Mildred Barnes is an American basketball coach and executive. She was a member of the U.S. Olympic Women's Basketball Committee from 1965 through 1972 and served as the chair of that committee from 1974 to 1976. Barnes was inducted into the

Women's Basketball Hall of Fame The Women's Basketball Hall of Fame honors those who have contributed to the sport of women's basketball. The Hall of Fame opened in 1999 in Knoxville, Tennessee, USA. It is the only facility of its kind dedicated to all levels of women's bask ...

in 2000.

College

Barnes attended

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with its original campu ...

, where she earned both an undergraduate degree from Boston University's Sargent College as well as a doctoral degree from Boston University's School of Education. While at Boston University, she competed in multiple sports: *

Volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

Basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

* Fist ball *

Field hockey Field hockey is a team sport structured in standard hockey format, in which each team plays with ten outfield players and a goalkeeper. Teams must drive a round hockey ball by hitting it with a hockey stick towards the rival team's shooting ci ...

Lacrosse Lacrosse is a team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game was extensively ...

Softball Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...

Soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

Tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

Badminton Badminton is a racquet sport played using racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per side) and "doubles" (with two players pe ...

Coaching

A 1951 graduate of Sargent College, Millie started her teaching career at Winchester High School in Winchester, MA where she coached field hockey, basketball and softball. While in the Massachusetts area, she was active in MAHPERD, chairing the DGWS Committee as well as the softball and basketball committees. From 1952 through 1955, she served on the executive committee of the USFHA. An active official, Millie held national ratings in basketball, lacrosse, softball, volleyball, and field hockey. Barnes served as the head coach for the

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

from 1966 to 1969. The Iowa team was part of the first postseason intercollegiate invitational tournament in 1969, where they placed fourth. Barnes then went on to coach

Central Missouri The University of Central Missouri (UCM) is a public university in Warrensburg, Missouri. In 2019, enrollment was 11,229 students from 49 states and 59 countries on its 1,561-acre campus. UCM offers 150 programs of study, including 10 pre-profes ...

from 1971 to 1980. She was the head coach of the team representing the US in the inaugural Jones Cup Tournament in 1977.

Head coaching record

Source

Executive

Barnes was active in the Division for Girls' and Women's Sports (DGWS), which was part of the American Association for Health, Physical Education and Recreation. That organization oversaw the development of women's basketball in the middle of the 20th century. (That organization formed the ''Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics for Women'' (CIAW), which led to the

AIAW The Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) was founded in 1971 to govern collegiate women's athletics in the United States and to administer national championships (see AIAW Champions). It evolved out of the Commission on Interc ...

, a predecessor organization of the NCAA). She served on a number of committees and was the principal editor of the DGWS Basketball Guide in 1965-66. Barnes played a key role in the beginning of the entry of women's basketball into the Olympics. She served on the US Olympic women's basketball committee from 1965 to 1972, then became chair of the committee, which oversaw the inaugural competition in

1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phila ...

Author

Barnes is the author of several publication, including books in basketball and field hockey. She authored a chapter in the book by Joan S. Hult ''A Century of women's basketball : from frailty to final four'' In which she trace the evolution of the women's game from the 1920s to the 40s. That period started with a game using a court with three sections. Players were either guards centers of forwards and restricted to staying in their own section. The game transitioned to a two section court, and the addition of rovers who were able to go the length of the court, although other players still had to remain in their half of the court and only a single dribble before pass or shot was allowed. The game remained six players for many years, but slowing switched over to a five player game

Awards and honors

* 1977–1986—Board of Trustees of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame * 1978—Boston University Hall of Fame * 2000—

* 2005— United States Lacrosse Hall of Fame * 2011—

Missouri Sports Hall of Fame The Missouri Sports Hall of Fame is located in Springfield, Missouri, United States. Founded in 1994 by Springfield businessman John Q. Hammons, the Hall of Fame is housed in a two-story, 32,000-square-foot building. On display are more than 4,0 ...

* Boston University established the Mildred Barnes Award in her name, "presented to the Boston University student who is chosen the top female athlete of the year, regardless of class." * Central Missouri established a scholarship in her name: "for a student pursuing a degree in physical education and competed as a student athlete or is currently holding a graduate assistant coaching position for Jennies Athletics"

Publications

* * * * *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barnes, Mildred Year of birth missing (living people) Living people American lacrosse players American women's basketball coaches American women's basketball players Boston University Terriers athletes Central Missouri Jennies basketball coaches Boston University School of Education alumni Boston University College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences (Sargent College) alumni 21st-century American women