Women Leaders in College Sports Announces 2017 Award of Distinction and Honor Award

PRESS RELEASE

August 8, 2017
Contact: Rachel DeSchepper
Women Leaders in College Sports
[email protected]
816-389-8208

Kansas City, Mo.—In recognition of outstanding achievement and dedication to the advancement of women in leadership, administration, and intercollegiate athletics, Women Leaders in College Sports announced today the 2017 recipients of the organization’s most distinguished awards: Dr. Pat Griffin, professor emerita in social justice education at the University of Massachusetts will receive the Honor Award; and Dr. Bernard Franklin, executive vice president of education and community engagement and chief inclusion officer at the NCAA will receive the Award of Distinction.

Dr. Griffin will be celebrated Monday, October 9 at the NIKE Lifetime Achievement and Honor Awards Luncheon—featuring special guest Jill Ellis, head coach of the USWNT—and Dr. Franklin will be recognized on Tuesday, October 10 at the Jostens Administrator of the Year and Award of Distinction Luncheon—which will be emceed by Beth Mowins, play-by-play announcer and sports journalist for ESPN and CBS—in conjunction with the 2017 Women Leaders National Convention in Dallas, Texas.

“Dr. Griffin and Dr. Franklin have dedicated their lives to helping others achieve success and ensuring gender equity in athletics and the workplace, and I feel honored to have been able to work closely with them over the last seven years,” says Patti Phillips, chief executive officer of Women Leaders in College Sports. “Collectively, Dr. Franklin and Dr. Griffin have impacted thousands of women in sports and future generations will continue to benefit from their tireless work and outstanding achievements. Women Leaders is thrilled and honored to have the opportunity to recognize and celebrate both of them in Dallas.”

The Honor Award recognizes individuals or entities who have exemplified outstanding support of women in athletics and their success. The Award of Distinction is presented as a special recognition to a male or female who has distinguished him/herself with unique professional contributions, extraordinary service, and personal courage. Honorees are nominated by their peers and selected by past Lifetime Achievement award recipients.

View past Women Leaders award winners here.

About the Honorees

Dr. Pat Griffin is professor emerita in social justice education at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst where her research and writing interests were LGBT issues in education and athletics. She published hundreds of articles on sexism and heterosexism in education and athletics.

In addition to a successful academic career, Dr. Griffin played a pioneering role as an open lesbian publicly speaking out on behalf of LGBTQ athletes, coaches, and educators. Sometimes called the grandmother of the LGBTQ sports equality movement, she has been a persistent advocate for LGBTQ people in sport for over 35 years. In 2013 she received an honorary doctoral degree from Laval University in Quebec recognizing her scholarship and activism on LGBTQ issues in sports.

She is the author of Strong Women, Deep Closets: Lesbians and Homophobia in Sports (1998), a ground-breaking exploration of this topic and its effects on all women in sport. She was the founding director for Changing the Game: The GLSEN Sports Project and the former director of the Women’s Sports Foundation’s It Takes A Team project, an LGBT education project. She works with the NCAA and consults with college and high school athletic departments on LGBTQ issues in sports. Dr. Griffin is also co-editor of Teaching For Diversity and Social Justice, co-author of On The Team: Equal Opportunities for Transgender Student-Athletes, and co-author of the NCAA Guide for the Inclusion of Transgender Athletes and Champions of Respect: NCAA Guide for the Inclusion of LGBTQ Student-Athletes.

Dr. Griffin has also taken a lead role in initiating discussions about finding common ground among LGBTQ people and people of faith in athletics so that all athletes and coaches can participate fully regardless of their sexual orientation, gender identity or religious faith. She is currently on the Common Ground leadership team dedicated to bringing people from all faith perspectives, sexual orientations and gender identities together to discuss ways to make athletics inclusive for all.

A life-long athlete she played field hockey, basketball and swam at the University of Maryland and was a member of the 1971 United States Field Hockey Team. She coached swimming and diving at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and field hockey and basketball at Wheaton High School in Montgomery County, Maryland. She also won a bronze medal in the Triathlon at the 1994 Gay Games Triathlon and a gold medal in the hammer throw at the 1998 Gay Games.

Dr. Bernard Franklin leads as the executive vice president of education and community engagement and chief inclusion officer. He is responsible for working with the NCAA president, executive vice presidents and members of the President’s Cabinet to ensure the development of programs, policies and services that address the educational and community engagement aspects of intercollegiate athletics. Additionally, he serves as the chief inclusion officer, overseeing diversity and inclusion initiatives for both the NCAA membership and national office staff.

In this role, Dr. Franklin has championed many programs in partnership with Women Leaders in College Sports, including the Presidential/Search Firm Roundtable hosted during the Women Leaders National Convention, and has supported the growth of Women Leaders Institutes through grants. He was also instrumental in the creation of the NCAA Presidential Pledge and Commitment Promoting Diversity and Gender Equity.

Before joining the NCAA in 2003, Franklin served as president of Virginia Union University, Livingstone College, Hood Theological Seminary, and Saint Augustine’s College, which is now Saint Augustine’s University. During that time, he served the Association as a member of the NCAA Division II Presidents Council and the NCAA Executive Committee.

Franklin is engaged in numerous community projects throughout the Indianapolis area. He is a board member for Visit Indy, the Indianapolis Chamber of Commerce and the Indianapolis Urban League. A native of Montclair, New Jersey, he holds an Ed.D. from Teachers College, Columbia University, where he specialized in higher education administration with an emphasis on student personnel administration. He earned his Master of Education degree from Western Maryland College – now McDaniel College – where he specialized in educational administration, and his bachelor’s degree from Simpson College.

About the Women Leaders National Convention

The Women Leaders National Convention is the premier conference for women working in intercollegiate athletics. Attended by athletics directors, conference commissioners, coaches, administrators, and staff from all divisions of intercollegiate athletics, this annual gathering provides three days of unparalleled education, leadership training and networking. The 2017 event will be held October 8-10 at the Sheraton Dallas Hotel.

About Women Leaders in College Sports

Founded in 1979, Women Leaders in College Sports (formerly NACWAA; www.womenleadersincollgesports.org) is the only nationally recognized collegiate professional membership organization whose mission is to develop, connect, and advance women leaders working in intercollegiate athletics. More than 3,500 members strong, Women Leaders promotes the growth, leadership, and success of women as athletics administrators, conference commissioners, professional staff, coaches, and student-athletes.