BIRMINGHAM- In 2020, the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) is celebrating 100-years of athletic and academic history. The SWAC was formed on September 10, 1920 in Houston from humble beginnings as a grand experiment with five historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) member institutions (four private institutions and one public institution).

The founding member institutions of the SWAC included Bishop College (now defunct), Paul Quinn College, Samuel Huston College (now Huston-Tillotson University) and Wiley College as well as one public institution, Prairie View State Normal & Industrial College (now Prairie View A&M University) in the Southwest region of the United States with a sixth joining just a year later, Texas College.

In 2021, the SWAC will add two HBCUs, Florida A&M University and Bethune-Cookman University, as the 11th and 12th member institutions. Among the 12 members institutions offering over 700 undergraduate and graduate degrees including:

• A Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training (CAATE) graduate program.
• Two architecture programs, two Accreditation Council of Pharmacy Education (ACPE) accredited programs.
• Three Planning Accreditation Board (PAB) accredited urban planning programs.
• Three American Bar Association (ABA) accredited law schools.
• Three Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (ACEJMC) accredited programs.
• Four sport management programs.
• Five accredited Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN) or Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) nursing programs.
• Seven Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) accredited engineering programs.
• 12 political science academic programs.
• 12 Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) or Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP) accredited business programs.
• 12 National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) / Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) accredited education programs.

According to the Carnegie Classification, seven members are listed within the top four classifications, three doctoral universities - high research activity (R2) designations and four master’s colleges and universities - larger programs (M1) designations.
  
About the Author 
Dr. Jafus Kenyatta Cavil is a Full Professor (Sport Management/Sport Studies/Sports Entertainment), of the Texas Southern College of Education with a joint appointment in the School of Communication, specializes in sport business leadership and one of the preeminent scholars on the sporting HBCU diaspora, HBCU sports culture theory, and HBCU athletics aesthetics.

He has published research articles such as The State of Intercollegiate Athletics at Historically Black Colleges/Universities (HBCUs): Past, Present, & Persistence,  completed commission studies such as, HBCU (A Minimum of Nine, A Maximum of 12) Football Reclassification & New HBCU FBS Conference Formation Study, and a book chapter titled: The Case for Tennessee State as an expansion member of the SWAC: Economic Impact.

Cavil was also one of the four authors along with Billy Hawkins, Joseph Cooper, and Akilah Carter-Francique that edited the textbook The Athletic Experience at Historically Black Colleges and Universities – Past, Present, and Persistence published in 2015. Dr. Cavil’s Inside the #HBCU Sports Lab with Mike Washington, and Charles Bishop radio show airs live every Tuesday from 6-7pm CST on KCOH 1230AM.

About the SWAC
The Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) is considered one of the premier HBCU conferences in the country and currently ranks among the elite in the nation in terms of HBCU alumni playing with professional sports teams.
 
Current championship competition offered by the league includes competition for men in Baseball, Basketball, Cross Country, Football, Golf, Indoor Track and Field, Outdoor Track and Field and Tennis.
 
Women’s competition is offered in the sports of Basketball, Bowling, Cross Country, Golf, Indoor Track and Field, Outdoor Track and Field, Soccer, Softball, Tennis and Volleyball.