Photo by Ashley Beall, staff photographer
The women’s basketball One-on-One event on Oct. 11 opened with Provost Deneese Jones speaking about how far women have come since 40 years ago when Title IX was created.
“Many years later, this law is still working to ensure gender equity, and its very language offers a promise of access to higher education and the learning environment,” Jones said.
Jones later told a story to the crowd called “The Chicken and The Eagle.” The story was about a farmer who found a huge egg. After it hatched, he thought, “What a huge, ugly chicken.” In his mind, it was just another chicken that happened to look funny. But, when a researcher was passing by, the researcher believed it to be an eagle. At first, when he tried a test to see if the eagle would fly it wouldn’t, and he told him, “You are not a chicken, you are an eagle: you were created to fly high,” and the eagle began to fly. After reading the story Jones explained why she told this story.
“Well, each one of us must realize and recognize and actualize the eagle in each of us. Let’s take advantage of the journey offered to you through Title IX. Be fierce in pursuing excellence and don’t settle or be deterred by the lack of vision inside of us. Instead be encouraged, only then can you soar as you were created too,” Jones said.
After Jones finished with her speech, she was followed by Athletic Director Sandy Hatfield Clubb. She also emphasized the importance of Title IX and how even though women have come so far, there’s still work that needs to be done.
“I’m standing here as a female athletic director, one of only 25 in our nation out of 350 universities, so we still have work to do, but without our great law in place I ensure you I wouldn’t be standing here before you as Athletic Director of Drake University,” Hatfield Clubb said.
After the speeches, the players and the academic leader introductions began. Each professor started off with fun facts about the player, and then the players followed by stating fun facts about the professors. Redshirt sophomore Carly Grenfell revealed that if she could interview anyone, it would be Justin Bieber. The question she would ask him is, “Will you marry me?”
The event proved to be a fun way to meet the team.
“For students, it was a unique experience to see their peers and their professors talk about their favorite types of music and so on, and I think the way they did it with the dessert reception and keeping it kind of short, they got a lot accomplished,” said Stephanie Viola, director of student-athlete academic success services.
With this being the first time the women’s basketball team has ever done something like that, first-year Head Coach Jennie Barancyzk will continue to bring new ideas to get the community and students involved with the women’s basketball team.
“The faculty really enjoyed it, and I got numerous notes from faculty saying thank you for allowing them to be a part of it. It was a wonderful way for the community to meet the team,” Hatfield Clubb said. “I just want to applaud Coach Baranczyk for her leadership on this.”
