[Updated: 10/9/26] -- Celebrating its 51st year of operation, the Old Dominion Athletic Conference is one of the nation’s largest Division III conferences. The ODAC’s membership features 14 full-time members and four associate members.
The league was formed May 18, 1975, as the Virginia College Conference and began operations in September 1976, changing to Old Dominion Athletic Conference on Jan. 1, 1976. Charter members were eight colleges located in the state of Virginia: Bridgewater College, Eastern Mennonite College (now University), Emory & Henry College, Hampden-Sydney College, Lynchburg College (now University of Lynchburg), Randolph-Macon College, Roanoke College and Washington and Lee University.
From its initial year of operation through the 1981-82 academic year, the ODAC sponsored competition in men’s varsity sports. Its initial 10 offerings included fall seasons for cross country, football, and soccer, winter campaigns for basketball indoor track & field, and wrestling, and spring schedules for baseball, golf, tennis, and outdoor track & field.
The ODAC announced the inclusion of women’s athletics prior to the 1982-83 academic year, which also introduced three new members to the league: Hollins College (now University), Randolph-Macon Woman’s College (now Randolph College), and Sweet Briar College. Today, the ODAC has grown to sponsor championships in 25 sports (12 men and 12 women, 1 co-ed) and is composed of 12 full-time co-educational institutions and three single-gender schools.
The ODAC has experienced a series of changes to its membership over time, including the addition and subtraction of former short-term members like Maryville College (Tenn.) (1980-88), Catholic University (1982-83), and Mary Baldwin College (now Mary Baldwin University) (1982-92).
Virginia Wesleyan College (now Batten University) joined the league in 1988 and began full-scale competition in the 1989-90 academic year. Guilford College entered under a similar scenario, receiving entry in the spring of 1990 and beginning conference competition in the 1991-92 campaign.
Catholic University started its second tour with the ODAC as a football-only associate member on January 12, 1999, and ended its affiliation with the league following the 2016 season. Greensboro College and Notre Dame of Maryland University were voted into the conference for women’s swimming, effective for the 2011-12 academic year. NDMU disbanded its program prior to the 2016-17 season. That still left the conference with two associates for women’s swimming and its new offering, men’s swimming, with Ferrum College joining Greensboro.
The ODAC President’s Council approved a full-time membership expansion in September 2010 with the acceptance of Shenandoah University. That marked the first change to the league’s full-time roster in 18 years. SU began competing in field hockey and track & field as an associate in 2011-12 before joining full-time on July 1, 2012. The conference again expanded to 15 full-time members six years later with the addition of Ferrum. The Panthers opened league play with the 2018-19 academic year.
Southern Virginia University became an associate member for football prior to the 2019 campaign, but the Knights association with ODAC football lasted just two years. That same season marked the end of affiliation with one of the conference’s charter members. Emory & Henry College exited the league with the announcement of its transition to NCAA Division II following 45 years of ODAC membership.
The conference’s full-time ranks quickly returned to 15 members with the introduction of Averett University. The Cougars began ODAC affiliation with the 2022-23 academic year, which coincided with the return of men’s wrestling to the league’s sports sponsorship. Greensboro, already an associate for men’s and women’s swimming, joined Southern Virginia as associate members competing in the league’s 25th sponsored sport.
In 2023-24, the ODAC expanded its competition level in equestrian with the addition of single-discipline riding under NCEA rules. That also featured associate affiliations with Berry College and Sewanee. The 2024-25 season was busy for ODAC with the league beginning play in men’s volleyball. Gallaudet University joined as an associate member in football, a partnership that would last only one season. Ferrum also concluded its association with the league as the Panthers left for Division II following the academic year.
The 2026-27 season marks the 34th year that the ODAC and City of Salem, Va., will partner to host NCAA Division III championships. Since the Stagg Bowl in December 1993, the two entities have co-hosted 91 Division III championship events in baseball, men’s and women’s basketball, football, women’s lacrosse, men’s and women’s soccer, softball, and women’s volleyball. This season, the ODAC will join Salem in hosting the Stagg Bowl for the 27th time. The ODAC joins the Greensboro Aquatic Center and Greensboro Sports Foundation as hosts of the Division III Men’s and Women’s Swimming & Diving Championships for the sixth time. Overall, the ODAC has been involved with 101 Division III championship events.
Governance:
The ODAC is governed by a 14-member Presidential body consisting of all of the full-time members' CEOs. Hampden-Sydney College College President, Dr. Larry Stimpert, is the chair of the ODAC Presidents' Council. In addition to presidential leadership, the conference's day-to-day operations are supervised by its Board of Directors, which consists of all conference member Directors of Athletics. Guilford College Director of Athletics Bill Foti serves as the current Board President.
Location:
The conference office is located in Forest, Virginia at 16001 Suite B Forest Road.
