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| Pratt athletics photo |
The City University of New York Athletic Conference is taking another crack at expansion, and has announced that Pratt Institute will be joining the new, expanded conference in the fall of 2027. This conference, which is currently in the naming, branding, and incorporation stages, focuses on institutions near New York City. Additional expansion is expected.
The conference had previously announced in 2025 that it was adding New Jersey City University. However, New Jersey City is in the middle of being overtaken by Kean University, and it was announced in January 2026 that New Jersey City athletics will be discontinued.
Pratt is the third school in the past 12 months to announce that it is leaving the Atlantic East Conference, joining Marywood and Neumann, which are leaving for the Middle Atlantic Conferences in the fall of 2026. The AEC added St. Elizabeth this past fall. Without further expansion, the AEC will have six schools next fall, and five in the fall of 2027.
The Cannoneers will begin competition in the new conference in 2027-28. Pratt will join Baruch, Brooklyn, City College of New York, Hunter, John Jay, Lehman, Medgar Evers, and York (N.Y.). Pratt is a current member of the Atlantic East Conference and will wrap up membership in that league following the 2026-27 academic year. “As we look forward to the integration of Pratt, it allows for a more vibrant future and the potential for new and exciting directions for the conference,” said Dr. Fernando Delgado, president of Lehman College and chair of the CUNY Athletic Conference Council of Presidents and the presidential leader for this group of schools forming this new conference. “We welcome Pratt and look forward to their participation on and off the fields of competition.”
“Pratt, as a future member of this new conference, is monumental for several reasons. First and foremost, they fit with our other institutions in many ways, including but not limited to geographical, sport sponsorship, and competitive levels,” said CUNYAC acting commissioner Kurt Patberg. “In addition, they are a well-established, strong academic institution with specialized curricula, like many of our institutions. They are the first private institution of what will hopefully be several others that see this new conference as a great fit.”
Pratt Institute, located in Brooklyn, sponsors 14 NCAA Division III sports, including equestrian, and enrolls approximately 5,100 students. The Cannoneers will compete in the new conference in men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s cross country, men’s and women’s soccer, men’s and women’s tennis, men’s and women’s indoor and outdoor track and field, and men’s and women’s volleyball.
"We are thrilled to embark on this new chapter, one that brings Pratt even closer to the heart of New York City and aligns our athletic program with institutions that value both academic creativity and competitive spirit," said Pratt Institute Vice President for Student Affairs Delmy Lendof. "This move to a vibrant, New York City-centered conference is a natural evolution for Pratt, strengthening our ties to the communities we serve across the boroughs,"