Hunter College’s Director of Athletics Recreation and alumna, Terry Wansart MS '85, has received the prestigious Richard A. Rasmussen Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Association of Division III Athletic Administrators.
The honor, presented at the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics Convention, recognizes individuals who have advanced Division III athletics throughout their careers.
Wansart shared the accolade with Donna Ledwin, Commissioner of the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference, marking them as the third and fourth female recipients since the award's inception. The award, named for former NADIIIAA Executive Director Richard Rasmussen, highlights their outstanding contributions to NCAA Division III athletics.
The longest-serving member of Hunter Athletics and the City University of New York Athletic Conference, Wansart is Hunter’s first and only female director of Athletics, Recreation, and Intramurals. Under her leadership, the Hawks have become the most successful program in the CUNYAC, securing 184 conference championship titles and 13 Commissioner's Cups, alongside many individual champions.
Wansart began her athletic career benefiting from the early Title IX battles and defied the odds throughout her athletic administration, starting at a time when only 3% of collegiate athletic directors were female. Today, women make up less than 25% of athletic directors across the NCAA. As a trailblazer, she remains steadfast in her support of the “Educational Athletic Model,” dedicated to providing opportunity and access for all.
“Terry Wansart has served Hunter College's student-athletes with a deep dedication to their athletic, academic, and personal achievement for decades. Terry has led Hunter College's teams to sweeping victories at CUNY Conferences over the years and distinguished herself as a fierce advocate for student-athletes' success and well-being. Recognized among her peers as a font of knowledge and experience, Terry has developed and implemented student support programs that hone student-athletes' athletic and life skills. Terry and her staff support student-athletes in achieving excellence on the courts and in the classrooms. On behalf of Hunter College's Leadership, I congratulate Terry on her recent Lifetime Achievement award bestowed upon her by NADIIIAA this past Spring,” said Eija Ayravainen, Vice President of Student Affairs at Hunter College.
In 2013, Wansart was elected to the NCAA Division III Management Council by her peers nationwide. In that role, she helped shape policy, introduced contemporary initiatives, and developed the future of athletics in higher education. She served on the Financial Aid Committee, the Playing and Practice Seasons Subcommittee, and the Academic Issues Subcommittee, advocating for the mission and challenges of urban/public education institutions on the national athletic stage.
“Terry embodies the Division III philosophy – she has successfully led the Hunter athletics department to achieve high levels of success while simultaneously staying focused on the broad-based value of the student-athlete experience. She also has provided leadership, especially as a proponent of gender equity, beyond Hunter as a member of several NCAA, regional, and conference committees. She is so deserving of this national recognition,” said Louise McCleary, Vice President of Division III at the NCAA.
Wansart began her career at Hunter in 1982 as Assistant Athletic Director. During the next 11 years, she coached the women's volleyball team to 339 wins, four Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference championships, nine CUNYAC titles, and nine bids to the New York State Women's Collegiate Athletic Association tournament. Her tenure with the softball and women's basketball teams was equally impressive, with notable victories and championships in both sports. She was named Coach of the Year by the CUNYAC in both basketball (1989) and softball (1985, 1987).
Nationally, Wansart has participated in many NCAA, ECAC, NYSWCAA, and NACWAA panels, workshops, and seminars. In July 2006, she was one of 15 professionals nationwide selected for the prestigious NACWAA Institute for Athletics Executives. She has also been the first person to simultaneously serve as president of the CUNYAC, NYSWCAA, and Skyline Conference.
Wansart is also certified as an Athletic Trainer by the National Athletic Trainers Association and has been an adjunct professor for more than 20 years. She holds a bachelor's degree in Health and Physical Education, with a minor in Athletic Training, from East Stroudsburg University, where she competed nationally in women's volleyball, and a master's degree in Physical Education/Athletic Administration from Hunter College.
Wansart has earned a plethora of honors throughout her career, including the CUNYAC Appreciation Award (2019), Metropolitan Basketball Writers Service Awards (2017), HEO Award (2015), NYSWCAA Service Award (2004), and was inducted into the Windsor High School Knights of Distinction Hall of Fame in 2018 for her All-American status in both volleyball and basketball in 1977. She has touched the lives of many student-athletes and colleagues alike.
“Congratulations to Terry Wansart on winning this lifetime achievement award. It is well deserved. It was a privilege to have Terry as a coach and a mentor. I have seen how her hard work and dedication have made a lasting impact not only on the success of her teams and players she has coached but on the entire athletic community at Hunter. At Hunter, she fostered an environment that made everyone strive to be better, not only as an athlete but more importantly as a person. Her values of discipline, perseverance, and teamwork have inspired me and other athletes to give 100%, not only in practice and games but in life. Terry continues to be a source of inspiration and guidance to me. Unknowingly, my current athletes benefit from the values she has instilled in me,” said Ellen Fox, an alumna and Health and Physical Education Department Chair for Hunter College High School.
