Title IX 50th Anniversary Archives - ��سԹ�

In Recognition of the Title IX 50th Anniversary, GWU’s Hall of Fame Class of 2022 Honors Women Record-Breakers

Office of University Communications — Mon, 31 Oct 2022 10:30:00 +0000

Inductees are Joan Cline-Backhaus, Christa Fullwood, Emily Harrellson, Dominique Hudson and Phyllis Littlefield Moore

In honor of the impact of Title IX on collegiate athletics at ��سԹ�, the 2022 class celebrated women trailblazers, pioneers and record-breakers. This list included Joan Cline-Backhaus (Basketball, 1957-59), Christa Fullwood (Softball, 2008-2010), Emily Harrellson (Cross Country/Softball, 1994-98), Dominique Hudson (Basketball, 2007-2011), and Phyllis Littlefield Moore (Basketball/Volleyball, 1975-79).

A legend of the basketball court while at ��سԹ�, Joan Cline Backhaus was a two-time All-State selection during ��سԹ�’s junior college years. She averaged 34 points per game as a Runnin’ Bulldog, and also served as a GW cheerleader. She once scored 72 points in a high school game and was known for her dominating presence on the court as a team leader. Backhaus earns the Athletics hall of fame honor posthumously.

Joan Cline Backhaus

Christa Fullwood

Emily Harrellson

Dominique Hudson

Phyllis Littlefield Moore

Christa Fullwood ranks in the top-five in Runnin’ Bulldogs softball history in total bases, RBIs, doubles and batting average. Her .460 batting average from 2009 is the second-best in program history, and she finished her career with a .380 batting average, 31 doubles, 20 homeruns, and 107 RBIs. Fullwood was a two-time All-Big South Conference first team honoree, two-time NCCSIA All-State recipient, and a 2010 second-team NFCA All-Region (Mid-Atlantic) selection.

Emily Harrellson lettered in basketball, cross country and softball while at ��سԹ�. She graduated with a 3.78 GPA while double-majoring in business and physical education. Her academic achievements helped to earn her the First Union SAC Scholar-Athlete of the Year in cross country (1997), the First Union SAC Scholar-Athlete of the Year in softball (1998), and she was recognized three times as a Division II Academic All American (twice for cross country and once in softball). Harrellson was also recognized with the South Atlantic Conference Presidential Award, and was named to the All-SAC first team in cross country (1996, 1997). She earned All-SAC second-team honors twice in softball (1996,1998). In 1996, she was a member of the Runnin’ Bulldogs softball squad that finished the season with a 30-14 record and was a part of the 1997 Food Lion SAC Tournament Championship team. Harrellson also played 25 games as a freshman on the basketball court for the ‘dawgs.

Dominique Hudson finished her career as GWU’s Division I all-time leading scorer with 1,407 career points on the basketball court, which ranks fifth all-time in GWU history. She was also the ‘Dawgs DI career assists leader (579) and steals leader (244). Hudson also ranked first in GWU’s DI career record book in games played (129), minutes played (3545) and free throws made (419). She ranked second in GWU DI history in most games started (102), third in field goals made (443) and fifth in three-pointers made (102). During the 2009-10 season, Hudson picked up a DI single season record for GW with 78 steals. Hudson earned a spot on the 2010-11 Big South Presidential Honor Roll and was the Big South leader in assists (194) for 2011, a GWU regular season record for the DI era. Hudson led the Runnin’ Bulldogs to a WNIT appearance (2010) after winning the Big South regular season title, and first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance in 2011. She was a member of the 2008 Big South All-Freshmen team, two-time All-Big South Conference selection, three-time Big South All-Tournament Team honoree, and the 2011 Big South Tournament MVP.

Phyllis Littlefield Moore was the first coach for Women’s Basketball and Volleyball during the senior college era. She was a pioneer and advocate for women’s athletics at ��سԹ� in the 1970s. From 1975-79, her basketball teams held a 56-21 record (72.7%), and in just the fourth season as a four-year school, she led the Runnin’ Bulldogs to a 21-4 record.

��سԹ� Celebrates Title IX 50th Anniversary

Office of University Communications — Thu, 11 Aug 2022 15:28:06 +0000

Recognizing Top Women Athletes, Kat Ayotte and Kathy Smith Brooks

To our readers: In 1972, Title IX of the Education Amendments was signed into law by President Richard Nixon. In a year-long celebration of the law’s 50th anniversary, ��سԹ� will recognize its individual pioneers and trailblazers, women influencers and administrators, and honor several teams and alumni groups at games and events on campus. Profiles on these women will be published in the Newscenter twice a month.

BOILING SPRINGS, N.C.—��سԹ�’s first women’s athletics teams predate Title IX by many decades, going back to the early 1900s when the institution was a boarding school known as Boiling Springs High. The school first fielded a tennis team in 1913 and a basketball team in 1916.

Programs also appeared in the 1920s for soccer, softball and volleyball. ��سԹ� Junior College briefly fielded women’s basketball from 1956-1959 under head coach Hester Haynes. ��سԹ� transitioned to senior college status following the 1968-1969 season, joining the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). Following the passage of Title IX in 1972, the Bulldogs’ athletics program moved into a new era when women’s basketball started competition during the 1975-1976 season.

Here are two hall-of-famers recognized by ��سԹ� athletics:

Kat Ayotte

Kat Ayotte

Kat Ayotte was inducted into the ��سԹ� Athletics Hall of Fame in 2008. She was an All-South Atlantic Conference choice in both soccer and softball. She finished her career as one of the top female two-sport performers in school history. Ayotte is an associate athletic trainer at ��سԹ�. Her primary responsibilities are coverage of baseball and men’s and women’s golf. She joined GW in 2003 after serving Newberry College as head athletic trainer. She earned her Bachelor of Science and Master of Arts from ��سԹ�.

Kathy Smith Brooks

Kathy Smith Brooks

In 2010, Kathy Smith Brooks became the first volleyball player to be inducted into the ��سԹ� Athletics Hall of Fame. Playing from 1994 to 1997, Brooks powered the Runnin’ Bulldogs to 58 wins in her final two seasons. She was the first player in GWU volleyball history to earn first-team All-South Atlantic Conference honors twice, and Brooks finished her four seasons with over 800 kills and 400 blocks. As a junior in 1996, she was named ��سԹ�’s Female Student-Athlete of the Year and led the South Atlantic Conference in blocks per game. That season, she led GWU to a 27-10 finish, an 11-3 league mark and a second-place finish in the regular season standings. As a senior in 1997, the Lincolnton, N.C., native was the strength of a team that finished 31-7 overall, posted a 13-1 conference record and won both the SAC regular season and tournament titles. Brooks also paced the league with a .355 hitting percentage. A testament to her impact on the program, ��سԹ� had only one season in its history with more than 11 wins before her arrival on campus.

See the full list of ��سԹ� Pioneers and Trailblazers.

#GWUHerStory Submission Form

Help us tell the Title IX story by sharing your experiences. We want to recognize and celebrate our alumni, faculty, staff, and students who have been impacted by the Title IX law and the opportunities and experiences it has provided and protected.

, as well as a photo or video/audio recording with us to be included in the storytelling we publish on our website and social platforms.

��سԹ� is North Carolina’s recognized leader in private, Christian higher education. A Carnegie-Classified Doctoral/Professional University, GWU is home to six professional schools, 14 academic departments, more than 80 undergraduate and graduate majors, and a world-class faculty. Located on a beautiful 225-acre campus in Boiling Springs, N.C., ��سԹ� prepares graduates to impact their chosen professions, equips them with the skills to advance the frontiers of knowledge, and inspires them to make a positive and lasting difference in the lives of others. Ignite your future at ��سԹ�.edu.

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��سԹ� Celebrates Title IX 50th Anniversary

Office of University Communications — Thu, 21 Jul 2022 12:00:00 +0000

Etta Curtis and Dee ‘Doc Hunt’ Were Caring and Influential Campus Leaders

To our readers: In 1972, Title IX of the Education Amendments was signed into law by President Richard Nixon. In a year-long celebration of the law’s 50th anniversary, ��سԹ� will recognize its individual pioneers and trailblazers, women influencers and administrators, and honor several teams and alumni groups at games and events on campus. Profiles on these women will be published in the Newscenter twice a month.

BOILING SPRINGS, N.C.—In ��سԹ�’s 117-year academic history, many outstanding women made their mark on the school. Two of those influential and caring leaders were Etta Curtis and Dee “Doc Hunt.”

Etta Curtis

In 1909, Curtis was “Lady Principal,” a title that changed to Dean of Women in 1928. She served in that position until 1936. She was appointed alumni secretary in 1933. In the book, “Lengthened Shadows: A History of ��سԹ�, 1907-1956,” Curtis is described as “a lady of refined culture, kind and sympathetic, rich in experience, firm and steadfast in purpose and prizing the cardinal virtues above everything else.”

The ��سԹ� history book also noted that Curtis was a tireless worker, on duty at all times, watching over the girls. Curtis made sure the girls didn’t visit each other during study hours and called for the oil lamps to be blown out at 10 p.m. She also worked to decorate and furnish the parlors and social halls, and contributed to many improvements on the campus. She retired at the age of 78, and a year later, the Memorial Building on ��سԹ�’s campus burned. Curtis wrote a check for all of her savings to help in its rebuilding, and she died a pauper in 1940.

Dee “Doc Hunt”

Hunt retired in 2017 as vice president of Student Development, after working at ��سԹ� for nearly 40 years. During that time she held several roles: professor, coach, administrator, dean, department chair and other positions. Over the years, students gave her the nickname, “Doc Hunt,” which was used by everyone on campus.

Hunt joined the GWU faculty in 1978 as associate professor of health education and physical education. She distinguished herself as a coach and consultant in the field of women’s athletics, particularly volleyball and softball. She also provided distinguished leadership to the Department of Physical Education, Wellness and Sport Studies as chair from 1988 to 1995 and again from 1998 to 1999. As the founding dean of the College of Education, Hunt provided innovative and energetic leadership, directing the program’s inception and accreditation from 1995-99.

She continued to teach physical education until 2010, when she was named vice president of Student Development and dean of students. In 2012, Hunt successfully directed the physical move of the Student Development division into the newly constructed Tucker Student Center, which she helped plan. The dedication ceremony was at the top of her list of favorite GWU memories. She once said, “Robert Tucker surprised me—surprised us all—with an additional half-million dollar gift. He didn’t know he was going to do it. I’ll never, ever forget that.”

One year after her retirement from ��سԹ�, Hunt became the first faculty member to receive three emeriti titles. On May 4, 2018, she was honored for her service as a professor emerita of physical education, dean emerita of the College of Education and vice president emerita of Student Development. In 2020, the Dr. Dee M. Hunt Student Development Suite in Tucker Center was named in her honor. Hunt passed away on July 8, 2021.

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��سԹ� Launches Year-Long Celebration of Title IX 50th Anniversary

Office of University Communications — Thu, 23 Jun 2022 11:59:00 +0000

Observance will Highlight the Women Athletes and Leaders Who Led the Way for Future Generations

BOILING SPRINGS, N.C.—On June 23, 1972, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 was signed into law by President Richard Nixon.

The law celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2022 and has opened the door to countless educational opportunities for women across the United States.

Intercollegiate athletics has been positively impacted, and ��سԹ� will join hundreds of athletics departments around the country in celebrating Title IX throughout 2022-2023 athletics season.

In addition to its individual pioneers and trailblazers, ��سԹ� will honor several teams and alumni groups at games and events on campus as part of a year-long celebration of the anniversary.

As part of the recognition, the University will also highlight the women influencers and administrators, who made valuable contributions throughout GWU’s 117-year academic history. Beginning with ��سԹ�’s co-namesake, Fay Webb Gardner, who was an ardent supporter of the University, along with her husband, the former governor of North Carolina and U.S. ambassador to Great Britain, O. Max Gardner. Despite living in Raleigh, N.C., and Washington, D.C., the Gardners never forgot their hometown of Shelby and the junior college in Boiling Springs. Their devotion to the college was recognized in 1942, when the trustees voted to name the school, ��سԹ�, after them.

Fay Webb Gardner

Dina Smith McClure

Fredia Lawrence King

Dr. Darlene J. Gravett

Mrs. Gardner was a leader in the community and extensively involved in her husband’s political career. She was also a member of the State League of Women Voters and the Benjamin Cleveland Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution. For their contributions, Mrs. Gardner and her husband were inducted into the Cleveland County Hall of Fame in 1976.

Dr. Darlene J. Gravett, the University’s first female member of the senior staff and associate provost emerita, is the second influential women to be recognized this month. Born in Roanoke, Va., Gravett lived there for 10 years before moving from one state to another as well as to other countries as the daughter of an Army enlisted man, who retired as a master sergeant, and then as the wife of Ray, an Army officer, who retired as a lieutenant colonel.

Along the way she managed to stay at Eastern (Ky.) University for all four years to earn a B.A. degree in English; she worked around her husband’s various Army assignments to attain her master’s degree in English education from the University of Miami while he was in Vietnam the first time; and finally she earned a doctorate in English literature from the University of Southern Mississippi while her husband had an ROTC assignment there and while he was in Vietnam a second time. Upon her husband’s retirement from the Army after 21 years of active duty service, she started her full-time teaching career, 10 years at one college and then 18 years at ��سԹ�. After retirement, the couple stayed in Boiling Springs, where they have lived for 30 years, longer than anywhere else in her life. She describes these different phases of her life in her autobiography “Army Brat, Army Bride, Civilian: A Life.”

Other influential female leaders in ��سԹ�’s history will be recognized during the year, including Lisa Tucker, board member and benefactor; Dr. Karen Aubrey, provost and vice president; Dr. Dee Hunt, ��سԹ� Vice President of Student Development; and others.

��سԹ�’s first women’s athletics teams predate Title IX by many decades, dating back to the school’s time as a boarding high school in the early 1900s. Known then as Boiling Springs High, the school first fielded a tennis team in 1913 and a basketball team in 1916.

��سԹ� transitioned to senior college status following the 1968-1969 season, joining the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). Following the passage of Title IX in 1972, the Bulldogs’ athletics program moved into a new era when women’s basketball started competition during the 1975-1976 season.

The 1976 ��سԹ� Women’s Basketball Team

Coached by Phyllis Littlefield, the team played its first game on Nov. 18, 1975 in historic Bost Gymnasium vs. Claflin (S.C.). The starting five consisted of Linda Cody, Pam Helton, Sherwin Johnson, Wanda Nantz and Linda Ramseur. The Bulldogs picked up their first win soon after, beating UNC Charlotte 61-56 on Dec. 9, 1975 in Bost Gym. Helton led the way with 23 points, Cody added 11 points and Ramseur scored 10.

After a 1-3 start, Littlefield’s team finished with a 7-7 record an went on to record winning records in each of the next three seasons – culminating with a 21-4 mark in 1978-1979.

Volleyball was added in 1978 and by 1985 ��سԹ� sponsored five women’s teams – with cross country (1980), women’s tennis (1980) and softball (1984) emerging as intercollegiate programs.

Heading into the 2022-2023 athletics season, ��سԹ� sponsors 11 women’s teams at the NCAA Division I level, with lacrosse the most recent addition in 2015.

#GWUHerStory Submission Form

Share your story, as well as a photo or video/audio recording with us to be included in the storytelling we publish on our website and social platforms.

��سԹ� Athletics Highlights In The Title IX Era – A Timeline

From its early beginnings in the 1970s, women’s athletics teams at ��سԹ� continue to produce conference championships, All-Conference performers, All-Americans, Hall of Famers and national tournament teams. Several of those notable moments are listed below:

1975 – Women’s basketball plays its first senior college game

1978 – Volleyball added as a varsity sport

1980 – Women’s tennis added as a varsity sport

1980 – Women’s cross country added as a varsity sport

1984 – Softball added as a varsity sport

1990 – Women’s soccer added as a varsity sport

1991 – Dina Smith McClure (Basketball) becomes first female student-athlete inducted into the ��سԹ� Athletics Hall of Fame

1996 – Women’s basketball advances to NCAA Division II National Tournament

1997 – Softball wins South Atlantic Conference Tournament title

1997 – Volleyball wins South Atlantic Conference Regular Season and Tournament titles

1998 – Women’s golf added as a varsity sport

1999 – Women’s tennis advances to NCAA Division II Regional Tournament

1999 – Volleyball wins South Atlantic Conference Regular Season and Tournament titles for the second time in three seasons

1999 – Women’s Track & Field added as a varsity sport, finishes 4th nationally indoors and 5th nationally outdoors in first Division II season

1999 – Swimming added as a varsity sport, finishes 14th nationally in first Division II season

2000 – Women’s tennis advances to NCAA Division II Regional Tournament for the second season in a row

2000 – Sylivia Chelimo, Nicole McLain and Julia O’Neal combine to win five individual Division II national titles in Track & Field

2000 – Melissa Smith swims to NCAA Division II individual national title

2004 – Women’s swimming wins the first of four-straight Northeast Conference championships

2005 – Women’s soccer star Leeanna Woodworth leads NCAA Division I in scoring

2007 – Terra Wilson swims to school’s first NCAA Division I All-America honor

2010 – Women’s basketball wins the Big South Conference regular season championship

2011 – Women’s basketball wins Big South Conference Tournament, earns automatic bid to the NCAA Division I Championship

2015 – Women’s lacrosse added as a varsity sport

Women in the ��سԹ� Athletics Hall of Fame

1991 – Dina Smith McClure (Basketball)

1995 – Carolyn Dewberry Greene (Basketball)

2002 – Fredia Lawrence King (Basketball)

2005 – Susan Bolt Briggs (Basketball)

2006 – Kristen Lott Setzer (Soccer)

2008 – Kat Ayotte (Soccer and Softball)

2009 – Delania Adams (Basketball)

2010 – Kathy Smith Brooks (Volleyball)

2011 – Heather Hauser (Volleyball)

2013 – Sylivia Chelimo (Cross Country, Track & Field)

2013 – Melissa Smith (Swimming)

2014 – Natilee Dawkins (Track & Field)

2015 – Linette Ramseur (Volleyball)

2016 – Leeanna Woodworth Blalock (Soccer)

2017 – Terra Wilson (Swimming)

2018 – Taylor Simpson Jackson (Swimming)

2019 – Elizabeth Maxwell Knippen (Track & Field)

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Title IX 50th Anniversary Archives - ���سԹ�

In Recognition of the Title IX 50th Anniversary, GWU’s Hall of Fame Class of 2022 Honors Women Record-Breakers

Inductees are Joan Cline-Backhaus, Christa Fullwood, Emily Harrellson, Dominique Hudson and Phyllis Littlefield Moore

Related Links:

���سԹ� Celebrates Title IX 50th Anniversary

Recognizing Top Women Athletes, Kat Ayotte and Kathy Smith Brooks

#GWUHerStory Submission Form

���سԹ� Celebrates Title IX 50th Anniversary

Etta Curtis and Dee ‘Doc Hunt’ Were Caring and Influential Campus Leaders

#GWUHerStory Submission Form

���سԹ� Launches Year-Long Celebration of Title IX 50th Anniversary

Observance will Highlight the Women Athletes and Leaders Who Led the Way for Future Generations

#GWUHerStory Submission Form

���سԹ� Athletics Highlights In The Title IX Era – A Timeline

Women in the ���سԹ� Athletics Hall of Fame

Title IX 50th Anniversary Archives - ��سԹ�

��سԹ� Celebrates Title IX 50th Anniversary

��سԹ� Celebrates Title IX 50th Anniversary

��سԹ� Launches Year-Long Celebration of Title IX 50th Anniversary

��سԹ� Athletics Highlights In The Title IX Era – A Timeline

Women in the ��سԹ� Athletics Hall of Fame