Editing Frontier Conference (section)

==History==
The '''Montana Small College Conference''' ('''MSCC''') was established in 1934 by the five smaller schools ([[Montana Technological University]], the [[University of Montana Western]], [[Montana State University–Northern]], [[Rocky Mountain College|Intermountain Union College]] and [[Rocky Mountain College|Billings Polytechnic Institute]]) in the state. The MSCC was renamed as the '''Montana Collegiate Conference''' ('''MCC''') in 1936, with the additions of [[Montana State University Billings]] and [[Carroll College]] joining. The merger of Intermountain Union and Billings Poly to become [[Rocky Mountain College]] occurred in 1947. After nearly three decades, the conference reestablished itself under its current moniker in November 1966, containing the same six schools until 1974.<ref>{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=Montana Collegiate League Changes Name |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37840780/the_daily_herald/ |newspaper=[[Daily Herald (Utah)|Daily Herald]] |location=[[Provo, Utah]] |agency=[[United Press International]] |date=November 13, 1966 |page=20 |access-date=October 25, 2019 |via=[[Newspapers.com]] {{Open access}} }}</ref> The [[University of Providence]] (then the College of Great Falls) joined that year, however would only stay for a decade. MSU Billings left for the first incarnation of the [[Great Northwest Athletic Conference]] in 1988, leaving the Frontier at five members for another decade. The conference opened up outside of Montana for the first time in 1998, with schools from Idaho ([[Lewis–Clark State College]]) and Utah ([[Westminster University (Utah)|Westminster College]]) joining. Great Falls rejoined in 1999. [[Dickinson State University]] joined in 2012, only to leave in 2014 to join the [[North Star Athletic Association]] (NSAA). Westminster (Utah) left for the [[National Collegiate Athletic Association]] (NCAA) [[NCAA Division II|Division II]] ranks and rejoined the [[Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference]] (RMAC) in 2015. Lewis–Clark State left for the [[Cascade Collegiate Conference]] as a full member in 2020.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.montanasports.com/frontier/2019/05/20/lewis-clark-state-leaving-frontier-conference-to-join-cascade-collegiate-conference/ |title=Lewis-Clark State leaving Frontier Conference to join Cascade Collegiate Conference |access-date=March 18, 2020 |work=MontanaSports.com |date=May 20, 2019}}</ref>

===Recent changes===
On September 8, 2022, [[Arizona Christian University]] received an invitation to join the conference as an associate member for football, beginning the 2023 fall season of the 2023–24 academic year.<ref>{{cite news |title=Arizona Christian Firestorm Football to Join the Frontier Conference in 2023 |url=https://victorysportsnetwork.com/2022/09/08/arizona-christian-firestorm-football-to-join-the-frontier-conference-in-2023/ |access-date=September 10, 2022 |work=Victory Sports Network |date=September 8, 2022}}</ref>

On December 12, 2023, the Frontier Conference had offered an invitation to former member Dickinson State University;<ref>{{cite press release |title=Frontier Adding Dickinson State as Newest Conference Member |url=https://fcsports.org/news/2023/12/11/frontier-conference-frontier-adding-dickinson-state-as-newest-conference-member.aspx |website=Frontier Conference |access-date=December 12, 2023 |date=December 12, 2023}}</ref> while on May 21, 2024, [[Bellevue University]], [[Dakota State University]], [[Mayville State University]] and [[Valley City State University]] also received invitations to join the conference;<ref>{{cite press release |title=Frontier Conference Expands to 11 Full-time Members|url=https://fcsports.org/news/2024/5/20/frontier-conference-expands-to-11-full-time-members.aspx |website=Frontier Conference |access-date=May 21, 2024 |date=May 21, 2024}}</ref> and then on October 24, 2024, [[Bismarck State College]], an institution coming from the junior college ranks, announced that it received an invitation to the conference, during its transition to the NAIA;<ref>{{cite press release |title=Bismarck State College announces transition to NAIA and the Frontier Conference|url=https://fcsports.org/news/2024/10/24/bismarck-state-college-announces-transition-to-naia-and-the-frontier-conference.aspx |website=Frontier Conference |access-date=October 24, 2024 |date=October 24, 2024}}</ref> all effective beginning the 2025–26 academic year.

On May 30, 2024, [[Simpson University]] accepted an invitation to join the conference as an associate member for football, beginning the 2025 fall season of the 2025–26 academic year.<ref>{{cite press release |title=Simpson University Football Joins Frontier Conference, Ushering in a New Era of Simpson Athletics |url=https://simpsonredhawks.com/news/2024/5/30/Simpson_University_Football_Joins_Frontier_Conferenc_Ushering_in_a_New_Era_of_Simpson_Athletics.aspx |publisher=Simpson University Athletics|date=May 30, 2024|access-date=May 30, 2024}}</ref>

===Chronological timeline===
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* 1934 – The Frontier Conference was founded as the Montana Small College Conference (MSCC). Charter members included the [[Rocky Mountain College|Billings Polytechnic Institute]], [[Rocky Mountain College|Intermountain Union College]], [[University of Montana Western|Montana State Normal College]] (now the University of Montana Western), [[Montana Technological University|Montana State School of Mines]] (now Montana Technological University) and [[Montana State University–Northern|Northern Montana College]] (now Montana State University–Northern), beginning the 1934–35 academic year.
* 1936 – [[Carroll College|Carroll College of Montana]] and [[Montana State University Billings|Eastern Montana Normal College]] (now Montana State University–Billings) joined the MSCC, which was rebranded as the Montana Collegiate Conference (MCC) in the 1936–37 academic year.
* 1947 – Billings Poly and Intermountain Union merge to form [[Rocky Mountain College]].
* 1966 – The MCC was rebranded as the Frontier Conference, beginning the 1966–67 academic year.
* 1974 – The [[University of Providence|College of Great Falls]] (later the University of Great Falls, now the University of Providence) joined the Frontier in the 1974–75 academic year.
* 1980 – Montana State–Billings (MSU Billings) left the Frontier to join the [[NCAA Division II|Division II]] ranks of the [[National Collegiate Athletic Association]] (NCAA) as an [[NCAA Division II independent schools|NCAA D-II Independent]] (which would later join the [[Pacific West Conference|Great Northwest Conference]], beginning the 1982–83 school year) after the 1979–80 academic year.
* 1984 – Great Falls left the Frontier as the school discontinued its athletic program after the 1983–84 academic year.
* 1998 – [[Lewis–Clark State College]] and [[Westminster University (Utah)|Westminster College]] joined the Frontier in the 1998–99 academic year.
* 1999 – Great Falls rejoined the Frontier after 15 years without an athletics program in the 1999–2000 academic year.
* 2008 – [[Eastern Oregon University]] joined the Frontier as an affiliate member for football in the 2008 fall season (2008–09 academic year).
* 2012 – [[Dickinson State University]] joined the Frontier in the 2012–13 academic year.
* 2012 – [[Southern Oregon University]] joined the Frontier as an affiliate member for football in the 2012 fall season (2012–13 academic year).
* 2014 – Dickinson State left the Frontier to join the [[North Star Athletic Association]] (NSAA) after the 2013–14 academic year.
* 2014 – The [[College of Idaho]] joined the Frontier as an affiliate member for football in the 2014 fall season (2014–15 academic year).
* 2015 – Westminster (Utah) left the Frontier to join the NCAA Division II ranks and rejoin back to the [[Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference]] (RMAC) after the 2014–15 academic year.
* 2020 – Lewis–Clark State left the Frontier to join the [[Cascade Collegiate Conference]] (CCC) after the 2019–20 academic year.
* 2023 – [[Arizona Christian University]] joined the Frontier as an affiliate member for football in the 2023 fall season (2023–24 academic year)
* 2025 – [[Bellevue University]], [[Bismarck State College]], [[Dakota State University]], [[Mayville State University]] and [[Valley City State University]] will all join the Frontier (with Dickinson State rejoining at the same time), beginning the 2025–26 academic year. Everyone (except Bismarck State) would join from the NSAA, which would cease operations after spring 2025.
* 2025 – [[Simpson University]] will join the Frontier as an affiliate member for football, beginning the 2025 fall season (2025–26 academic year)