Granville, Ohio - Denison University's Associate Vice President and Director of Athletics Nan Carney-DeBord has announced that Sara Lee has been promoted to Deputy Director of Athletics/Senior Woman Administrator. Previously Sara Lee held the title Senior Associate Director of Athletics, Deputy Title IX Coordinator for Athletics, and Senior Woman Administrator for Denison University Athletics. Lee has been holding that title since 2022 following her 33rd and final season as Denison's Head Women's Basketball Coach in 2021-22. She will enter her 36th year at Denison in 2024-25.

One of the winningest coaches in NCAA Division III women's basketball history and a champion for equity, diversity, and inclusion, Lee achieved a career record of 502-347 (.591 pct.) over 33 seasons with the Big Red. As of the 2019-20 season, she ranked 23rd in victories among active NCAA Division III coaches and 41st in all-time wins in Division III. In addition to her basketball coaching responsibilities, Lee served as the head volleyball coach at Denison for 18 seasons. She stepped down before the 2007 season, having achieved 386 career victories, making her the program's all-time leader in wins with a .616 career winning percentage. The team's 31 victories in 1993 set a school record that still stands.

"Sara approaches all of her administrative work as she did her coaching." Said Nan Carney-Debord. "She is committed to excellence and has an advanced attention to detail. She is an incredible mentor, leader, and colleague! We are all excited about this promotion for an outstanding Denisonian."

In 1989, Lee joined Denison from Lake Erie College, where she was the head coach of women's volleyball and basketball, coordinator of women's athletics, and a physical education instructor. A native of Moorhead, Minnesota, she earned her B.S. in physical education from Minnesota State Moorhead in 1986 and an M.A. in athletic administration from Kent State in 1987. At Minnesota State Moorhead, Lee was a four-year letter winner in volleyball, basketball, and softball, earning numerous accolades, including all-conference and all-district honors in volleyball. She was inducted into the Minnesota State Moorhead Athletic Hall of Fame in 1995 and the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Hall of Fame in 2016.

Sara Lee has garnered two outstanding awards already in her recent change to the administrative side of the department having received the 2024 Transitioning Athletic Administrator Award along with the 2024 Champion of Diversity and Inclusion award.

Lee was honored as a recipient of the NADIIIAA Administrator Award on January 12 at the NCAA Convention in Phoenix. NADIIIAA, part of NACDA, includes athletics administrators from over 350 NCAA Division III institutions and conferences, promoting athletics programs based on educational principles and the Division III philosophy. Lee, receiving the Transitioning Athletic Administrator Award, was also granted a $1,000 professional development award. 

NCAA Minority Opportunities and Interests Committee named Sara Lee a 2024 Champions of Diversity and Inclusion for the summer season. Sara Lee was one of three individuals selected to receive this award. The recognition, established in 2015 by the MOIC, an NCAA Association-wide committee focused on diversity and inclusion, is awarded twice a year to individuals at NCAA colleges, universities, and athletic conferences. These honorees demonstrate a commitment to advancing diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging; advocating for and supporting underrepresented populations; and diversifying opportunities within college athletics. Nominations are reviewed by the MOIC, which selects the final three recipients.

Lee has been a leader in championing diversity, inclusion, equity, and anti-racism at Denison and throughout her career. She established Denison's Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Group, which collaborates with the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee to ensure all student-athletes' needs and voices are addressed. Lee's willingness to embrace and seek various perspectives is widely regarded as one of her strengths. She ensures the inclusion of individuals from different races, cultures, sexual orientations, economic backgrounds, disabilities, national origins, and religious beliefs. Additionally, she has worked to remove barriers that hinder full participation from introverted individuals, those for whom English is a second language, individuals with different communication styles, or those geographically separated from Denison. Lee believes that involvement and belonging lead to a commitment to collective well-being and mutual success.

This year, Lee participated in the inaugural Division III Inclusive Leaders Facilitator Program. She is a member of the university's inclusion, diversity, equity, and anti-racism team, Denison Forward, and leads the IDEA team in the Division of Athletics, Recreation, Health, Exercise, and Sport Studies. As the university develops a comprehensive strategic planning process, Denison Forward will be integrated into the overarching plan, with IDEA focus areas and principles guiding the planning.

"I am deeply grateful for this promotion and want to extend my heartfelt thanks to Nan and Denison University for this incredible opportunity and their unwavering support throughout my career. I eagerly look forward to continuing to work hard and dedicate myself to serving our student-athletes, coaches, and the entire campus community." -Sara Lee