Womhoops Guru

Mel Greenberg covered college and professional women’s basketball for the Philadelphia Inquirer, where he worked for 40 plus years. Greenberg pioneered national coverage of the game, including the original Top 25 women's college poll. His knowledge has earned him nicknames such as "The Guru" and "The Godfather," as well as induction into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2007.

Wednesday, October 05, 2011

Dawn Staley Picks Up Another Honor

Guru's Note: There is a post above this one commenting on the WNBA All-League first and second teams announced Tuesday prior to Wednesday night's Game 2 of the WNBA best-of-five finals between the Minnesota Lynx and Atlanta Dream in Minneapolis at the Target Center. Since the Guru is out of pocket and not on the scene, but may be in Atlanta, he recommends comprehensive coverage out of the Associated Press, the Twin City dailies, full court press at fullcourt.com, hoopfeed, and womens hoops. The internet groups all have comprehensive links to other coverage by many of the Guru's collegeagues.

By Mel Greenberg

Though South Carolina coach and native Philadelphian Dawn Staley called it quits to her illustrious playing career when she retired from the WNBA following the 2006 season, this year is bringing some more prestigious honors to her numerous collection stemming from her formative years at Dobbins Tech to her collegiate career at the University of Virginia and finally on to her performance in the Olympics with three gold medals and as a professional with All-Star accolades in the WNBA and former American Basketball League.

In July Staley was named one of 15 all-time WNBA players in conjunection with the pro league's 15th anniversary and also announced as a member of the 2012 induction class of the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame with ceremonies slated at the hall's home in Knoxville, Tenn., next June.

Staley, who began her coaching career by bringing Temple into national prominence in an eight-year run from 2000-01 through 2007-08 before moving to South Carolina, next month will be an inductee to the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame.

Now that she has met the five-year post-playing career requirement, Staley is a strong candidate for nomination and election to the 2012 class of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Mass., with deliberations to be determined this winter and the inductee class announced during the weekend of the NCAA men's and women's Final Four in April.

Now comes another honor, which Staley will receive next Wednesday in Chicago.

This one is primarily for leadership but her work with her Dawn Staley Foundation, helping after-school youngsters, which continues in North Philadelphia, probably also factored in her being one of four named persons honored by Vision 2020, which is a project spearheaded by the
Drexel University College of Medicine Institue for Women's Health and Leadership.

Here are details of the award and winners as well as facts about the organization and its sponsors as stated in a press release announcing the event.

VISION 2020 NAMES 2011 NATIONAL LEADERSHIP HONOREES

Vision 2020 will honor four trailblazing women during its second annual congress, Vision + Action = Equality in Motion Oct. 11-13, 2011, in Chicago.

The leadership honorees are:

Dawn Staley, Hall of Fame Olympic gold medalist and University of South Carolina women’s basketball coach;

Maria Hinojosa, Emmy-winning TV news journalist and Frontline reporter for PBS;

Coline Jenkins, Descendant of suffragist Elizabeth Cady Stanton and
co-Founder of the Elizabeth Cady Stanton Trust;

Mara Liasson, NPR national correspondent.

They will be honored at 4:30 p.m. Oct. 12 at the Chase Tower Auditorium in Chicago. Tickets are free, but reservations are required: http://drexel.edu/vision2020/conversation/register/

Staley is a three-time Olympic gold medalist and coach of the University of South Carolina women’s basketball team. She is one of the most decorated participants in U.S. women’s basketball history and known for her off-the-court contributions as well. She has twice received the Wanamaker Award, presented annually to the athlete, team or organization that has done the most to reflect credit to the team or sport in which he/she excels.

Hinojosa has helped tell America’s untold stories and brought to light unsung heroes in America and abroad. She is currently reporting for Frontline on immigration detention. Hinojosa has received the Ruben Salazar Communications Award from the National Council of La Raza and was inducted into the "She Made It" Hall of Fame at the Paley Center/Museum of Television and Radio in a program that honors women trailblazers in the media.

Jenkins is a legislator, author and television producer. She is co-founder and president of the Elizabeth Cady Stanton Trust, a collection of 3,000 objects of women’s suffrage memorabilia. She co-authored the book 33 Things Every Girl Should Know about Women's History and produced the television documentary An American Revolution: Women Take Their Place.

Liasson is the national political correspondent for NPR, and a regular panelist on Special Report with Brit Hume and Fox News Sunday on Fox News Channel. Her reports can be heard regularly on NPR's award-winning newsmagazines All Things Considered and Morning Edition. She has won the White House Correspondents Association's Merriman Smith Award for daily news coverage in 1994, 1995, and again in 1997.

Hinojosa will be recognized during 3,000 Days and Counting (1:45 p.m.) a free public event during the congress, and she will also host the event. Staley, Jenkins and Liasson will be recognized during Kudos & Comedy (4:30 p.m.)

Following the awards, renowned improv troupe The Second City will perform.

The event will be followed by a reception, where Vision 2020 Delegates—women leaders from all 50 states—sponsors, Chicago community leaders, and Vision 2020 medal recipients will have the opportunity to exchange ideas.

About Vision 2020
Vision 2020 is working to make equality a national priority through shared leadership among women and men. Its first public event was held Oct. 21-22, 2010, when a congress of national delegates, representing all 50 states and the District of Columbia, gathered at the
National Constitution Center in Philadelphia to launch a campaign to move America toward equality by 2020, the centennial celebration of the 19th Amendment. Vision 2020 is a project of Drexel University College of Medicine's Institute for Women's Health and Leadership.

Vision 2020’s Sponsors
The Penn Mutual Life Insurance Company is the Presenting Sponsor of Vision 2020. The Exelon Foundation is a Visionary Sponsor. Northern Trust and JPMorgan Chase & Co. are sponsors of the 2011 Chicago Annual Congress.


-- Mel

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