Women of the NJCAA Board of Regents
Celebrating the NJCAA's female leadership on National Girls & Women in Sports Day
Charlotte, NC - Today is February 5th, the 34th Annual National Girls & Women in Sports Day held by the Women's Sports Foundation (WSF). It's a hallmark occasion for our association to pause, if just for a moment, and celebrate the female figures that dot the NJCAA landscape – be it on the field during a hotly contested soccer match or in the open-door offices of athletic administration. This year's theme is "Lead Her Forward." It's a fitting title for two-year athletics whose signature is a deep, meaningful investment for the student-athletes who choose it. In that spirit, the NJCAA National Office desires to highlight the very women who lead our Association forward – by their representation on our elected NJCAA Board of Regents – and model the success available in the world of two-year athletics to any woman that sets her mind to it.
These women of the Board began with a passion for playing themselves. Board of Regents Women's Administrator Marci Henry, who hails from rural Colorado, and Mary Young, our Region 9 representative, were volleyball gurus who hung out on the courts more than they did their living rooms. Michelle Ruble shared their fanaticism for the sport, playing at Elon University with three years as team captain. Basketball was the passion for many of the women sitting on our Board. Michelle Ivey of Region 22 played for Eckerd College and was inducted into their Hall of Fame in 2000 along with the state of Michigan's Hall of Fame in 2011. Dr. Margaret McMenamin, former Chair of the Presidential Advisory Council, was a fiery member of the 1975 Temple University Basketball Team and graduated cum laude. At-Large representative Cali Crawford finished as the second-leading scorer at Oakland Christian High and the second all-time in minutes played per game at Madonna University. And, rounding it out is All-American Kerri McTiernan (At-Large representative) who set the school record for steals at Johns Hopkins University. These women sweated passion through their pores.
These women weren't simply satisfied with playing, though; they wanted to pour into other female student-athletes no matter how challenging. Coaching isn't an easy gig. Our female Board members would be the first to tell you that. However, the reward of victory – even the small success of a play hammered over and over in practice – overrides every moment of struggle. In fact, the struggle makes it sweeter. They would attest to that, too. When Prince George's Community College (MD) sat without a Women's Soccer Team, Jo Ann Rogers Todaro(Region 20) stepped up to the plate, created the program, and served as its Head Coach from 1997 – 2004. In 2000, a 25-year-old Kerri McTiernan walked into the Kingsborough Community College (NY) gym on her first day, informed the players there'd be some cuts, and became the first female head coach of a men's collegiate basketball team in U.S. history. That isn't to mention the CUNYAC Championship Title she won that year. Marcilina Grayer is now the head coach of the very women's basketball program at Salt Lake Community College (UT) that she played for, and Mary Young completed 24 successful seasons as Head Volleyball Coach at Central Community College (NE) before being named Athletic Director last year. These women considered coaching an honor and committed their lives to paving a path for those following behind them.
All these women harnessed an inner strength, an inner grit that pushed them not only to carry out change but create it. For those reasons, all of them climbed the ladder of education and reached the ranks of athletic administration. That is, after all, how our paths intersected. On the Board of Regents, Marci Henry serves at the helm as Women's Administrator. She leads with natural confidence and unwavering consistency. The same could be said of Dr. Margaret McMenamin, Presidential Advisory Council Northeast District representative, whose strong voice guides the body in an unparalleled way. She embodies strength and intelligence and practicality. Cali Crawford represents a quiet strength – not needing to say all the words, but the right ones. She is methodical and thoughtful. Michelle Ivey is steady and firm, confident in her stances and warm in her delivery. Kerri McTiernan is the queen of communication, speaking up when others won't and always reaffirming the need to provide action with rhetoric, movement with words. Mary Young is frank and to the point, breaking to provide humor here and there; Marcilina is a listener with a vivacious personality, and Michelle Ruble is a breath of fresh air while standing her ground on topics of weight.
Like you and I, they are very different women yet share common passions and common ground. They are the women of our Board of Regents and of our Association, and their lives give us examples to strive for as female leaders of the NJCAA.