Eastern Michigan Athletics
Lucy Parker Named to the 2022 MAC Hall of Fame Class
3/11/2022 2:12:00 PM | General
The class features individuals that have contributed to the advancement of women's athletics
CLEVELAND, Ohio (EMUEagles.com) – Former Eastern Michigan University administrator Lucy Parker has been selected for the Mid-American Conference Hall of Fame, the league announced Friday, March 11. In recognition of the 50-year anniversary of the passing of Title IX, the 12-member class features individuals from each member institution that have contributed to the advancement of women's athletics.
Parker, who was inducted into the E-Club Hall of Fame in 1995, served EMU as a coach and associate athletic director from 1976 until her retirement in 1991.
A pioneer and visionary figure in the world of women's athletics at Eastern Michigan University, Parker was responsible for increasing scholarships for women, moving women's coaching positions from part-time to full-time, and helping add intercollegiate sports offerings.
A native of Smithville, Tenn., Parker graduated from Detroit Eastern High School in 1954, where she excelled in tennis and basketball. She went on to earn her bachelor's degree in physical education from EMU in 1958 and her master's degree from EMU in 1964 and then did post-graduate work at The Ohio State University.
After teaching and coaching on the high school level and at Henry Ford Community College and the University of Michigan, she took the job as EMU's women's tennis coach at a time when women's athletics had recently been moved from the physical education department to the athletic department. Parker was then hired by EMU's acting athletic director Ron Oestrike as the assistant director of athletics, working in that position for a year. In 1976 she officially became the associate athletic director for women's athletics until 1991 when she retired.
Throughout her career, Parker was actively involved in promoting women in athletics through such programs as the Women's Recreation Association and the State of Michigan Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (SMAIAW). Through hard work and the passage of Title IX, the Association of lntercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) became a reality. The AIAW functioned in the equivalent role for college women's programs before eventually merging with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).
Her guidance and dedication was also instrumental in the success of EMU's Women's Athletic Endowment Fund, which was later renamed the Lucy Parker Women's Athletic Endowment Fund. EMU Athletics previously hosted an annual golf outing for 20 years that was called the Lucy Park Golf Outing. The event ran until 2008 with funds benefitting EMU's women's teams.
Parker always worked hard to promote women's athletics and was politically active and a passionate advocate for the passing of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA).
Parker passed away Sept. 1, 2018, at the age of 82. She is interred in DeKalb County Memorial Gardens in her hometown of Smithville, Tenn.
Along with Parker, the other 11 inductees are Kay Piper (Akron), Andrea Seger (Ball State), Dorothy Luedtke (Bowling Green), Nan Harvey (Buffalo), Linda (Pagett) Young (Central Michigan), Laing Kennedy (Kent State), Karen Womack (Miami), Cary Groth (Northern Illinois), Peggy Pruitt (Ohio), Cheryl Sprangel (Toledo) and Kathy Beauregard (Western Michigan).
The MAC Hall of Fame was approved by the MAC Council of Presidents in 1987. The charter class was inducted in 1988 and subsequent classes were added in 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992 and 1994. After six induction classes, the MAC Hall of Fame maintained 52 members until it was reinstated in May of 2012. This year's class brings the number of MAC Hall of Fame inductees to 114 individuals from 16 classes.
Parker, who was inducted into the E-Club Hall of Fame in 1995, served EMU as a coach and associate athletic director from 1976 until her retirement in 1991.
A pioneer and visionary figure in the world of women's athletics at Eastern Michigan University, Parker was responsible for increasing scholarships for women, moving women's coaching positions from part-time to full-time, and helping add intercollegiate sports offerings.
A native of Smithville, Tenn., Parker graduated from Detroit Eastern High School in 1954, where she excelled in tennis and basketball. She went on to earn her bachelor's degree in physical education from EMU in 1958 and her master's degree from EMU in 1964 and then did post-graduate work at The Ohio State University.
After teaching and coaching on the high school level and at Henry Ford Community College and the University of Michigan, she took the job as EMU's women's tennis coach at a time when women's athletics had recently been moved from the physical education department to the athletic department. Parker was then hired by EMU's acting athletic director Ron Oestrike as the assistant director of athletics, working in that position for a year. In 1976 she officially became the associate athletic director for women's athletics until 1991 when she retired.
Throughout her career, Parker was actively involved in promoting women in athletics through such programs as the Women's Recreation Association and the State of Michigan Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (SMAIAW). Through hard work and the passage of Title IX, the Association of lntercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) became a reality. The AIAW functioned in the equivalent role for college women's programs before eventually merging with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).
Her guidance and dedication was also instrumental in the success of EMU's Women's Athletic Endowment Fund, which was later renamed the Lucy Parker Women's Athletic Endowment Fund. EMU Athletics previously hosted an annual golf outing for 20 years that was called the Lucy Park Golf Outing. The event ran until 2008 with funds benefitting EMU's women's teams.
Parker always worked hard to promote women's athletics and was politically active and a passionate advocate for the passing of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA).
Parker passed away Sept. 1, 2018, at the age of 82. She is interred in DeKalb County Memorial Gardens in her hometown of Smithville, Tenn.
Along with Parker, the other 11 inductees are Kay Piper (Akron), Andrea Seger (Ball State), Dorothy Luedtke (Bowling Green), Nan Harvey (Buffalo), Linda (Pagett) Young (Central Michigan), Laing Kennedy (Kent State), Karen Womack (Miami), Cary Groth (Northern Illinois), Peggy Pruitt (Ohio), Cheryl Sprangel (Toledo) and Kathy Beauregard (Western Michigan).
The MAC Hall of Fame was approved by the MAC Council of Presidents in 1987. The charter class was inducted in 1988 and subsequent classes were added in 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992 and 1994. After six induction classes, the MAC Hall of Fame maintained 52 members until it was reinstated in May of 2012. This year's class brings the number of MAC Hall of Fame inductees to 114 individuals from 16 classes.
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