Carolina Athletics and the Rams Club announced an initiative to celebrate and promote the university’s women’s athletics at the school on Friday.
The initiative, called ForevHER, will champion the accomplishments made by UNC 15 women’s athletics programs while aiming to empower student-athletes, improve their resources and inspire the Carolina community. One of the first actions under the initiative will be the launch of a new fundraising campaign. The goal is to raise $100 million to improve various programs’ facilities, scholarship support, and mentorship programs.
Sue Walsh, the associate executive director of The Rams Club and a standout UNC swimming and diving alumna, shared her reasoning of why the Rams Club helped create the initiative.
“Our female student-athletes have been overwhelmingly successful, winning 70 percent of our national championships here at UNC,” she said in a statement. “Having been a female student-athlete myself, it’s really near and dear to my heart, and I’m very excited about being involved with this initiative, and seeing it grow and become something very special.”
Carolina women’s athletics programs have had a long history of success. They have four active Hall of Fame coaches and have brought the school 35 national championship titles, along with 31 other individual national champions.
Beyond emphasizing on-field success, the ForevHER initiative also aims to create a network between UNC athlete alumnae, current student-athletes, and Rams Club members. The goal is to provide resources and mentorship to young student-athletes as they grow within the athletic program and university.
“This campaign allows us to continue, enhance and expand opportunities within our women’s sport programs,” said Carolina Director of Athletics Bubba Cunningham. “It ensures that the experience for female student-athletes at Carolina is second to none, and that they will continue to make a positive impact on the world after they leave campus. It’s incredibly important to provide that education and those opportunities.”
A launch event is set for 12 p.m. on Saturday October 5 at the Carolina Club. A panel will be held to discuss the importance of the initiative and the experience of women student-athletes, which will feature former UNC athletes like Kristine Lilly, Meghan Lyons, Vanessa Whitman, Tiffany Tucker, and more. Current women’s lacrosse senior Riley Harrison and field hockey head coach Karen Shelton also will be part of the panel.
To learn more about the ForevHER initiative, visit its website.
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