SUNY Cortland Athletics

As women's athletics moved from "play days" to competitive sports during the 1960's and 1970's, Jeanne Galvin '60 became a driving force in New York State to increase opportunities for female athletes at all levels.

As a Cortland undergraduate, Galvin, from Buffalo, N.Y., represented the College at "play days" and also competed in intramural field hockey, volleyball, basketball and softball, as well as a U.S. Field Hockey - sponsored club squad. A member of Arethusa sorority, she earned a bachelor's degree in physical education from Cortland and a master's degree from Indiana University.

Galvin taught physical education at Herkimer-Otsego BOCES and then at Owen D. Young Central School in Van Hornesville, N.Y. At the latter, she battled for equal support and opportunity for girl's teams. She pioneerd competitive league structures and post-season scholastic competition for girls in New York's Section Three. In 1971, she joined the physical education faculty at Herkimer County Community College, where she was the architect of women's athletics. She wrote the rules of competition for two-year women's collegiate athletics and garnered acceptance of junior college women's sports by the New York State Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (NYSAIAW).

A former president of the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Field Hockey Coaches Association, Galvin coached Herkimer to NYSAIAW titles in field hockey, basketball, volleyball and softball. She has 13 NJCAA regional crowns and won the NJCAA national field hockey championships in 1987 and 1991. She was inducted into the SUNY Institute of Technology Hall of Fame and in 1992 received the Mohawk Valley Outstanding Women of the Year Award. She retired from Herkimer County Community College in 1995.