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Jody Conradt is a legendary figure. Coach Conradt came to UT in 1976, serving as head coach of the women’s basketball team and from 1992-2001 as director of women’s athletics. During her tenure as athletic director, Conradt oversaw an enormous expansion of the program. Three new sports – rowing, soccer, and softball – were added, greatly increasing the opportunities for women student athletes. In the mid-1980s, her women’s basketball teams ranked No. 1 in the nation for four straight years, and her 1985-86 team sported a 34-0 record, becoming the first undefeated national championship team in NCAA history. Home game attendance rose to more than 8,000, and supporters contributed more than 90 endowed scholarships to the women’s athletics program. During her 38-year coaching career, her athletes boasted an unprecedented 99% graduation rate. Conradt is also active in the community, supporting numerous organizations, among them the Girl Scouts, Caritas, SafePlace, The American Cancer Society, the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure, and America’s Walk for Diabetes. She retired as head coach in 2007 and continues to serve as special assistant to women’s athletic director Chris Plonsky. On the day I caught up with ‘Coach,’ she had just finished an orientation pep talk with incoming UT freshmen, her enthusiasm for the Longhorns, athletics, and opportunities for women clearly front and center.
austinwoman: I just heard about the Women’s and Gender Studies program establishing the Jody Conradt Excellence Fund in Leadership and Equity and wanted to catch up with you to find out what you have been up to since your official retirement in 2007.
Jody Conradt: I am so honored and feel privileged to be a part of that program. UT is such a part of my life that I cannot imagine not having an association with the University. I don’t have an actual job title, but I have projects. I guess you could say that I am an ambassador and an advocate for UT. I have speaking appearances. I help with fundraising events. I am active with the Golf Academy out at the UT Club. I am chairing a group of people who will put on a golf tournament to benefit Neighborhood Longhorns, which is our outreach program. So I am not really retired but it is nice to have some free time and enjoy Austin.
aw: You also do a lot in the community. Now that you are semi-retired, have you thought about relocating and kicking back?
JC: Oh no. Austin is my home and this is my community. I feel that I have a responsibility to give back. It is an important part of my life. People need a helping hand. One of the things I try to teach my student athletes is team work … that is what a team does … it pulls together and supports the members and makes up for any weaknesses. As for living anywhere else, Austin is a comfortable city for me. I love to attend UT sporting events. I also love the cultural events UT and Austin has to offer. There is a lot of diversity here. Also I am a Texan – born and raised – so I will live my life in Texas.
aw: During your tenure as a coach you had 900 victories, an undefeated season and won the NCAA Championship. What would you say was your proudest moment or greatest success?
JC: Mack Brown says that coaches are in the winning business and that is definitely true, but my proudest accomplishments don’t have anything to do with winning. During my tenure at Texas I was afforded an opportunity to showcase women in non-traditional roles and to be one of thousands of people who pushed to create opportunities for young women in sports. The ripple effect from the credibility in the sports programs became the impetus for little girls to want to participate in sports. Now you drive across Austin and you see little girls out on the fields playing soccer and softball. That didn’t happen 30 years ago. There was a perception that women didn’t want to sweat and play sports and that had to change.
aw: You had a 99% graduation rate among your players. That seems unprecedented. How did you accomplish that?
JC: It is different for women in sports. Women don’t have a lucrative professional contract waiting for them so the highest prize for most of them is receiving their degree. Their motivation to graduate was strong. That being said, I tried to recruit young women that were capable of succeeding in their academics and had a certain work ethic. The University of Texas is a world-class institution with very high standards so I had to recruit players who could compete in the classroom as well as on the court.
aw: What qualities did you look for when you were recruiting?
JC: Work ethic is first on the list. Focus and intensity are also high on the list. The worst kinds of players to coach are those who have a lot of talent and not a good work ethic. It is hard to integrate that kind of player into a team. They also need to play a role and do whatever needs to be done for the good of the team. You might have to start at the lowest level. You might be sweeping the floor, but whatever you do will help you learn.
aw: What does it take to make a woman a leader?
JC: It takes a certain character to break gender barriers. Thirty years ago it wasn’t accepted by society in general to enter the male dominated fields – law, medicine, aviation – so women had to have an innate confidence and courage to do that. Today the spectrum is limitless, but I feel it is important to keep those significant moments and history alive so that young women can appreciate the opportunities they have now. Confidence and courage to move outside the norm are the qualities that make a leader and I think that is what the Women’s and Gender Studies program is all about.
aw: There are three words used to describe the fund UT is setting up in your name … Excellence, Leadership and Equity. I would like to know your definition of those three words. Excellence?
JC: Striving for perfection, especially in sports. You may never reach perfection, but if you want excellence, you have to have something to strive for … you must have the highest aspirations.
aw: Leadership?
JC: Leadership starts with doing the right thing. It is not always easy or popular to do the right thing, but that is what a leader will do.
aw: Equity?
JC: Fairness. By that, I mean giving everyone an opportunity to prove him or herself … to give each person a fair chance.
aw: Why is it necessary to have a separate program for studying and developing women leaders?
JC: We have come through a time when society didn’t do a very good job of allowing women to be a part of the team. In today’s society, nothing happens in isolation so everyone is part of a team and every team requires people to step forth as leaders. Women of past generations were left out of that. Once women were reluctantly included on the team, the expectations were not for women to emerge as leaders. That was associated as a male right and now it is important to see women as leaders and encourage women to assume leadership roles.
Get Involved:
The Jody Conradt Excellence Fund in Leadership and Equity Income from this endowment will be used to support students and faculty in the Center for Women’s and Gender Studies, a University-wide interdisciplinary research and teaching program within the College of Liberal Arts. The mission of the Center for Women’s and Gender Studies is to promote learning and research about women, gender and society. The Center for Women’s and Gender Studies at The University of Texas at Austin is dedicated to closing the leadership gap through a variety of initiatives involving students, faculty and the community. Gifts to the Jody Conradt Excellence Fund in Equity and Leadership honor the legacy of a great coach and leader.
For more information, contact Susan Adair at
512.475.9619 or sadair@austin.utexas.edu.