Home court advantage
Photos by
Victoria Dawson ’16 didn’t have to travel far to make a big difference in her field. After graduating from Amherst-Pelham Regional High School (ARHS) in 2012, she went on to study kinesiology less than a mile away at UMass Amherst. In 2019, she went back to ARHS as athletic director—an impressive feat, given that the average high school athletic director is in their 40s—and she’s been earning rave reviews from colleagues, students, and parents ever since.
Dawson credits her time on the UMass Amherst women’s basketball team with helping launch her career. “I loved it,” she says.
“I didn’t get a lot of playing time, but I was a captain for two years, and I learned a lot,” she says, adding that the leadership role helped launch her career.
After graduating in 2016, Dawson went on to coach collegiate sports for several years, but found that working at the high school level aligned more closely with her goals. As an athletic director at the high school, she saw an opportunity to help young people learn important life lessons. “I think you can learn a lot of those things [by playing] sports,” she says.
She notes that, among other things, being on a sports team “can help you with your personal relationships, how to communicate, how to listen to people.” Dawson holds her students to a high standard; for example, when parents email her about issues that come up with their children, Dawson asks them to also have the students email her themselves. “I’m trying to teach them that they need to advocate for themselves as well,” she says. “I’m trying to help develop young adults.”
Dawson, a true athlete at heart, also likes to challenge herself. “I try to do something new each year,” she says, with the goal of increasing student involvement in athletics, whether as participants or fans. “This year, we’re trying to start Athlete of the Week. Our coaches nominate someone, and we have faculty that are on the committee. So, the whole person is being recognized, not just what they’ve done on the field.”
I’m trying to help develop young adults.
– Victoria Dawson ’16
While Dawson can’t confirm that this is her doing, enrollment in sports at ARHS is up, particularly among girls. In 2023, the girls’ soccer team had over 50 girls try out after barely having enough people to fill the team the year before. Whatever the cause, as a woman excelling in an overwhelmingly male career field, she’s clearly setting a good example.
And her passion for helping students is palpable. Despite a substantial workload during the school day, she still makes time to show up to sports games at night. (“The fun part of the job,” she says.) “The kids are my priority,” says Dawson, noting that being there for her students and having their best interests at heart are among her proudest achievements.
“Athletics really taught me a lot of the life lessons that I try to put on to these kids,” she adds. “I think UMass gave me a lot of those things.”
Gender parity goes global
If you watched the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris and noticed women getting a bit more airtime than in previous years, you’re not imagining it. According to the International Olympic Committee, the 2024 Games saw 50/50 gender parity for the first time in Olympic history. Not only that, but some of America’s greatest Olympic superstars were women as well, from Simone Biles to Katie Ledecky to Northampton’s own Gabby Thomas, among many others.
That’s in addition to increasing interest in the WNBA, thanks to the so-called “Caitlin Clark effect.” Plus, collegiate athletes are now eligible for sponsor-like name, image, and likeness (NIL) deals, where women are getting some of the biggest deals, according to Dawson. “I do think female sports are going to be on the rise,” she says.
We’re on the lookout
Share your most intriguing nooks, niches, coordinates, or curiosities on campus or anywhere in the region. Email magazine@umass.edu and we’ll investigate!