Connie LeGrand (born in

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

) is an American

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...

who has served in broadcasting in

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

and was host of '' Speed News'' (now ''

The Speed Report ''Speed Center'' was a motor sports news program on Speed Channel. Debuting on February 13, 2011, it was anchored by Adam Alexander with Jeff Hammond and Sam Hornish Jr. as analysts on Sunday episodes. Ricky Rudd was the analyst for the first ...

'') from 2004 to 2006.

Early years

Growing up in "

Bobby Rahal Robert Woodward Rahal (born January 10, 1953) is an American former auto racing driver and team owner. As a driver he won three championships and 24 races in the CART open-wheel series, including the 1986 Indianapolis 500. He also won the 2004 ...

country," LeGrand attended her first auto race in the 1980s: The

Indianapolis 500 The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly called the Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indi ...

. She went on to graduate from Clemson University with a degree in marketing. LeGrand would then earn a Master's degree from the

University of Georgia , mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things." , establ ...

before going into

broadcasting Broadcasting is the distribution (business), distribution of sound, audio or video content to a dispersed audience via any electronic medium (communication), mass communications medium, but typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum (radio ...

. While attending UGA, LeGrand worked as a radio announcer for Athens radio station 960 AM WRFC and sister station Bulldog 103.7 under the pseudonym Connie Laurens.

Professional career

She served as co-host of '' Speed News'' (now ''

''), a motorsports news program (30 minutes during

motorsports Motorsport, motorsports or motor sport is a global term used to encompass the group of competitive sporting events which primarily involve the use of motorized vehicles. The terminology can also be used to describe forms of competition of two ...

season on Saturdays and 60 minutes on Sundays) produced by

Speed Channel Speed was an American sports-oriented cable and satellite television network that was owned by the Fox Sports Media Group division of 21st Century Fox. The network was dedicated to motorsports programming, including auto racing, as well as aut ...

, with

Drew Johnson Jason Andrew "Drew" Johnson (born August 5, 1979 in Johnson City, Tennessee) is a columnist, American political commentator, investigative reporter and former think tank executive. He is a senior scholar at the National Center for Public Policy R ...

. She was on the show from 2004 to June 25, 2006. During the first part of the 2004

NASCAR Cup Series The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and from 1950 to 1970 it was known as the Grand National Division. In 1971, ...

season, LeGrand also anchored the Speed TV series ''

NASCAR Nation ''NASCAR Nation'' was a program on the Speed Channel, which aired Monday nights, discussing the lifestyle of NASCAR drivers when they are not on the track. It was cancelled after the 2005 season. The program began in 2005, effectively replacing ''T ...

''. Prior to her position at

, LeGrand served as a correspondent with

WSPA-TV WSPA-TV (channel 7) is a television station licensed to Spartanburg, South Carolina, United States, serving Upstate South Carolina and Western North Carolina as an affiliate of CBS. It is owned by Nexstar Media Group alongside Asheville, North C ...

Spartanburg, South Carolina Spartanburg is a city in and the county seat, seat of Spartanburg County, South Carolina, United States. The city of Spartanburg has a municipal population of 38,732 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the 11th-largest c ...

, the CBS affiliate that covers Upstate

and Western

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

(

Greenville, South Carolina Greenville (; locally ) is a city in and the seat of Greenville County, South Carolina, United States. With a population of 70,720 at the 2020 census, it is the sixth-largest city in the state. Greenville is located approximately halfway be ...

Anderson, South Carolina Anderson is a city in and the county seat of Anderson County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 28,106 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, and the city was the center of an urbanized area of 75,702. It is one of the prin ...

, and

Asheville, North Carolina Asheville ( ) is a city in, and the county seat of, Buncombe County, North Carolina. Located at the confluence of the French Broad and Swannanoa rivers, it is the largest city in Western North Carolina, and the state's 11th-most populous cit ...

). During the 1990s, WSPA-TV assisted

WHNS-TV WHNS (channel 21), branded on air as Fox Carolina, is a television station licensed to Greenville, South Carolina, United States, broadcasting Fox network programming to Upstate South Carolina and Western North Carolina. Owned by Gray Television, ...

in their television news development. When the

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

affiliate finally got its own production staff, LeGrand was the only WSPA-TV correspondent to remain with WHNS-TV. For her efforts, LeGrand was promoted to the main female news anchor position in 1997, a position she would hold until her move to Speed Channel in 2004. In the 2006/2007 academic year, LeGrand was an instructor of in Mass Communication in the Department of Fine Arts and Communication Studies at the

University of South Carolina Upstate The University of South Carolina Upstate (USC Upstate) is a public university in Valley Falls, South Carolina, near Spartanburg and with a Spartanburg postal address.Compare to: (shows the university is not in the Spartanburg city limits)

in Spartanburg. She returned to WSPA-TV as 5:30 weeknight anchor in January 2007 and also covered

education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. Va ...

and health issues for the affiliate. In December 2010, LeGrand became Director of Marketing and Public Relations for the Mary Black Health System, an integrated healthcare delivery system in

Personal life

LeGrand is divorced and lives in

. She has a son named Cole and a black

Labrador , nickname = "The Big Land" , etymology = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Canada , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 ...

named "Big Dog". She currently works at the High Point Academy high school as the head of media.

Sources

*Mary Black Health System
Press Release: LeGrand Named Director of Marketing and Public Relations of Mary Black Health System
December 20, 2010 *

"Forty New Faculty Members Contribute To Economic Impact"
August 16, 2006 *WSPA TV
Profile for Connie LeGrand
{{DEFAULTSORT:Legrand, Connie American television journalists American women television journalists American infotainers Motorsport announcers Greenville/Spartanburg/Asheville television anchors Clemson University alumni University of Georgia alumni Mass media people from Columbus, Ohio People from Greenville, South Carolina Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Journalists from Ohio University of South Carolina Upstate faculty South Carolina television anchors 21st-century American women