Nancy Hogshead-Makar would tell you that her incredible accomplishments were a product of opportunity. As one of the country’s leading advocates for Title IX and increasing athletic opportunities for girls’ and women, you’d believe her.
THEN: When Nancy was 11, her family moved to Gainesville, Florida—swimming country. Three years after her first swim lesson, she was ranked number one in the world. Not a bad case for opportunity preceding interest.
In high school Nancy won three national championships. She qualified for the 1980 Olympic team, only to have her dreams dashed by the American boycott of the Moscow games. She became the first swimmer to receive a full scholarship to Duke University, where she was a two-time All-American and broke eight school records, which still stand today. Her performance at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles brought her instant fame: one silver and three gold medals.
Discipline and drive for perfection aren’t easily switched off. After retiring from the pool, Nancy graduated from Georgetown Law. As a practicing attorney, she fought Title IX cases, representing female athletes who were being cheated of their dreams. She has testified in front of Congress multiple times, co-authored two books, and appeared on CNN and CBS’s “60 Minutes.”
NOW: Nancy is currently on sabbatical as a professor at Florida Coastal School of Law and is working with both the University of Colorado and the University of North Carolina. She has been challenged with reviewing the universities’ policies and practices regarding sexual violence and harassment and is making recommendations on how to make the schools safe and equitable places for all students.
“All her athletic skills were transferable,” says Donna Lopiano, PhD, arguably the nation’s foremost authority on Title IX, “being a student of the game and having an extraordinary work ethic and a tireless pursuit of her goals, which now happens to coincide with the goals of her clients.” —Sarah Murray
