American Collegiate Hockey Association The American Collegiate Hockey Association ( ACHA ) is a chartered non - profit corporation that is the national governing body of non - varsity college ice hockey in the United States . The organization provides structure , regulations , promotes the quality of play , sponsors National Awards and National Tournaments . The ACHA currently has three men ' s and two women ' s divisions and includes approximately 450 teams from across the United States . Teams offer no athletic scholarships and typically receive far less university funding . The ACHA offers an opportunity for college hockey programs that struggle with large budgets and Title IX issues , as an alternative to the National Collegiate Athletic Association ( NCAA ) structure . Many schools field separate teams in both the NCAA and ACHA . Policies and regulation . The ACHA ' s primary mission is to support the growth of two - year and four - year collegiate hockey programs nationwide . The ACHA identifies standards that serve to unite and regulate teams at the collegiate level . The ACHA emphasizes academic performance , institutional sanction , eligibility criteria , and standards of play and opportunities for national competition , and the ACHA promotes all aspects of collegiate hockey stressing the personal development of individual athletes as well as national recognition for member organizations . In order to do this , the ACHA has developed organizational by - laws and a " Policies and Procedures Manual " to provide the policy foundation for the organization as it works to fulfill its purpose . These documents are reviewed yearly at the ACHA ' s annual meeting . The ACHA ' s policies cover team and player eligibility , rules of play , ranking procedures , national tournament procedures , and other administrative issues , although the ACHA parallels the NCAA Division III with most eligibility requirements , gameplay rules , etc . The league holds its annual meeting in conjunction with the annual convention of the American Hockey Coaches Association , in the month of April in Naples , Florida . ACHA history . The ACHA was established on April 20 , 1991 . Fifteen charter members met during the Chicago Showcase in Skokie , Illinois at the North Shore Hilton . These member teams had been playing college hockey for many years but wished to legitimize its play by standardizing some of its procedures . The members that created the organization were : Tom Keegan ( ACHA ) , Al Murdoch ( Iowa State ) , Joe Battista ( Penn State ) , Jim Gilmore ( Ohio ) , Ernie Ferrari ( Stanford ) , Howard Jenks ( California - Berkeley ) , Jeff Aikens ( North Dakota State ) , Don Spencer ( West Virginia ) , Jim Barry ( Navy ) , Scott Fuller ( Navy ) , Leo Golembiewski ( Arizona ) , Ron Starr ( DePaul ) , Cary Adams ( PCHA ) , Jim Warden ( PCHA ) , and Jack White ( UCLA ) . The inaugural year of the ACHA was the 1991 - 1992 season . The goal of the organization was to create an impartial governing body to monitor national tournaments , player eligibility , and general oversight . Over the years the ACHA quickly grew to over 150 teams in three men ' s divisions . A Women ' s Division was added in 2000 with a second Women ' s division being added for the 2006 - 2007 season . By the 2001 - 2002 season , marking their 10th year anniversary , the ACHA had a total of 179 teams registered with 33 teams in Division 1 , 100 teams in Division 2 , 18 teams in Division 3 , and 20 teams in the Women ' s Division . By the 2002 - 2003 season that number raised to over 250 teams , with Division 3 adding over 80 teams alone . By the 2003 - 2004 season the number raised to 278 teams : 40 teams in D - 1 , 124 teams in D - 2 , 87 teams in D - 3 , and 27 teams in the Women ' s Division . By the summer of 2007 ACHA membership had reached 360 teams ( M1 - 54 , M2 - 190 , M3 - 139 , W1 - 32 , W2 - 8 ) , that cover 48 of the 50 states . During the summer of 2009 the University of Alaska Fairbanks established a Women ' s Division 2 team becoming the 49th state in the ACHA . Hawaii is currently the only state without an ACHA team . Every year since 2003 , the Men ' s Division 1 Showcase has been an event that features some of the top teams in the ACHA . ACHA partners with Fasthockey . com to broadcast many of the league ' s games and National Tournaments . Membership . The ACHA includes both Men ' s and Women ' s Divisions . The Men ' s side is made up of three Divisions : 1 , 2 , and 3 . Division 3 was the last to be established in 1999 . Each division has its own distinguishing set of guidelines which are explained below . The Women ' s side has two divisions . Division 1 began in 2000 and Division 2 is the most recent addition to the ACHA with its inception in 2006 . Despite most teams non - varsity status , the caliber of ACHA play can be quite high , especially in Division 1 . Many large universities that do not sponsor hockey at the NCAA varsity level have become powerhouses , such as Ohio University and Illinois . Additionally , several universities that do sponsor NCAA varsity hockey teams also field an ACHA - affiliated teams . Of all non - varsity sports activities , the ACHA - affiliated hockey teams generally garner the most attention at their universities , such as Missouri State and Kentucky where it is the third largest spectator sport . The same can be said for the Arizona who draws the third largest fan base behind football and basketball . All ACHA teams are members of USA Hockey and the American Hockey Coaches Association ( AHCA ) . Conferences Conferences Conferences International competition . Players are selected from Men ' s ACHA schools to represent USA hockey in two different international competitions . The first is the ACHA Division 2 & Division 3 Selects Teams and the other is the World University Games team . The 27th edition of the World University Games will take place in Trentino , Italy from December 11 - 21 , 2013 . The event will mark the seventh consecutive time that the ACHA will represent the United States . The World University Games team is composed mostly of Division 1 players and some Division 2 players . The Division 2 & Division 3 Selects Teams alternate going over to Europe each year during the Holiday Break to play European teams . For the 2012 - 13 season it was the Division 3 teams turn to go to Europe . They played teams in Germany , Austria and Slovenia . For the 2013 - 14 season the Division 2 team will head off to Europe . The players are chosen from a round robin tournament in the spring usually in Pennsylvania . The tournament pits each conference ' s elite players against each other . Logos . The original ACHA logo was created by Dave Kammerdeiner of the West Virginia University Art Department under the direction of Don Spencer for a cost of $ 50 . In August 2003 , the ACHA held an official contest to design a new logo , with the winning school receiving free registration for the 2003 - 2004 season . The University of Washington ' s Husky Hockey team won the contest , with former graphic - design intern Tom Eykemans designing the new version of the logo ( as shown above ) . Men ' s champions . Division 1 . ACHA Founded in 1991 - First ACHA Nationals held at Penn State University .