KALAMAZOO, Mich. – In a release from the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA), the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) and Allstate Tuesday morning, Grace Smith of the Kalamazoo College women's basketball team was one of 10 women's basketball players across the country named to the 2017 Good Works Team.
The women's Good Works Team—comprised of five NCAA Division I student-athletes and five student-athletes from NCAA Divisions II, III and the NAIA—shines light on women across the country who've made exceptional impacts in their communities off the basketball court.
Smith, who also played goalkeeper for the women's soccer team the past three seasons, is serving in her second year as the Kalamazoo College Athletic Leadership Council president and has significantly strengthened the campus's relationship and partnership with Special Olympics during her time in the role. Under her leadership, the annual track meet and soccer tournaments hosted by Kalamazoo College with Special Olympics have grown drastically since their inception.
Outside of her dedication to Special Olympics, Smith has volunteered her time in recent years to multiple organizations in the Kalamazoo community including Kalamazoo Public Schools' Woodward Elementary; Milwood Elementary; and Indian Prairie Elementary, the Western Michigan University Center for Disability Services, and the Kalamazoo Gospel Mission.
Smith, along with the other nine members of the women's Good Works Team, will be recognized during the 2017 WBCA Convention and at the 2017 NCAA Women's Final Four in Dallas, Texas. All honorees will participate in a local community project in the Dallas community.
For the full release from the WBCA, click here.