NGWSD

On Friday, February 17, Kingswood Oxford alumna Leslie Frank spoke about the importance of Title 9 and girls involvement in sports at the National Girls and Women in Sports Day.

The assembly, which has been held annually since 1997, fell on the same year as the 40th anniversary of Title 9. Mrs. Frank attended KO when Title 9 was created, which was one of the reasons she was chosen as the speaker. Since graduating KO, she has become a lacrosse coach and a nurse.

During her speech, she stressed the values of girls playing sports, not only to boost their confidence, but also to teach independence and how to overcome difficulties.

Mrs. Frank also spoke about how becoming involved in sports has enabled her to become a better coach, and how she believes her own success in coaching has come from her confidence, which was gained through playing sports.

In her presentation, Mrs. Frank offered some startling facts about how far women's sports have come."I was shocked to see the percentage of girls in sports from 1970 to today. It really shows you that we needed a law to give everyone an equal opportunity," said French teacher and organizer of the assembly Lisa Loeb.

Senior Emma Brennan said, "I really enjoyed the speaker. She was very motivational, and it was nice of her to bring the shirts for the questions."

Picking the speaker is just one of the responsibilities Mrs. Loeb has had since she started the assembly 16 years ago.

"I brought the idea for the National Girls and Women in Sport's Day assembly from Choate in 1997, and it has been an annual event ever since," said Mrs. Loeb. "I really like to make the assemblies fun by including movement and keeping them active. I don't think of it as work, because it's a time for me to be a role model," she said.

Emma has also been involved with NGWSD since she was a freshman at KO.

"I was really inspired by all female athletes, and Mrs. Loeb thought it would be a good way to give back to the KO community," said Emma.

In order to keep the assemblies different from year to year, Mrs. Loeb said that she tries not to repeat speakers, and also tries to change the sports, as they have had a football player, a swimmer, a basketball player, a track runner, and a film maker come to speak. She also said she likes women to speak at the assembly.

"I feel like it is better to have a female speaker represent NGWSD, because almost all of the other speakers have been male,” says Mrs. Loeb. “I don't even think we have ever had a female scientist come and speak.” The assembly was created for KO to look back on how far women in sports have come, so Mrs. Loeb believe it is good for girls to see a strong, independent female talking to them and encouraging them to follow their dreams.

One thing Mrs. Loeb doesn't want the assembly to do is come off as if it is just for girls, and not for boys. Both have to endure hard work and obstacles. "Both have learned to never take anything for granted. The second you turn your back, it can disappear," said Mrs. Loeb. NGWSD reminds athletes once a year to never turn their backs on great opportunities.