Centennial moments, 1956-60

The following events helped shape the NCAA from 1956 through 1960.

• 1956 (January 10) — Delegates at the 50th NCAA Convention approve the first College Division championship (basketball, for 1957); the NCAA treasurer reports the Association to be in stable financial condition for the first time.
• 1956 (April 12-14) — John Walsh of the University of Wisconsin, Madison, coaches his boxing team to a record eighth National Collegiate Boxing Championships team title.
• 1956 (June 24-30) — The University of Houston wins the first of 16 men’s golf championships between 1956 and 1985 under coach Dave Williams.
• 1957 (March) — Dartmouth College’s Chiharu Igaya becomes the only student-athlete to win six career individual titles in the National Collegiate Skiing Championships.
• 1957 (March 13-15) — The first College Division Basketball Championship is conducted at the University of Evansville.
• 1957 (March 23) — The University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, defeats the University of Kansas in a triple-overtime final at the NCAA Basketball Championship.
• 1958 (November 15) — The first College Division Cross Country Championships are conducted at Wheaton College (Illinois).
• 1959 (August 27) — Ownership of the National Collegiate Athletic Bureau is authorized.
• 1959 (November 28) — The first National Collegiate Soccer Championship is played at the University of Connecticut; Saint Louis University wins the first of 10 championships between 1959 and 1973 (five under coach Bob Guelker, five under coach Harry Keough).
• 1960 (March 19) — An Ohio State University team featuring four future Basketball Hall of Fame selections (Jerry Lucas, Bobby Knight, John Havlicek and coach Fred Taylor) wins the NCAA Basketball Championship.
• 1960 (April 7-9) — San Jose State University wins its third straight National Collegiate Boxing Championships team title under coach Julie Menendez in the final competition before the championships are discontinued.
• 1960 (April 27) — The NCAA cancels its alliance with the Amateur Athletic Union.