partner in the transition from Division I was the American Southwest Conference .