WeCOACH Announces 2024-25 Lifetime Achievement Award Recipients
February 5, 2025 – On National Girls & Women in Sports Day, WeCOACH is proud to announce five recipients of the 2024-25 Lifetime Achievement Award presented by Jostens. The prestigious WeCOACH Lifetime Achievement Award is presented to women in sports who succeed at the highest levels in their respective careers, while also displaying an unwavering commitment, pioneering spirit, and trailblazing leadership to empower and pave the way for girls and women in all sports and levels to breakthrough for many generations to come. This year’s class boasts over 200 years of coaching experience (and counting), over 5,000 wins, and over 50 national & state championships.
This year’s recipients include Coach Jan Hutchinson, Bloomsburg University Head Field Hockey & Softball Coach (retired); Coach Carmen Jackson, Miami Northwestern Senior High School Head Track & Field Coach; Dr. Ann Lebedeff, Pomona-Pitzer Colleges Emerita Professor of Physical Education & Head Tennis Coach (retired); Coach Pat Summitt, University of Tennessee Head Women’s Basketball Coach (posthumous); and Coach Tara VanDerveer, Stanford University Head Women’s Basketball Coach (retired).
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UPCOMING EVENTS
The mission of WeCOACH is to MOVE the NUMBERS
of women in coaching, in all sports & all levels.
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Prior to Title IX in 1972, over 90% of women’s collegiate sports teams were coached by women.
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Over 50 years later, for all three NCAA divisions, that number has decreased to 41% women head coaches of women’s teams. This means only 4 out of 10 NCAA women’s teams are coached by women. And women head coaches lead only 24% of the 20,255 total NCAA men’s & women’s teams.
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Only 6% women head coaches lead NCAA men’s teams. Out of 9,291 total NCAA men’s teams head coaching opportunities, only 574 are led by women.
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Women of Color head coaches lead 7% of NCAA women’s teams and only 1% of NCAA men’s teams. Out of 20,255 total head coaching opportunities for NCAA men’s & women’s teams, only 890 are led by Women of Color.
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At the youth level, only 26% of youth sports head coaches were women in 2022, up slightly from 24% in 2019.
STORIES
OF IMPACT
Celebrating moments that became a movement within our community.
