Tallahassee, FL - Former longtime Illinois Central College women's basketball and softball coach, Lorene Ramsey, has been named one of the six recipients of the WeCOACH 2025-26 Lifetime Achievement Award presented by Jostens.
The prestigious WeCOACH Lifetime Achievement Award is presented to women in sports who succeed at the highest levels in their respective careers, while also displaying an unwavering commitment, pioneering spirit, and trailblazing leadership to empower and pave the way for girls and women in all sports and levels to breakthrough for many generations to come.
This year's recipients include: Kathy Aspaas, former Head Swim Coach, Minot High School (Minot, ND) & Century High School (Bismarck, ND), Founder and former Owner & Head Coach of ASK Swim, LLC; Valorie Kondos Field, former UCLA Head Women's Gymnastics Coach; Dr. Tina Sloan Green, former Temple University Head Women's Lacrosse Coach & Professor Emerita, Black Women in Sport Foundation Co-Founder; Billie Jean King, Founder, Women's Tennis Association and Women's Sports Foundation; Lorene Ramsey, former Illinois Central College Head Women's Basketball Coach & Head Softball Coach; and Barbara Stevens, former Bentley University Head Women's Basketball Coach.
"Each of these trailblazers has transformed the landscape of sport and expanded what's possible for women who aspire to lead. Their impact reaches far beyond championships and accolades—they have shaped generations, opened doors, and built a more equitable future for all of us. WeCOACH is honored to celebrate their extraordinary legacies and the powerful example they continue to set for our community of women coaches nationwide," said WeCOACH CEO Vanessa Fuchs.
About Coach Lorene Ramsey:
Lorene Ramsey is a pioneering coach who built Illinois Central College's (ICC's) women's athletic program before Title IX, helping lay the groundwork for expanded opportunities for women in sport. She joined ICC in 1968 and went on to lead the women's basketball program to an 887-197 record with five (5) NJCAA National Championships and the softball program to an 840-309 record with two (2) NJCAA National Titles.
Ramsey has the distinction of being the only coach in NJCAA history to win a National Championship in both Women's Basketball and Softball in the same year (1998). She has earned multiple National Coach of the Year honors and has been inducted into 14 Halls of Fame, including the National Softball Hall of Fame and the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame.
Responsible for mentoring hundreds of young women, many of whom went on to earn college scholarships, the ICC gymnasium was named in her honor in 2003. Her leadership before and after Title IX demonstrated the competitive excellence of women's athletics and helped pave the way for greater gender equity in collegiate sports.
Past Lifetime Achievement Award recipients include Pat Summitt, Tara VanDerveer, Jan Hutchinson, Dr. Ann Lebedeff, Carmen Jackson, Jill Ellis, Muffet McGraw, Violet Palmer, Dr. Nikki, Franke, Carol"Hutch" Hutchins, Jodi Manore, Missy Foote, Dr. Christine Grant, Bev Kearney, C. Vivian Stringer and Sister Lynn Winsor. The 2025-26 honorees will receive their custom-designed awards by Jostens on May 18 in Denver, Colorado in conjunction with the WeCOACH Women Coaches Academies.
