Fagan And Lindsay To Speak At CU's Inclusive Sports Summit Next Week
February 19, 2020 | Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
BOULDER – A pair of prominent Forever Buffs, former University of Colorado basketball player Kate Fagan and former CU football player Phillip Lindsay, will return to campus next week as part of the CU Inclusive Sports Summit on Wednesday, Feb. 26. The two will be keynote speakers on a day that celebrates diversity and inclusion while also providing an educational opportunity.
The third annual CU Inclusive Sports Summit is open to the public and will provide a space for all to dialogue on social issues while embracing one's differences through interactive presentations, panel discussion, and experiential opportunities. Session topics will include social justice, LGBTQ, race and ethnicity, health and wellness, and careers in relation to sports and recreation. The event is free and open to the public. Registration is encouraged but not required.
CUBuffs.com caught up with Fagan this week for a quick Q&A ahead of next week's summit.
Fagan lettered for CU's women's basketball team from 1999 to 2004, serving as a starter during her junior and senior seasons, and leading the Buffs to four NCAA Tournament appearances, including the Elite Eight in 2002. After graduation, she went on to work at ESPN as a columnist, feature writer, and on-air talent. She has hosted and co-hosted several shows, including "Outside the Lines," "E:60," "The Friday Four," and "Around the Horn."
More recently, Fagan is the author of What Made Maddy Run, which spent a month at No. 1 on the New York Times bestseller sports list. She is also the author of the coming-of-age memoir, The Reappearing Act, about her experience coming out while playing basketball at the University of Colorado.
CUBuffs.com: Why is it exciting for you to come speak at this event?
Fagan: I appreciate any chance to come back to campus, as it's a place that means so much to me. Adding in the topic -- one that is very close to my heart -- makes it a perfect combination.
CUBuffs.com: What does awareness leading to action mean to you?
Fagan: I think, with most things in life, the foundational piece before anyone can actually do something about a problem is to understand precisely what the problem is and how it affects people. Once someone connects with a story, and truly understands how a problem impacts others, it can be the spark to cause that person to take action. But I think it all starts with understanding.
CUBuffs.com: How has writing your books shaped your perspective on inclusivity in sports and the pressures student-athletes face?
Fagan: Writing those books has forced me to closely examine the experience of the student-athlete, which has led me to thoughts and ideas that, without the framework of writing, I probably wouldn't have considered. I think whenever you put yourself in a position to understand an issue deeply, you start to see all its different dimensions in a way that usually doesn't happen just in passing.
The third annual CU Inclusive Sports Summit is open to the public and will provide a space for all to dialogue on social issues while embracing one's differences through interactive presentations, panel discussion, and experiential opportunities. Session topics will include social justice, LGBTQ, race and ethnicity, health and wellness, and careers in relation to sports and recreation. The event is free and open to the public. Registration is encouraged but not required.
CUBuffs.com caught up with Fagan this week for a quick Q&A ahead of next week's summit.
Fagan lettered for CU's women's basketball team from 1999 to 2004, serving as a starter during her junior and senior seasons, and leading the Buffs to four NCAA Tournament appearances, including the Elite Eight in 2002. After graduation, she went on to work at ESPN as a columnist, feature writer, and on-air talent. She has hosted and co-hosted several shows, including "Outside the Lines," "E:60," "The Friday Four," and "Around the Horn."
More recently, Fagan is the author of What Made Maddy Run, which spent a month at No. 1 on the New York Times bestseller sports list. She is also the author of the coming-of-age memoir, The Reappearing Act, about her experience coming out while playing basketball at the University of Colorado.
CUBuffs.com: Why is it exciting for you to come speak at this event?
Fagan: I appreciate any chance to come back to campus, as it's a place that means so much to me. Adding in the topic -- one that is very close to my heart -- makes it a perfect combination.
CUBuffs.com: What does awareness leading to action mean to you?
Fagan: I think, with most things in life, the foundational piece before anyone can actually do something about a problem is to understand precisely what the problem is and how it affects people. Once someone connects with a story, and truly understands how a problem impacts others, it can be the spark to cause that person to take action. But I think it all starts with understanding.
CUBuffs.com: How has writing your books shaped your perspective on inclusivity in sports and the pressures student-athletes face?
Fagan: Writing those books has forced me to closely examine the experience of the student-athlete, which has led me to thoughts and ideas that, without the framework of writing, I probably wouldn't have considered. I think whenever you put yourself in a position to understand an issue deeply, you start to see all its different dimensions in a way that usually doesn't happen just in passing.
Inclusive Week at CU
The Inclusive Sports Summit on Wednesday, Feb. 26, is one of several events to promote diversity and inclusion at CU over a week's span. Here are several more opportunities over the next seven days:- Inclusive Sports Weekend: CU student-athletes will host this event at CU's lacrosse (Friday at 4 p.m. at Kittredge Field), women's basketball (Friday at 7 p.m. at the CU Events Center), tennis (Saturday at noon at the Rocky Mountain Tennis Center), and men's basketball (Saturday at 4 p.m. at the CU Events Center) games. The student-athletes will have booths set up at each event for fans to stop by and take a pledge to end discrimination and take photos with inclusive signage.
- CU's Diversity & Inclusion Summit: The campus's spring Diversity and Inclusion Summit is slated for Tuesday, Feb. 25, with presentations and featured speakers in the Glenn Miller Ballroom and the UMC.