What Sports Does Livingstone College Offer and What Conference Is It In?

Livingstone College fields 12 varsity sports and competes in the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) Conference, at the NCAA Division II level. Its teams are known as the Blue Bears. The college states that the Blue Bears "boast some of the nation's finest facilities and compete against the CIAA's top competition."

Conference and Division at a Glance

The CIAA is the conference Livingstone identifies as its athletic home, and the college frames its membership as part of the broader Blue Bear Pride identity — the same identity tied to campus events and merchandise, including the recently unveiled bookstore and merchandising center.

What "12 CIAA Division 2 Varsity Sports" Means for You

If you are evaluating Livingstone as a student-athlete or a fan, the practical takeaways are:

• Division II eligibility and competition level. Livingstone competes in NCAA Division II rather than Division I, which affects recruiting timelines, scholarship structures, and the competitive schedule you would face.
• Conference opponents are CIAA members. Your travel and rivalries would center on CIAA competition rather than a national independent schedule.
• A defined sport count. The college states it offers 12 varsity sports, so the range of teams is fixed rather than open-ended.

How to Confirm the Specific Sports and Schedules

The source material confirms the conference, division, team name, and sport count, but it does not list each of the 12 sports by name. To get the exact roster of teams and game dates:

1. Check the athletics site linked from the college's main page for the full sport-by-sport list.
2. Use the campus events calendar (25Live) to see scheduled athletic and campus events.
3. Contact the athletics department directly if you need recruiting-specific information, since eligibility and tryout details are not covered in the general college description.

A Note on the Broader Campus Context

Livingstone College describes itself as a private historically black college with a Christian-based environment and programs in business, liberal arts, STEAM, teacher education, and workforce development. Athletics sits alongside that academic mission — the college presents Blue Bear sports as part of campus life rather than a separate track, which is worth knowing if you are weighing academics and athletics together.

One piece of institutional history the college highlights: the first black intercollegiate football game in America was played on Livingstone's front lawn on Dec. 27, 1892, against Biddle Memorial Institute (now Johnson C. Smith University). That context may matter if you are researching the program's tradition.