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KANSAN.COM/SPORTS | THURSDAY, APRIL 28, 2016
Scott Chasen/KANSAN
Some of the awards and honors Marlene Mawson has accumulated over the course of her life.
Paige Stingley/KANSAN
Marlene Mavecom watches Kansas volleyball take on Oklahoma in Lawrence on Oct. 21.
*Paige Stingley/KANSAN*
Marlene Mawson walks across Naismith Court in Allen Fieldhouse, being inducted into the Kansas Hall of Fame.
Contributed photo/KU Athletics
Marlene Mawson, 'mother of KU women's athletics,' continues to impact University nearly 5 decades later
SCOTT CHASEN @SCharsenUl
@SChasenKU
Matlene Mawson knew it wouldn't be easy to bring the 1971 national volleyball tournament to Kansas. With a budget that was less than one half of 1 percent of what the men's athletic program had, she knew everything had to run perfectly.
Before finalizing the request, she reached out to staff members at Allen Fieldhouse, hoping the tournament could be hosted there. She recalled the answer as short and dismissive.
"We can't schedule that here, period," Mawson said. "We don't have to negotiate with you."
Four decades later, Mawson walked across Naismith Court in the building that once marked forbidden ground for female athletes. Standing at center court, she was inducted into the Kansas
Athletics Hall of Fame.
She smiled as she recalled the memory.
"We did it," she said.
It had all come full circle for Mawson, yet the path was never easy.
The "Mother of KU Women's Athletics" was nothing of the sort when she accepted an unknown, undefined job as a 28-year-old in 1968.
Armed with a $2,000 budget and what she viewed as a clear message that there would be
no additional support. Mawson set out to establish a women's athletics program in a time when gender equity wasn't considered a pressing issue.
"When I got to KU, it was sort of like, 'Wow, we got $2,000. That's a lot of money," Mawson said. "I didn't realize the man had [$541,000]."
But she made do.
In 1971, with the door to Allegem Fieldhouse shut,
Mawson finalized the proposal for the tournament; the venue became the smaller Robinson Gymnasium.
Mawson's proposal won out. Kansas became the host site.
Faced with adversity, Mawson persevered. She came into her position knowing there were going to be challenges, but she had goals she wanted to accomplish, and she continued to push for them regardless of what was
happening around her.
And according to Mawson, it all went back to the feelings she had as an athlete. She said she loved competition and felt others should have the same opportunities that she had.
"I was trying to find any route to do what we possibly could do," Mawson said. "Of course it wasn't full fledged like the men's, but it was something. And it grew and grew."
A self-described competitor, Mawson holds her athletic achievements in high regard. She was a multi-sport athlete in high school, which carried over into college.
At the University of Central Missouri, Mawson played softball, basketball and volleyball. She continued to play basketball and volleyball while she attended graduate school at the University of Colorado and coached at the high school level.
For that, even at the age of 75, Mawson has adopted a unique mantra. She drew a comparison to golf, saying it's not about trying to get the best score in any given group of people. Instead, there's another focus.
A competitor,a coach and a teacher
As a coach, it only seemed logical that her philosophies would be the same; focus on yourself and focus on the details;
"I think that applies to my entire life," she said. "I was always looking for that next edge. What else can we do?"
"Even when it's not against somebody else, it's my own competition to see if I can match my score or better it," Mawson said. "It's my nature."
However, for Mawson,
that competitive spirit
wasn't something left only
for games.
good things will come
A big emphasis for her was on the little things, helping athletes improve even without the widespread competition that would be seen in today's game.
Joan Wells former athlete
Joan Wells, who played volleyball and softball for Mawson from 1968-71, credited Mawson as a coach in a couple of different ways.
A lot of people wouldn't step up and be active in professional organizations. She did."
"A lot of people wouldn't step up and be active in professional organizations," Wells said. "She did."
The '60s and '70s marked a different era for coaches. Mawson wasn't allowed to stand up off
She said Mawson was clearly intelligent when it came to the actual games, but that wasn't her only distinguishing characteristic.
However, that didn't mean her coaching style was authoritarian.
The professionalism spurned from another idea that Mawson carried throughout her career. For Mawson, being able to compete was a thrill. It was special. It meant something.
the bench and call out to players. The only real "coaching" occurred in practices and during timeouts.
However, Mawson still embraced the role as a teacher. She wanted to win, but she also wanted to make sure things were being done the right way.
When she got to the college level and realized that feeling wasn't universal, it laid the building blocks for her future. She said she believed everyone deserved that feeling of competition, which is something she preached then and continues to with current athletes.
"The thing I remember most about her was she was very professional." Wells said.
"Their grandmothers did not get to play; their mothers may not have even gotten to play," Mawson said. "This is not something they should take for granted."
In 1971, Mawson's women's basketball team travelled to Cullowhee, N.C., for what eventually became the NCAA women's tournament.
The progress was there, but it was still slow moving before Title IX was signed into action in 1972.
Before long, a constitution had been established. The meeting became recurring and those attending the meeting became official representatives of their Universities.
"Every year we met to [make] a schedule. And every year the schedule got a little bit fuller," Mawson said.
That same year the men's basketball team reached the Final Four in Houston. It took planes and stayed in hotels, according to Mawson. The women didn't have that luxury.
The challenges
In Mawson's first year at the University, she met with representatives from other schools to create a rotation of games for various women's sports.
Instead, the team rode in station wagons, rotating drivers and passengers, who slept on air mattresses in the back. When they finally arrived at the Western
From the start, Mawson said she realized that she was going to be alone. It wasn't so much that a portion of the staff was actively trying to suppress what she was doing, but that didn't mean they were offering help either.
"Dr. Mawson clearly did some groundbreaking work," said Debbie Van Saun, Kansas associate athletics director and senior woman administrator. "We are a long ways from [1968]. Our men and women eat the same; they travel the same."
When the team wanted to go on trips, it was up to players to volunteer cars and pay for gas - they were reimbursed $0.05 per mile.
Even on the trip to Cullowhee, N.C. — in which the team had help from Emily Taylor, dean of women, in securing two leased station wagons — the team still needed drivers for the 20-hour trip.
It was a different time. In the pre-Title IX days, colleges didn't have to strive for equity. There was no legal basis holding them accountable, something that is obviously different today.
Carolina University host site, they pulled mattresses off bunk beds and slept in a lounge on the second floor of a dorm.
"I was a senior, and I didn't play basketball.
but I was 21," Wells said. "So she asked me to go on the trip and drive."
Even after Title IX was implemented, those associated with women's athletics at the University faced the challenges day after day.
It was the same way for most trips, but it was the reality of the situation. Mawson wasn't getting any handouts from the administration.
The name "Kansas" was stitched across their jerseys, but in many ways, it could be argued they were their own entity. Certainly Mawson said she felt that way from the start.
But there was never really one moment where it stopped. Each day presented a unique challenge. And it wasn't just for Mawson.
"Who was going to help me?" Mawson said. "We had 14 faculty members; 10 of them were men who couldn't have cared less."
But that was the challenge Mawson accepted. Even though it wasn't easy, she said it was important to do. And throughout her 22 years with the University, she continued to fight what she believed was - and is - a crucial fight.
SEE MAWSON
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