SE: New Scholarship Set to Honor the Pioneer of K-State Rowing

By: D. Scott Fritchen

Sara Swan Busse ('99) was a sophomore when she saw Jenny Hale standing outside the Kansas State Student Union. Once an oarswoman at Harvard-Radcliffe, the oldest women's rowing program in the Ivy League, Hale, behind a vivacious smile and magnetic energy, was in the midst of building something big in Little Apple. That day, it involved Hale standing outside on campus, and identifying and speaking with as many potential women rowers as possible.

During the 1996-97 academic year, the K-State women's rowing team had become an NCAA Division I sport in compliance with Title IX. Hale had helped take the program from a club-based level to a varsity-funded program within the athletic department — a move that would help shape and change the lives of more than 400 women over her seven-year tenure.

But Hale needed a strong team. While speaking with students outside of the K-State Student Union, Hale spotted Sara.

"The first thing Coach Hale said to me was, 'Hey, come over here. Do you want to talk about rowing?'" Sara recalls. "That's how it started for me. I'd venture to say it started the same way for everybody."

Heather Brunk Delleo ('99) met Hale in a similar fashion. As she listened to Hale speak during an informational meeting at the student union, she thought, "I want to be a part of this."

"She really talked up how it was the very first team and we could be a part of it," Heather says. "She really drew all of us in."

Stephanie Tweito Jacob ('98) remembers spotting a women's rowing advertisement in the K-State Collegian student newspaper. Donna Harris Weiner ('99) was walking to class when she spotted a women's rowing flier pinned to a bulletin board in the engineering building.

"The flier read something to the effect, 'If you're athletic and tall, rowing might be for you. Show up and give it a try,'" Donna says. "I'm so thankful for doing that. It helped to change the trajectory of my life. It opened my eyes to a whole world of possibilities."

Adds Emily Benz ('02): "She was all discipline, and she had a commanding presence. She said, 'Hey, tall, athletic-looking girl, come join the rowing team.'"

The stories are everywhere, rising like cool fog on a crisp autumn morning just before sunrise at Tuttle Creek Lake — how Hale created something from nothing 25 years ago this fall. She instilled virtues such as discipline and perseverance into women — a majority of whom entered the program with no prior experience in rowing, yet were hard-working, talented athletes from various sports eager to become race-ready rowers.

The program, which began with an unheated boathouse with dusty floors, and women rowers carrying boats up and down the stairs at Tuttle Creek Lake, continues to mean so much to many.

"Not only did Coach Hale open our eyes to the world of possibility in the beginning, but she made sure we kept our eyes open," Donna says. "I can't count how many times Coach asked, 'Guys, what's your legacy? How are you giving back?'"

To commemorate the 25^th anniversary of the first varsity rowing team at K-State, Sara Swan Busse ('99), Heather Brunk Delleo ('99), Stephanie Tweito Jacob ('98), Donna Harris Weiner ('99), and Emily Benz ('02) are ready to define their legacy.

They have announced the inaugural Jenny Hale Rowing Scholarship.

"We name this scholarship after Jenny Hale to honor the woman who blazed a trail for all who've followed at Kansas State Rowing; and to ensure the spirited leadership and life lessons that changed our lives are not lost," the women wrote in a statement. "We hope it will support and celebrate women rowers who dare to dream, whose ambition and potential is powerful, and who live to shatter barriers and stereotypes, especially those of us who may be marginalized because of race, sexual orientation, gender identity, and socio-economic status.

"To all these women, we are proud to lift you up and offer our shoulders to stand on."

In Hale's seven-year tenure as K-State head women's rowing coach, she guided the Wildcats to multiple Kansas Cup victories, while also leading the K-State Varsity 8+ to an 11^th-place finish at the 1999-00 Central Division Championships and a 13^th-place finish at the 2003 regionals. The program had risen into the top third of all rowing programs in the country and in the spring of 2003 achieved a top 25 rankings in the Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association national poll.

However, Hale's reach went far beyond race times and scoreboards.

"It was always so much more than rowing," Sara says. "Rowing was just the vehicle and the tool to basically teach us how to live in this world."

For seven years, Hale impacted the lives of more than 400 rowers, assistant coaches, managers, support staff, parents, alumni, and donors, who helped to form the backbone for the K-State women's rowing program.

"That first year, we didn't know anything because none of us — we had to learn the sport, literally every word that they use, the commands, the boat, and we didn't know the bow from the stern," Heather says. "We just followed Coach Hale. She was a great leader and just took us under her wings and we learned everything about the sport."

Stephanie continues to admire Hale's dedication to her rowers.

"There were definitely no bells and whistles," Stephanie says. "We were starting from scratch, but everything we had as a team was because Coach made sure we had everything that we needed to start a Division I program. She came from a pretty incredible background with rowing programs. She had a vision for us, and we could feel that from the very beginning. She also knew that it was a marathon and not a sprint, so she was willing to put in that time to build a program. We definitely didn't have the first-class facilities that K-State has now, but we had a first-class leader in Coach, and that's what molded that first team."

One early morning in late October 1996 comes to mind for Sara.

"We were rowing at Tuttle Creek Lake and the weather wasn't great, the season was short, and the time on the water was precious," Sara says. "We were just going to row and figure this out. It was very cold, so we decided to load up the boats and take them to another bay at Tuttle Creek that wasn't as windy. We didn't have docks, so we waded the boats into the water, and it was brutal. If it was 40 degrees outside that morning, I would've been surprised. It was absolutely crazy, but we were building character.

"After we finished practice, Coach Hale said, 'All right everyone, I'm buying you hot chocolate!' She took us to Java (now Bluestem Bistro) in Aggieville. It was those kinds of moments — we were all in it together, and we followed her wherever she led us."

The women chuckle at the memory of their hair crinkled with ice that cold morning.

"That morning, we were even wading in our shorts," Stephanie says. "It does sound crazy, but Coach Hale was teaching us perseverance in that moment. We rowed in the rain, snow, ice, and toughened up. It's a tough sport and we had to race in any condition, so we had to be ready.

"Then, once we made it through, she bought us hot chocolate."

Hale took her rowers on trips as well. Donna had never been on an airplane before Hale flew the team to the historic Snake River near Pullman, Washington. Hale took them to the Head of the Charles Regatta on the Charles River, which separates Boston and Cambridge, Massachusetts. They went to winter training in Florida and spring training in Austin, Texas.

"One thing she always said when we traveled or stayed in hotel rooms, something that works today in everyday life, was, 'Leave it better than how you found it,'" Heather says. "The details — she wanted us to be aware of how we were moving around in the world."

Through the scholarship, many people will learn about Hale, whose tireless efforts many years ago served as building blocks for the thriving rowing program today.

"With this scholarship, we feel it is important for everybody there to know who Coach Hale is, and who she was, and why she was such an important part of our lives," Stephanie says. "A part of us giving back is to ensure her story and efforts are not lost in the history of Kansas State women's rowing."

Sara says, "This is just the beginning."

"Our plan now that this scholarship is public is to reach out to all of the rowers who we know personally and then reach out to the greater rowing community at large, 25 years of K-State rowers, to grow this scholarship ultimately to its full funding of $250,000," Sara continues. "We definitely want this scholarship to grow."

The legacy of K-State's first head rowing coach might only continue to grow as well.

Kansas State University Athletics

SE: New Scholarship Set to Honor the Pioneer of K-State Rowing

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