Courtesy Hamline Sports Information
ST. PAUL, Minn. - Hamline University head lacrosse coach Karen Heggernes was recently nominated for the NCAA Division III LGBTQ OneTeam Coach of the Year Award. This award honors the service, leadership, and promotion of LGBTQ inclusion by an LGBTQ athletics administrator, coach, or staff member.
"I am honored and grateful to represent Hamline University in this nomination," Heggernes said. "I am thankful to my colleagues who nominated me and to the greater Hamline community. My wife and I have felt very welcomed in this community for the past five years."
Heggernes was named the inaugural head lacrosse coach at Hamline in 2015 and is entering her sixth year at the helm of the program.
"Karen is very deserving of the recognition; I'm extremely proud of the work she's done and continues to do as a coach, mentor, and colleague," said Hamline athletic director Jason Verdugo. "Karen is a tremendous ambassador for our institution and lacrosse community."
Since the Hamline lacrosse team joined the Midwest Women's Lacrosse Conference (MWLC), Heggernes has been named the league's Coach of the Year three times, leading her team to three conference championships and three NCAA tournament appearances, which included getting a first-round win in 2019.
"The MLC-MWLC is in full support of the NCAA's Diversity and Inclusion efforts," said Kelly Anderson Diercks, commissioner of MWLC. "Congratulations go out to Coach Heggernes on her nomination for the inaugural NCAA DIII OneTeam Coach of the Year Award. Creating inclusive athletic departments for student-athletes from LGBTQ backgrounds is incredibly important and the MWLC is proud to have coaches like Karen taking a lead in this area."
On campus, Heggernes is intentional about creating a welcoming and supportive environment for student-athletes.
"One way I do my best to promote LGBTQIA+ inclusion is to stay educated on terms and identifiers," Heggernes commented. "As coaches we develop strong relationships with our student-athletes, so one way I show my inclusivity is using gender neutral terms when asking about family, significant others, friends, and important people in our student-athletes' lives. We also ask pronouns and names when doing team introductions."
In addition, the lacrosse team has co-hosted a Pride Game with Augsburg for the past three seasons to show their support for student-athletes within the LGBTQIA+ community. As part of the event, the team invites various groups from the campus community to attend the game and provides information on how to be inclusive.
Heggernes also participated in the 2018 Minneapolis Pride Parade, marching with Hamline University students, faculty, and staff, and is a new member of the Diversity Initiatives Steering Committee (DISC) at Hamline. DISC is composed of faculty, staff, and students, and aims to further an inclusive culture.
The winner of the inaugural LGBTQ OneTeam Administrator/Coach/Staff of the Year Award will be notified in November and will be publicly recognized in conjunction with the virtual 2021 NCAA Convention in January.
To see the full list of nominees, click here.