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| C. Vivian Stringer | |
|---|---|
| Name | C. Vivian Stringer |
| Birth date | 16 January 1948 |
| Birth place | Blackwood, New Jersey |
| Occupation | Women's college basketball coach |
| Years active | 1969–2017 |
| Alma mater | Barringer High School, Ivy College of New Jersey; Concordia University (master's) |
| Known for | Head coach at Cheyney State College, University of Iowa, Rutgers University |
C. Vivian Stringer is an American collegiate women's basketball coach noted for leading programs at Cheyney State College, Iowa, and Rutgers to national prominence. Her teams achieved numerous NCAA Tournament appearances and a historic Final Four run, and she became one of the most decorated figures in women's sports history. Stringer is widely recognized for advocacy within NCAA athletics, civil rights engagement, and mentoring generations of players and coaches associated with institutions such as Big Ten and ACC programs.
Born in Blackwood, New Jersey, Stringer attended Barringer High School in Newark, New Jersey. She played basketball in the era of the WBI's precursors and was influenced by regional programs like Rutgers, Princeton and nearby historically Black institutions including Cheyney and Lincoln University. She matriculated at Ivy College of New Jersey, earning a bachelor's before completing a master's degree at Concordia University while beginning her coaching trajectory in New Jersey high school and collegiate systems influenced by figures linked to NAIA and NJCAA circuits.
Stringer began as a player in New Jersey, competing against athletes from programs such as Rutgers, Seton Hall, Saint Peter's and regional rivals within the NEC footprint. Her early coaching posts included positions at Y.W.C.A. gyms and high school teams before her first major collegiate role at Cheyney under the umbrella of historically Black colleges and universities that included Howard University, Morgan State University, Florida A&M University, and Grambling State University. At Cheyney she built a program that later competed against teams from the Atlantic Coast Conference, SEC, and Big Ten Conference in intersectional tournaments and early NCAA Tournament play.
Her head coaching tenure began at Cheyney, where she led teams to success against programs like Temple, Villanova, and Penn State. She later moved to the University of Iowa, competing in the Big Ten Conference against powerhouses such as Ohio State, Michigan State, and Purdue. At Iowa she coached student-athletes who interacted with national figures in USA Basketball and faced nonconference opponents including Louisville and UConn. In 1995 she accepted the head coach position at Rutgers University, guiding the Scarlet Knights to multiple NCAA Tournament berths and a milestone Final Four appearance in 2000 that included victories over teams like Oregon State and matchups with Tennessee. At Rutgers she navigated conferences such as the Big East and later the Big Ten Conference. Her Rutgers teams featured players who received Naismith and WNBA attention, contributing alumni to franchises like New York Liberty, Los Angeles Sparks, and Seattle Storm.
Stringer emphasized discipline, defense, and academic accountability, principles that shaped players who matriculated to institutions including Columbia, Duke, North Carolina, and Stanford. Her mentorship influenced a coaching tree with assistants and proteges joining staffs at Michigan, Maryland, Texas, and international programs competing in FIBA events. Advocating for racial equality, Title IX enforcement, and athlete welfare, she collaborated with organizations such as the WBCA, NAACP, and National Coalition for Women and Girls in Education. Her strategic adaptations against systems like the zone defense and press defense were studied alongside schematics used by coaches from Geno Auriemma, Pat Summitt, Tara VanDerveer, Dawn Staley, and Kim Mulkey.
Stringer received induction into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame, joining luminaries such as Pat Summitt, Geno Auriemma, Tara VanDerveer, and Dawn Staley. She was named Naismith College Coach of the Year finalist and earned Big Ten Conference Coach of the Year honors during her career. Her accolades include lifetime achievement recognitions from the Associated Press, ESPN, the New Jersey Sports Writers Association, and civil rights honors from the NAACP and National Urban League. Universities conferred honorary degrees and she appeared on listings such as ESPNW and Sports Illustrated's retrospectives on influential figures in women's basketball.
Off the court Stringer engaged in activism tied to civil rights and community development in cities including Newark, New Jersey, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and New York City. She worked with charitable and educational organizations like United Way, Habitat for Humanity, Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, and collegiate outreach programs associated with Rutgers University and University of Iowa. Her family life intersects with athletics and academia; she has been acknowledged by alumni associations at Concordia University and community institutions that collaborate with entities such as The Rockefeller Foundation and local school districts. Her public stances connected to national conversations involving the NCAA, WNBA, Title IX, and civil rights leaders have cemented her reputation as a trailblazer in American sports.
Category:American women's basketball coaches Category:Basketball coaches from New Jersey Category:Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductees