Past Distinguished Lectures
The 2007 Tucker Center Research Report
Developing Physically Active Girls: Challenges, Opportunities,
and Solutions
Drs. Nicole LaVoi, Barbara Ainsworth, Margaret Duncan, & Diane Wiese-Bjornstal
April 22, 2008
The Spring 2008 Distinguished Lecture highlighted the The 2007 Tucker Center Research Report: Developing Physically Active Girls [to view, click here]. Using a panel presentation format, the report’s authors—Barbara Ainsworth, Margaret Duncan, Nicole LaVoi, and Diane Wiese-Bjornstal—provided an overview and summary of key findings and recommendations. The 2007 Tucker Center Research Report is a 10-year update of the ground-breaking 1997 President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports Report, Physical Activity & Sport in the Lives of Girls. The purpose of the initial report, as well as the 10-year update, was to ask respected scholars in academic fields of study ranging from exercise physiology to sport psychology, to share the latest research findings about how involvement in sport and physical activity enable girls to reach their full potential. [ more ... ]
Healthy Minds, Healthy Bodies: Barriers and Solutions to
Girls' Physical Activity Participation
Dr. Maureen Weiss
October 16, 2007
Decades of research indicate that positive physical and psycho-social benefits are derived from participation in physical activity. Such benefits include a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, obesity, and osteoporosis, as well as increased self-esteem, cognitive development, and quality peer relationships. Unfortunately, far too many girls do not receive these benefits because physical inactivity is significantly higher among females than males and because declines in physical activity are especially steep for adolescent girls. So why are girls less physically active at the exact moment when they have the most to gain physically, socially, and psychologically? This presentation addresses these issues in depth. Professor Maureen Weiss, an internationally known scholar, educator, and public advocate, examined patterns related to—and barriers preventing—girls' full participation in sport and physical activity. In the Tucker Center's Fall 2007 Distinguished Lecture, Professor Maureen Weiss, an internationally known scholar, educator, and public advocate, examined patterns related to—and barriers preventing—girls’ full participation in sport and physical activity. The author of over 100 scholarly articles and co-editor of four books on youth sport, Dr. Weiss has served as President of three professional organizations and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Kinesiology and Physical Education. She has also received numerous professional awards, including the Honor Award for Exemplary Service and Leadership from the National Association for Girls and Women in Sport. Professor Weiss offered research-based, practical solutions to the alarming trends associated with adolescent girls’ involvement—or lack of involvement—in physical activity.
Sex vs. Athletic Competence: Exploring Competing Narratives in Marketing and Promoting Women's Sports
Kristin Bernert, Regina Sullivan, Mary Jo Kane, Heather Maxwell
April 17, 2007
The Tucker Center Spring 2007 Edie Mueller Distinguished Lecture, Sex vs. Athletic Competence: Exploring Competing Narratives in Marketing and Promoting Women's Sports, was held Tuesday, April 17, 2007 at Cowles Auditorium in the Hubert H. Humphrey Center on the West Bank of the U of M Campus. The presentation featured a dynamic panel of experts with diverse professional, educational, and research-based backgrounds who share a common interest in women’s sports. These distinguished panelists examined various philosophies and strategies surrounding the ways in which collegiate and professional women's sports are marketed and promoted, as well as the effectiveness of those strategies in light of innovative research being conducted by the Tucker Center. Panelists included: Kristin Bernert, Vice President of WNBA Team Development, Regina Sullivan, Senior Associate Athletic Director at the U of M, Professor Mary Jo Kane, Director of the Tucker Center and the School of Kinesiology, and Heather Maxwell, Tucker Center Research Assistant.
"Best Seat in the House": From the Locker Room to the Press Box—Women’s Sports in the 21st Century
Christine Brennan
October 10, 2006
The Tucker Center Fall 2006 Edie Mueller Distinguished Lecture, "'Best Seat in the House': From the Locker Room to the Press Box— Women's Sports in the 21st Century", was held October 10, 2006 at the Weisman Art Museum on the U of MN's East Bank Campus. The lecture was given by Christine Brennan, a sports columnist for USA Today, guest commentator for ABC News, Fox Sports Radio, ESPN, and NPR, as well as best-selling author. Brennan has blazed a pioneering trail for women sports journalists. She has witnessed the impact of Title IX first-hand and shared her insights about the progress yet to be made for female athletes and sports journalists. Brennan also highlighted the role of her father in giving her the support and confidence she needed to excel in the pre-Title IX world of sports.
The Professionalization of Youth Sports and its Special Impact
on Girls
Dan Gould
April 24, 2006
The Tucker Center Spring 2006 Edie Mueller Distinguished Lecture, "The Professionalization of Youth Sports and its Special Impact on Girls," was held April 24, 2006, in the Cowles Auditorium in the U of MN's Hubert H. Humphrey Center. This lecture was given by Dr. Dan Gould, Director of the Institute for the Study of Youth Sports and Professor in the Department of Kinesiology at the Michigan State University. American youth sports has become increasingly professionalized and this professionalization is characterized by a focus on participation as a means to an end (e.g., college scholarship), single sport specialization, intense year-round training, private coaching, elite teams, and an increased importance placed on winning. Dr. Gould spoke to an SRO audience about this paradigmatic shift and the ramifications for young female athletes in light of research on elite athlete talent development, the role of parents in youth sports, the psychological development of champion athletes, and burnout in young athletes. [lecture notes] [handout]
Protecting Title IX From Emerging Threats: What's Fact vs. Fiction Got
To Do With It?
Rayla Allison, Deborah Larkin, Mary Jo Kane, Nicole LaVoi
October 24, 2005
A panel of experts examined recent developments that threaten to reverse the unprecedented progress and achievements that have occurred in the wake of Title IX. Panel members were: Rayla Allison, a Title IX attorney from Minnesota State University, Mankato; Deborah Larkin, a nationally-known expert and advocate for Title IX and former Executive Director of the Women's Sports Foundation; Mary Jo Kane, a nationally-known scholar who has published extensively on the social and political implications of Title IX; and Nicole LaVoi, a sport psychologist and the Tucker Center's new Associate Director, who moderated the discussion. The panel addressed legal issues that have had a major impact on Title IX compliance, the numerous myths and misrepresentations surrounding Title IX (e.g., Title IX forces schools to drop men's sports), and 2005 guidelines from the Department of Education that undermine female athletes by making them prove they are interested in playing a particular sport in order to receive that opportunity. Specific strategies to safeguard Title IX were also presented.
An Unprecedented Moment in Women's Athletics: The
Story Behind the Cinderella Season at the U of MN
Pam Borton, Laura Halldorson, Mike Hebert
April 11, 2005
This panel presentation was held at the Coffman Memorial Union Theater. Head coaches Pam Borton, Laura Halldorson and Mike Hebert discussed the unprecedented U of MN success story in women's athletics during the 2003-04 season when the volleyball and basketball teams went to the Final Four, and the hockey team captured the National Championship.
A Revolution in Women's Sports. Part of the Great
Conversations Series
Mary Jo Kane, Donna Lopiano
October 11, 2004
As part of the University's "Great Conversations Series" at Ted Mann Concert Hall, in the fall of 2004, two of this country's leading figures in women's sports looked back on the hard-won accomplishments of Title IX and discussed their hopes and dreams for the future. Mary Jo Kane is Professor and Director of the University's Tucker Center for Research on Girls & Women in Sport, the first interdisciplinary center of its kind in the country. She was joined by Donna Lopiano, Executive Director of the Women's Sports Foundation, which ensures gender equity in athletic activities. A member of the Softball Hall of Fame, Dr. Lopiano was named one of the 100 most influential people in sports by Sporting News.
Shattering Myths
About ACL Injuries in Female Athletes: Risk Factors, Intervention and
Recovery
Elizabeth Arendt, Diane Wiese-Bjornstal, Sara Wiley
April 19, 2004
Three prominent scholars and educators from the University of Minnesota explored the physical and psychological risk factors for ACL injuries, as well as highlighted physical and psychological interventions which aid female athletes in their recovery: Elizabeth Arendt, MD, faculty member in the Department of Orthopedic Surgery and one of the premier scholars in the country on ACL injuries, has served on the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, received numerous grants from the National Institute of Health, and serves as the Director of the Sports Medicine Institute at the U of M; Diane Wiese-Bjornstal, Ph.D., is a sports psychologist in the School of Kinesiology, and has published extensively in the area of psychological recovery from injury, is a fellow in the Association for the Advancement of Applied Sport Psychology, is a certified consultant in sport psychology, and has conducted research with the Sports Medicine Department at Mayo Clinic; and Sara Wiley, CSCS, is the Associate Director of Strength and Conditioning for U of M athletics, having earned her Masters Degree in Human Performance from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, and now working at the U of M with women's basketball, volleyball, soccer, softball, crew and swimming and diving. The Tucker Center was proud to co-sponsor this event with U of M Athletics.
Homophobia in Sports: Breaking Barriers by Breaking the Silence
Jenny Allard, Esera Tuaolo, Andrea Zimbardi
October 15, 2003
One of the most pervasive—and overlooked—issues in sport involves homophobia and the ways in which harmful stereotypes put gay athletes at risk. Three prominent speakers shared their own histories about coming out and being out, exploring the challenges and complexities surrounding homophobia, and suggested strategies for a more inclusive sports world: Jenny Allard, Harvard softball coach and winningest active Ivy League softball coach shared her experiences as a coach and strategies for coaches and administrators; Esera Tuaolo, former professional athlete achieved fame as a 280-pound nose tackle who played for 9 years in the NFL, shared his story of playing professional football while hiding his sexuality to his teammates, coaches, and the public; and Andrea Zimbardi, former SEC honor-roll student and senior captain of the University of Florida’s softball team, shared her experience of being removed from NCAA championship-bound and being forced to watch from the sidelines wondering what went wrong. She discussed her pending lawsuit against her school and how other athletes might benefit from her experience.
Linking Sport and Youth Development: Race, Space, and Gender
Doug Hartmann, Kathy Jamieson, Matthew Taylor
April 9th, 2003
A thought-provoking panel of experts was assembled to discuss the influence of sport and youth development and ways in which race, gender, and geographic location mediate their sport experience. Three nationally known experts presented and engaged the audience to discuss how sport affects all our children so that we can develop sporting environments that promote positive youth development: Doug Hartmann, Department of Sociology at the University of Minnesota, explored the possibilities and problems of using sport-based programs for social intervention aimed at young urban men of color; Kathy Jamieson, University of North Carolina-Greensboro, focused on the implications and relevance of elite sport programs for adolescent Latinas; and Matthew Taylor, University of Wisconsin-La Cross, shared his latest research involving African American youth and their relationship to sport. The Distinguished Lecture Series was held at Cowles Auditorium on the West Bank of the Minneapolis campus.
Five Life Lessons from the Playing Field: "How Sports Are
Transforming Women, Girls, and Society
Mariah Burton Nelson
October 16th, 2002
Due to popular demand, the Tucker Center invited renowned author, athlete, and professional speaker Mariah Burton Nelson to return for her second Distinguished Lecture. In 1996, Nelson educated and entertained an SRO crowd while discussing her controversial and ground-breaking book, "The Stronger Women Get, The More Men Love Football." Her fifth book, "We Are All Athletes," is hot off the press, and on this 30th anniversary of the passage of Title IX, Nelson used sports stories, current events, inspirational video, audience participation, and lots of her trademark humor to explore the five most important ways that sports are changing women, why administrators and legislators are still fighting over who gets to play, and why all of us should think of ourselves as athletes. The lecture was held at Cowles Auditorium on the West Bank of the Minneapolis campus.
Emerging Faces and Visions of Sport: Female Athletes with a
Disability
Karen DePauw
April 2, 2002
The Spring 2002 Distinguished Lecture was given by Dr. Karen DePauw at the Weisman Art Museum. Dr. DePauw is Dean of the Graduate School and Professor at Washington State University, Pullman, WA, and is well known for her professional contributions to the discipline of adapted physical activity and disability sport. She has co-authored several textbooks, numerous chapters in books, and has a well-established scholarly record in the areas of adapted physical activity and disability sport. Her recent papers have addressed topics of inclusion, sport and marginality, and disability studies. She has been a frequently invited keynote speaker for national and international conferences. She has served on the Editorial Board and as reviewer for several scholarly journals in her discipline, and recently completed a term as Editor of Quest. Dr. DePauw has been very active in her discipline-related organizations serving in leadership positions for the International Federation for Adapted Physical Activity (e.g., President), USOC Committee on Sports for the Disabled (1981-1992), International Paralympic Committee Sport Science Committee.
Eating Disorders and the Female Athlete
Craig Johnson, Scott Crow, Vanessa Seljeskog, JoAnna Deeter
October 24, 2001
The Tucker Center's 12th Annual Borghild Strand Distinguished Lecture, held at the Cowles Auditorium at the Hubert H. Humphrey Center, featured a panel of experts focusing on female athletes and eating disorders. Participants on the panel were: Craig Johnson, Director, Eating Disorders Program, Laureate Psychiatric Clinic and Hospital; Scott Crow, Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Director of the Eating Disorders Clinic at the University of Minnesota; Vanessa Seljeskog, Associate Athletic Director, Macalester College, whose experience includes working with cross-country and track & field athletes, including 9 All-Americas and 3 National Champions; and JoAnna Deeter, of the Northwest Athletic Club, and former track and field standout at University of Notre Dame. The panel discussion, offered at a time of unabashed media and cultural celebration of near-starving female bodies, provided a forum for education and learning about disordered eating and athletic females.
A Hero for Daisy
Mary Mazzio
April 17, 2001
In partnership with Women's Intercollegiate Athletics, the Tucker Center screened "A Hero for Daisy" with filmmaker Mary Mazzio. The over-flow event took place at Cowles Auditorium in the Hubert H. Humphrey Center. Heralded by The New York Times as "a landmark film," "A Hero For Daisy" is an inspirational 40-minute documentary about two-time Olympian and Title IX pioneer Chris Ernst, who galvanized her rowing team to storm the Yale athletic director's office in 1976 to protest substandard conditions. Nineteen women athletes stripped, exposing the phrase "Title IX" emblazoned in blue marker on their bodies. Carried by all of the major international news outlets, the impact of the demonstration was immediate and national in scope, shocking the nation and bringing attention to Title IX as well as to issues of equality for all women in sport. The film includes interviews with Massachusetts Senator John Kerry (Yale '66); legendary football coach and former Yale Athletic Director, Carmen Cozza; President of the U.S. Rowing Association and Yale Rowing Coach, David Vogel; and many of Chris' former Yale and Olympic teammates. Director Mary Mazzio, herself an Olympian on the 1992 Olympic Rowing Team, made the film for her daughter, Daisy, as well as for other girls and boys, to showcase an ordinary woman with extraordinary courage. Mazzio attended Boston University's graduate film production program and is a graduate of Mount Holyoke College and Georgetown Law School. She is a recipient of numerous awards including the 2000 Women's Sports Foundation Journalism Award, the Henry Luce Foundation Fellowship and the Rotary Foundation Graduate Fellowship.
Images of Women, Sexuality and Nationalism: What's (Olympic) Sport
Got To Do With It?
Lisa Disch, Susan Brownell, Mary Jo Kane, Pat Griffin, Doug Hartmann
October 4, 2000
In collaboration with the MacArthur Interdisciplinary Program on Global Change, Sustainability, and Justice, the Tucker Center presented a panel discussion, "Images of Women, Sexuality and Nationalism: What's (Olympic) Sport Got To Do With It?" at Cowles Auditorium in the Hubert H. Humphrey Center. The panel members, all internationally recognized scholars, represented a variety of academic perspectives: Lisa Disch, Department of Political Science, University of Minnesota, specializes in political theory with a research focus in third party politics and feminist theory; Susan Brownell, Department of Anthropology, University of Missouri, focuses her research on China, rituals of state, and uses of sport and the body; Mary Jo Kane, Director, Tucker Center, University of Minnesota, examines media representations of women in sport and the impact of Title IX; Pat Griffin, Social Justice Education Program, University of Massachusetts, addresses in her research heterosexism/homophobia in professional and intercollegiate athletics as well as in higher education; and, Doug Hartmann, Department of Sociology, University of Minnesota, the panel moderator, explores race, culture, and social change, focusing on sport and popular culture in the U.S. The panel event overlapped the 2000 Summer Olympic Games in Sydney, and the Games served as the crucial point of departure and focus. Panel participants explored the relationships between sport and social processes—focusing especially on gender and sexuality—around the world as a way to recognize and conceptualize the social, cultural, economic and political significance of sport and the Olympic Games in the contemporary, postmodern age. The panel was part of a larger, seven-week MacArthur Program workshop entitled "The Cultural Politics of Sport and the Olympic Games: Comparative and Global Perspectives" which examined the ways in which race, gender, nation and sexuality are implicated in sporting practices and institutions given the fact that sport culture, especially that of Olympic sport, is so often understood in an abstract, universalistic fashion.
Making a Difference: Vision, Courage and Work
Shannon Miller
April 11, 2000
Shannon Miller, Head Coach of the Canadian Women's Hockey Team, Silver Medal Winners during the 1998 Winter Olympics, gave the 11th Lecture in the Distinguished Lecture Series in the A. I. Johnson Great Room at the new Gateway Center. During her lecture, "Making a Difference: Vision, Courage and Work," Ms. Miller shared the experiences which guided her on her international journey toward excellence. According to Miller, "your vision is what pulls you along; it's what you compete and sacrifice for. Successful people have a vision. Successful people make a difference." Along with her Olympic success, Shannon Miller coached the Canadian women's national team which captured a fourth consecutive gold medal at the Women's World Ice Hockey Championships in 1997.
The Emergence of Female Athletes as Role Models and Pioneers
Ann Bancroft
October 19, 1999
Minnesota native and Polar Explorer, Ann Bancroft, gave the 10th lecture in the Distinguished Lecture Series in the Hubert H. Humphrey Center. Bancroft was the first woman in history to travel to the North and South Poles. In 1986, she traveled 1,000 miles from the Northwest Territories in Canada to the North Pole as the only female member of the Steger International Polar Expedition. In 1993, she led the American Women's Expedition, which she founded, to the South Pole. Ms. Bancroft's expeditions have enabled her to experience teamwork and leadership under extreme hardship, shatter stereotypes about females, and educate people about the importance of discovery. Bancroft reflected on these experiences and shared her insights about the emergence of female athletes as role models and pioneers.
Confronting the Triad of Violence in Men's Sports
Michael Messner
May 3, 1999
Michael Messner, Associate Professor of Sociology and Gender Studies at the University of Southern California, explored the inner dynamics of boys' and men's sports in order to illuminate some of the reasons for this correlation. In particular, he drew from his own research to outline the interrelationships among men's violence against women, against other men, and against their own bodies. Professor Messner also raised questions about educational and therapeutic interventions with male athletic teams and programs.
The Role of Women in the Olympic Movement
Anita DeFrantz
November 16, 1998
Anita DeFrantz, International Olympic Committee (IOC) board member and President of the Amateur Athletic Foundation of Los Angeles, gave her lecture on the role of women in the Olympic Movement at the Hubert H. Humphrey Center's Cowles Auditorium. A member of the 1976 and 1980 Olympic teams, DeFrantz is the first woman ever to be elected as Vice-President of the IOC and was named one of the 100 Most Powerful People in Sports by the Sporting News. DeFrantz gave the audience a framework of the history of women's athletics and the Olympic Games through stories of her own involvement as an athlete and an Olympian. As Vice-President of the International Olympic Committee she was able to further enhance the audience's understanding of the Olympic Games, the progress we have made, and the barriers that still remain.
The Body in Question: Women, Girls, and the Sport Media
Margaret Carlisle Duncan
May 11, 1998
Margaret Carlisle Duncan, of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, spoke at the Weisman Art Museum. Professor Duncan, an internationally recognized scholar on the media's treatment of female athletes, delivered a presentation entitled, "The Body in Question: Women, Girls, and the Sport Media." Her lecture examined the changing images of gender in the sport media, looking at past portrayals of women athletes and female bodies, outlining significant trends, and highlighting future possibilities.
Lessons from the Playing Field
Donna Lopiano
October 20, 1997
Donna Lopiano, Executive Director of the Women's Sports Foundation gave the Edith Mueller lecture. Her subject was "Lessons from the Playing Field." in celebration of the 25th anniversary of the passage of Title IX, Dr. Lopiano's lecture addressed the impact of Title IX on gender equity for women and girls in sports.
Heroes, Hopes and Level Playing Fields
Judy Mahle Lutter
November 20, 1996
Judy Mahle Lutter, founder and president of Melpomene Institute and author of "The Bodywise Woman," gave her lecture on "Heroes, Hopes and Level Playing Fields."
The Courage to Compete
Mariah Burton Nelson
March 6, 1996
Mariah Burton Nelson, author of "The Stronger Women Get the More Men Love Football," gave her lecture "The Courage to Compete" to an audience of 300 at the Cowles Auditorium in the University of Minnesota's Hubert H. Humphrey Center.
Breakthroughs and Barriers for Women in the Outdoors: Colors of the
Wind
Karla Henderson
November 30, 1995
Karla Henderson, Professor of Leisure Studies and Recreation Administration at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, lectured on the meanings of the outdoor experience for girls and women in her presentation "Breakthroughs and Barriers for Women in the Outdoors: Colors of the Wind."
Keeping Young Bones in an Aging Body
Barbara Drinkwater
April 27, 1995
Barbara Drinkwater, Research Physiologist at the Department of Medicine, Pacific Medical Center in Seattle, WA, and ACSM Citation Award winner, represented the Center's focus on Exercise Science with her lecture entitled "Keeping Young Bones in an Aging Body."
The Thrill of the Grass: From Competitive Youth Sports to Lifelong
Physical Activity for Girls and Women
Maureen Weiss
February 1, 1995
Maureen Weiss, Department of Exercise and Movement at the University of Oregon and Editor for Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, lectured on the psychosocial aspects of sport and physical activity.