the tournament. The school joins Tuskegee University, Florida A&M University, and Morehouse College, as the only schools to win back-to-back championships at HCASC. Athletics The Oakwood athletic teams are called the Ambassadors and Lady Ambassadors. The university is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), primarily competing in the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference (GCAC) since the 2022–23 academic year. The Ambassadors and Lady Ambassadors previously competed as a member of the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) until after the 2021–22 school year. Oakwood competes in five intercollegiate varsity sports: men's teams include basketball and soccer; while women's teams include basketball, soccer and volleyball. Former sports included baseball and softball. Intramurals The university also offers several intramural sport activities. Move to the NAIA On January 20, 2022, Oakwood got an invitation to join the GCAC, along with Wiley College and the return of Southern University at New Orleans, effective beginning in July 2022. The GCAC is an athletic conference affiliated with the NAIA. Men's basketball The Ambassadors men's basketball team won the 2008 USCAA National Championship in the team's first season a member of the association. The Ambassadors won their second USCAA Division I National Championship in March 2012 against Rochester College, and their third in March 2016. The university became the first college or university in Alabama to win three men's basketball championships when the Ambassadors defeated Concordia College to win the 2016 USCAA Division I National Championship. The Ambassadors men's basketball team won the university's fourth title in 2019 with a 58–57 win against Bluefield State. Adventist Colleges Abroad Adventist Colleges Abroad is a program that allows Oakwood students to spend time studying at Adventist universities outside of the United States while earning credit for the degree they are pursuing at Oakwood. Principals and presidents Everyone who served between 1896 and 1917 was a principal. Everyone listed afterward was a president. Solon Marquis Jacobs, 1896–1897 Henry S. Shaw, 1897–1899 Benn Eugene Nicola, 1899–1904 Fred R. Rogers, 1904–1905 Granville H. Baber, 1905–1906 Walter James Blake, 1906–1911 Clarence Jesse Boyd, 1911–1917 James I. Beardsley, 1917–1923 Joseph A. Tucker, 1923–1932 Frank Loris Peterson, 1945–1954 Garland Jefferson Millet, 1954–1963 Addison Vastapha Pinkney, 1963–1966 Frank W. Hale, Jr., 1966–1971 Calvin B. Rock, 1971–1985 Benjamin F. Reaves, 1985–1996 Delbert W. Baker, 1996–2010 Leslie N. Pollard, 2010–present Notable alumni Further reading Oakwood! A Vision Splendid, Mervyn A. Warren (1996) A Place Called