Meier Extends Miami Deal, Gifts $75,000 To School
CORAL GABLES (AP) — Miami gave Katie Meier a new contract. Meier then gave the school a check.
Meier is now under contract to lead Miami's women's basketball program through 2021, with an extension being announced Monday by the school. Financial terms of the deal were not released. Meier, however, revealed that she donated $75,000 to support women's sports at the school, a pledge that has already gotten several longtime Hurricane supporters to follow suit.
"I feel like I have deep roots here and would like to give back," Meier said. "I want our young women to be able to share the incredible impact that athletics has had on my life. I believe that this gift is the best way to do it."
Meier has been at Miami since 2005, with a record of 163-121.
She was The Associated Press' national coach of the year in 2011, sharing the award with Connecticut's Geno Auriemma and Stanford's Tara VanDerveer. Meier also was a co-winner of USA Basketball's coach of the year award after leading the Americans to a gold medal at last year's Under-19 women's world championships.
"We are thrilled that Coach Meier has agreed to lead our women's basketball program through the 2021 season," Miami athletic director Blake James said. "Katie embodies the values of this institution, and her dedication to her student-athletes, this university and our community is unmatched."
Meier has been active in the Miami community throughout her tenure with the Hurricanes, and said she wanted to make the donation — one that she held off from announcing publicly for several weeks — to show her appreciation for the support she's gotten from university president Donna Shalala, senior women's administrator Jennifer Strawley, and James.
"We have some amazing people here as our coaches," Shalala said earlier this fall.
Meier said she hopes her donation sparks more giving to women's athletics at Miami.
"Participating in sports does make a long-term difference in a woman's life," said Meier, who was a star player at Duke as a collegian. "The opportunities that collegiate athletics creates for our student-athletes allow them to grow and learn as members of our university community, and most importantly provide an unbelievable foundation for success in life."
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