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B R U I N B L U E S P R I N G 2 0 1 7

THE INSIDER’S VIEWW E L C O M E F R O M A T H L E T I C S D I R E C T O R

f you’re reading this magazine, it stands to reason that you’ve heard our departmental mantra of ‘Champions Made Here’ at least a handful of times.

What’s interesting is that many people only see this as a reference to our record 113 NCAA Championships.

To that point, we decided to conduct a number of focus groups this past year with coaches, staff and student-athletes to determine what exactly this phrase means to them. We asked them who they thought we were, what was unique about us and where they thought UCLA would take them.

The theme that most commonly came up in our discussions was the trailblazing, pioneering spirit of those who had come before.

Mentioned specifically were names like Jackie Robinson, refusing to be out when the Majors wouldn’t let him in; like Ann Meyers, who at a time where the nation was questioning women’s sports, earned the first full athletic scholarship awarded to a female; like Kenny Washington, one of the first African-American college football stars who, after graduating UCLA and being passed over by the NFL due to a discriminatory ban, reintegrated the league in 1946; like Arthur Ashe, who among his numerous firsts, was the first African-American man to be ranked as the No. 1 tennis player in the world; and like Coach John Wooden, whose ‘Pyramid of Success’ taught us winning really has nothing to do with the score and everything to do with the process.

It’s this lineage of names and an ethos of breaking through barriers that colors UCLA’s unique view toward athletics and creates student-athletes who are more than just winners — they are invested in their academics, involved in their community and become versatile, engaged individuals who use their abilities to produce victories beyond the field of play.

I know, I know, every school likes to say this. Our students and student-athletes go on to achieve great things, they make a difference in society, they receive the tools they need to succeed at life and so on and so forth. But imagine, if only someone had compiled actual data to back up this notion. If only there was some type of empirical evidence that showed what an incredibly special place UCLA is. If only.

Well, as it turns out, this past January, the New York Times published an extensive study entitled “Mobility Report Cards: The Role of Colleges in Intergenerational Mobility” by a team of economists from The Equality of Opportunity Project.

Good timing for this column, right? Before we get to that study, however, let’s recap what we all know — last year, UCLA

was the most applied-to four-year university in the nation with more than 119,000 students seeking admission for fall 2016. This record for number of applications, which included more than 97,000 prospective freshmen and more than 22,000 prospective transfer students, lasted all of one year. In December 2016, preliminary data indicated that 102,000 high school seniors applied for admission to UCLA for fall 2017, a staggering total that makes UCLA the first school ever to exceed 100,000 freshman applicants. And again, these are just freshman applicants, the deadline for transfer applications was extended to Jan. 3, 2017, with data yet to come. On top of sheer size, in each of the last two years, admissions has the opportunity to review the most geographically, ethnically and racially diverse applicant pool in our school’s history.

So why do so many people from all walks of life want to come to UCLA? It boils down to one word — opportunity. According to The Equality of Opportunity Project’s study, UCLA’s median parent

income is the lowest among the nation’s 65 elite universities while the share of its students from bottom fifth income families (those who made about $20,000 or less per year) is the highest among these same universities. Overall, among the elite universities, UCLA has the highest percentage of low and middle income students in the country — a number approaching almost 20 percent. What’s more, UCLA ranks first among this group in the study’s mobility index — a measure reflecting both access and outcomes that represents the likelihood a student at UCLA moved up two or more income quintiles.

In short, not only does UCLA provide access, it provides upward mobility later in life.

Athletics is a microcosm of this standard which permeates the university. Nearly 75 years ago, student-athletes were provided access to UCLA and left to break color barriers in professional baseball and football. More than four decades have passed since a student-athlete was given access to UCLA on a full athletic scholarship, establishing a new standard of gender equity in intercollegiate athletics. We’ve had student-athletes come to UCLA from abject poverty, become academically ineligible in the middle of a season and rally to graduate on the Athletic Director’s honor roll. Doctors. Researchers. Lawyers. Writers. Educators. And oh yes, well north of 200 Bruins have gone on to medal in the Olympic Games over the years, realizing lifelong dreams after first being given an opportunity at UCLA.

And for one student-athlete, UCLA afforded a young Chicano from a tough, blue-collar neighborhood the opportunity to pursue his baseball passion while receiving a world-class education that would one day ultimately enable him to realize his dream. Neither of his parents graduated from high school, yet he helped them realize their dreams by being the first in his family to earn a college degree. That Chicano is me. It is the greatest honor of my life to lead the athletics department of one of the greatest academic and athletic institutions the world over.

First in upward mobility. First in access. First in NCAA Championships.You see, champions don’t just compete here. No, it’s much more than that. Champions are made here.It’s more than a slogan. It’s our way of life.

Go Bruins!

Dan

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I I N S I D E T H I S I S S U E S P R I N G 2 0 1 7

U C L A A T H L E T I C S I N P H O T O S . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 / 6 / 8C A T C H I N G U P W I T H K A R E E M . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 2O L Y M P I C D R E A M S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 0W H A T ’ S I N M Y L O C K E R . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 4T H E F A M I L Y B U S I N E S S : M I C A H M A ’ A . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 6M A R K Y O U R C A L E N D A R . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 0S U P P O R T I N G U C L A : M A R K C O R M A N Y . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 4C O V E R P H O T O B Y G E T T Y I M A G E S / C H I P S O M O D E V I L L A

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S T A R F R E S H M A N L O N Z O B A L L D R I V E S T O T H E H O O P B E F O R E A S E L L O U T C R O W D A T P A U L E Y P A V I L I O N O N F E B . 9 , A S N O . 9 U C L A W I P E D O U T A 1 9 - P O I N T D E F I C I T T O D E F E A T N O . 6 O R E G O N , 8 2 - 7 9 . ( P H O T O : S C O T T C H A N D L E R )

I N S E T: U C L A ’ S W I N C A M E O N A N I G H T I N W H I C H T H E P R O G R A M H O N O R E D L E G -E N D A R Y H A L L O F F A M E S P O R T S B R O A D C A S T E R D I C K E N B E R G , W H O C A L L E D U C L A B A S K E T B A L L G A M E S I N P A U L E Y P A V I L I O N F O R N I N E S E A S O N S U N D E R H E A D C O A C H J O H N W O O D E N . E N B E R G , W H O A D D R E S S E D T H E U C L A F A I T H F U L A T H A L F T I M E , C A L L E D G A M E S F O R T H E B R U I N S I N E I G H T O F C O A C H W O O D E N ’ S 1 0 C H A M P I O N S H I P S E A S O N S . ( P H O T O : K A T I E M E Y E R S )

2 W W W . U C L A B R U I N S . C O M

F R I , F E B . 2 4 Gonzaga 6:00 PMS A T , F E B . 2 5 Gonzaga 2:00 PMS U N , F E B . 3 6 Gonzaga 1 :00 PMW E D , M A R . 1 NC Dinos (Exhibition) 4:00 PMF R I , M A R . 3 Michigan 6:00 PMS A T , M A R . 4 San Diego 2:00 PMS U N , M A R . 5 USC @ Dodger Stadium 3:00 PMT U E S , M A R . 7 CSUN 6:00 PMT U E S , M A R . 1 4 UC Irvine 6:00 PMF R I , M A R . 1 7 Arizona 7:00 PMS A T , M A R . 1 8 Arizona 2:00 PMS U N , M A R 1 9 Arizona 2:00 PMF R I , M A R . 2 4 California 6:00 PMS A T , M A R . 2 5 California 4:00 PMS U N , M A R . 2 6 California 2 :00 PM

T U E S , M A R . 2 8 Cal State Fullerton 6:00 PMF R I , A P R . 7 Washington 6:00 PMS A T , A P R . 8 Washington 2:00 PMS U N , A P R . 9 Washington 1 :00 PMT U E S , A P R . 1 8 Long Beach State 6:00 PMF R I , A P R . 2 1 Oregon State 6:00 PMS A T , A P R . 2 2 Oregon State 6:00 PMS U N , A P R . 2 3 Oregon State 1 :00 PMF R I , A P R . 2 8 Cal Poly 6:00 PMS A T , A P R . 2 9 Cal Poly 2:00 PMS U N , A P R . 3 0 Cal Poly 1 :00 PMT U E S , M A Y 2 San Diego State 6:00 PMF R I , M A Y 1 9 Utah 6:00 PMS A T , M A Y 2 0 Utah 2:00 PMS U N , M A Y 2 1 Utah 1 :00 PM

B A S E B A L L

A L L H O M E G A M E S P L A Y E D A T J A C K I E R O B I N S O N S T A D I U M

F O R T I C K E T S : U C L A B R U I N S . C O M / T I C K E T S 3 1 0 - U C L A - W I N ( 8 2 5 - 2 9 4 6 )

S O F T B A L L

A L L H O M E G A M E S P L A Y E D A T E A S T O N S T A D I U M

S U N , M A R . 1 2 Texas 4:00 PMF R I , M A R . 1 7 Utah 5:00 PMS A T , M A R . 1 8 Utah 3:30 PMS U N , M A R . 1 9 Utah 5:00 PMS A T , M A R 2 5 BYU 12:00 PMS A T , M A R 2 5 BYU 2:30 PMS U N , M A R . 2 6 Dartmouth 10:00 AMF R I , A P R . 7 Oregon 7:00 PMS A T , A P R . 8 Oregon 7:00 PMS U N , A P R . 9 Oregon 2:00 PMT U E S , A P R . 1 8 Cal State Fullerton 7:00 PMF R I , A P R . 2 1 California 7:00 PMS A T , A P R . 2 2 California 7:00 PMS U N , A P R . 2 3 California 5:00 PMF R I , M A Y 5 Arizona 5:00 PMS A T , M A Y 6 Arizona 6:00 PMS U N , M A Y 7 Arizona 1 :00 PM

T R A C K & F I E L D

J A N 1 2 UC Irvine 7:30 PMJ A N 1 4 UC San Diego 7:00 PMJ A N 1 8 Cal Baptist 7:30 PMJ A N 2 0 USC 8:00 PM

J A N 2 5UC Santa Barbara

7:30 PM

J A N 2 9 Princeton 8:00 PMF E B 1 5 CSUN 7:30 PM

F E B 1 8Long Beach State

7:00 PM

M A R 8 Lewis 7:00 PMM A R 1 1 Harvard 7:00 PM

M A R 1 7Sacred Heart

7:00 PM

M A R 1 8Concordia University Irvine

7:00 PM

A P R 7 Hawai’i 5 :00 PMA P R 8 Hawai’i 7:00 PM

M E N ’ S V O L L E Y B A L L

A L L H O M E M E E T S A T D R A K E S T A D I U M

F R I , M A R . 3 1Bob Larsen Distance Carnival

3:00 PM

F R I , M A R . 3 1Bruin Legends of Track & Field Invitational

TBD

S AT, A P R . 1Bruin Legends of Track & Field Invitational

TBD

S AT, A P R . 8Rafer Johnson / Jackie Joyner-Kersee Invitational

9 :00 AM

S AT, A P R . 1 5 UCLA Invitational 10 :00 AM

/ U C L A A T H L E T I C S @ U C L A A T H L E T I C S @ U C L A A T H L E T I C S

# G O B R U I N S

2017 UCLA SPRING SPORT_Bruin Blue.indd 1 1/24/17 4:20 PM

F R I , F E B . 2 4 Gonzaga 6:00 PMS A T , F E B . 2 5 Gonzaga 2:00 PMS U N , F E B . 3 6 Gonzaga 1 :00 PMW E D , M A R . 1 NC Dinos (Exhibition) 4:00 PMF R I , M A R . 3 Michigan 6:00 PMS A T , M A R . 4 San Diego 2:00 PMS U N , M A R . 5 USC @ Dodger Stadium 3:00 PMT U E S , M A R . 7 CSUN 6:00 PMT U E S , M A R . 1 4 UC Irvine 6:00 PMF R I , M A R . 1 7 Arizona 7:00 PMS A T , M A R . 1 8 Arizona 2:00 PMS U N , M A R 1 9 Arizona 2:00 PMF R I , M A R . 2 4 California 6:00 PMS A T , M A R . 2 5 California 4:00 PMS U N , M A R . 2 6 California 2 :00 PM

T U E S , M A R . 2 8 Cal State Fullerton 6:00 PMF R I , A P R . 7 Washington 6:00 PMS A T , A P R . 8 Washington 2:00 PMS U N , A P R . 9 Washington 1 :00 PMT U E S , A P R . 1 8 Long Beach State 6:00 PMF R I , A P R . 2 1 Oregon State 6:00 PMS A T , A P R . 2 2 Oregon State 6:00 PMS U N , A P R . 2 3 Oregon State 1 :00 PMF R I , A P R . 2 8 Cal Poly 6:00 PMS A T , A P R . 2 9 Cal Poly 2:00 PMS U N , A P R . 3 0 Cal Poly 1 :00 PMT U E S , M A Y 2 San Diego State 6:00 PMF R I , M A Y 1 9 Utah 6:00 PMS A T , M A Y 2 0 Utah 2:00 PMS U N , M A Y 2 1 Utah 1 :00 PM

B A S E B A L L

A L L H O M E G A M E S P L A Y E D A T J A C K I E R O B I N S O N S T A D I U M

F O R T I C K E T S : U C L A B R U I N S . C O M / T I C K E T S 3 1 0 - U C L A - W I N ( 8 2 5 - 2 9 4 6 )

S O F T B A L L

A L L H O M E G A M E S P L A Y E D A T E A S T O N S T A D I U M

S U N , M A R . 1 2 Texas 4:00 PMF R I , M A R . 1 7 Utah 5:00 PMS A T , M A R . 1 8 Utah 3:30 PMS U N , M A R . 1 9 Utah 5:00 PMS A T , M A R 2 5 BYU 12:00 PMS A T , M A R 2 5 BYU 2:30 PMS U N , M A R . 2 6 Dartmouth 10:00 AMF R I , A P R . 7 Oregon 7:00 PMS A T , A P R . 8 Oregon 7:00 PMS U N , A P R . 9 Oregon 2:00 PMT U E S , A P R . 1 8 Cal State Fullerton 7:00 PMF R I , A P R . 2 1 California 7:00 PMS A T , A P R . 2 2 California 7:00 PMS U N , A P R . 2 3 California 5:00 PMF R I , M A Y 5 Arizona 5:00 PMS A T , M A Y 6 Arizona 6:00 PMS U N , M A Y 7 Arizona 1 :00 PM

T R A C K & F I E L D

J A N 1 2 UC Irvine 7:30 PMJ A N 1 4 UC San Diego 7:00 PMJ A N 1 8 Cal Baptist 7:30 PMJ A N 2 0 USC 8:00 PM

J A N 2 5UC Santa Barbara

7:30 PM

J A N 2 9 Princeton 8:00 PMF E B 1 5 CSUN 7:30 PM

F E B 1 8Long Beach State

7:00 PM

M A R 8 Lewis 7:00 PMM A R 1 1 Harvard 7:00 PM

M A R 1 7Sacred Heart

7:00 PM

M A R 1 8Concordia University Irvine

7:00 PM

A P R 7 Hawai’i 5 :00 PMA P R 8 Hawai’i 7:00 PM

M E N ’ S V O L L E Y B A L L

A L L H O M E M E E T S A T D R A K E S T A D I U M

F R I , M A R . 3 1Bob Larsen Distance Carnival

3:00 PM

F R I , M A R . 3 1Bruin Legends of Track & Field Invitational

TBD

S AT, A P R . 1Bruin Legends of Track & Field Invitational

TBD

S AT, A P R . 8Rafer Johnson / Jackie Joyner-Kersee Invitational

9 :00 AM

S AT, A P R . 1 5 UCLA Invitational 10 :00 AM

/ U C L A A T H L E T I C S @ U C L A A T H L E T I C S @ U C L A A T H L E T I C S

# G O B R U I N S

2017 UCLA SPRING SPORT_Bruin Blue.indd 1 1/24/17 4:20 PM


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F L A N K E D B Y C H A N C E L L O R G E N E B L O C K ( L E F T ) A N D A T H L E T I C S D I R E C T O R D A N G U E R R E R O ( R I G H T ) , K A R E E M A B D U L - J A B B A R I S R E C O G N I Z E D A T P A U L E Y P A V I L I O N D U R I N G H A L F T I M E O F U C L A ’ S G A M E A G A I N S T A R I Z O N A O N J A N . 2 1 . T H E E V E N T W A S D U B B E D “ K A R E E M A B D U L- J A B B A R D A Y ” B Y T H E A T H L E T I C S D E P A R T M E N T I N H O N O R O F A B D U L- J A B B A R R E C E N T L Y R E C E I V I N G T H E P R E S I D E N T I A L M E D A L O F F R E E D O M . ( P H O T O : K A T I E M E Y E R S ) .



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V O L U N T E E R C O A C H J O R D Y N W I E B E R , W H O W O N G O L D A T T H E 2 0 1 2 O L Y M P I C S , C H E E R S O N 2 0 1 6 G O L D M E D A L I S T A N D B R U I N F R E S H M A N M A D I S O N K O C I A N D U R I N G T H E T E A M ’ S S E A S O N - O P E N I N G W I N A G A I N S T A R K A N S A S A T P A U L E Y P A V I L I O N O N J A N . 1 0 . I N H E R F I R S T C O L L E G I A T E M E E T , K O C I A N W O N T H E A L L- A R O U N D A N D T H R E E I N D I V I D U A L E V E N T S . S H E A N D T E A M M A T E K Y L A R O S S , A T E A M M A T E O F W I E B E R A T T H E 2 0 1 2 G A M E S , M A D E H I S T O R Y T H A T D A Y B Y B E C O M I N G T H E F I R S T O L Y M P I C G O L D M E D A L I S T S T O C O M -P E T E I N A N N C A A W O M E N ’ S G Y M N A S T I C S M E E T . ( P H O T O : D O N L I E B I G )


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2017 UCLA Bruin Blue Social Media Feature - January.indd 1 1/24/17 2:20 PM

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Q : B E S I D E S B A S K E T B A L L , W H A T D I D U C L A H A V E T O O F F E R T H A T W A S A P P E A L I N G T O Y O U ?KAJ: Coach Wooden was a large part of the draw to attend UCLA. His reputation as a great coach was well known, but just as important to me was his reputation as a great man — a man of honor, integrity, and compassion for his players. I knew that under his direction, I could become a better player and a better person. UCLA offered me much more than just basketball. Academics was even more important to me than athletics because I was an avid reader and writer. I was exposed to so many great courses and professors at UCLA that I was able to nourish those passions along with developing my athletic abilities. Finally, let’s not forget that moving from the harsh winters of New York City to the sunshine of California was pretty appealing. Q : W A S T H E R E A D E F I N I N G M O M E N T O R P E R S O N W H O I N F L U E N C E D Y O U R I N T E R E S T I N H I S T O R Y ?KAJ: When I was in high school, I spent a few weeks working as a journalist as part of the Harlem Youth Action Project. Our director was a renowned historian and author, Dr. John Henrik Clarke. He had co-founded the Harlem Quarterly, was an editor of Negro History Bulletin, had taught at the New School for Social Research, and was a prominent leader in the black political community. Whenever we were assigned an article to write about, he insisted he do the proper research at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in Harlem. I would go to Schomburg as often as I could and read about the great artists, writers, musicians, and political activists of the Harlem Renaissance. These people were never even mentioned in my high school classes, which is one of the reasons high school was so frustrating for me as an African-American. Dr. Clarke also made it possible for me to be part of the press conference for his friend, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., during which I got to ask Dr. King a question. It was that convergence of reading about great black achievements of the past, while being exposed to great black leaders of the present, that fueled my passion to use the lessons of the past to continue to fight for justice in the present. I realized that history is useless if we don’t use it to improve our future. Q : O T H E R T H A N B A S K E T B A L L , W H A T E X P E R I E N C E S A T U C L A H E L P E D S H A P E Y O U R L I F E ?KAJ: During my time at UCLA I met so many world shakers who had a great effect on me. I took martial arts lessons from a relatively unknown Bruce Lee. We became close friends. I met Muhammad Ali on the street and we became friends. I was able to develop my love for jazz by going to the local jazz clubs like the Lighthouse Cafe. I studied Islam and became a Muslim. I attended lectures by “Roots” author Alex Haley, black politician Adam Clayton Powell Jr., and the Beatles’ spiritual mentor Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. The pattern that emerges is that being at UCLA exposed me to so many new people and ideas that I was able to grow intellectually, spiritually, and athletically. I was surrounded by enthusiastic people on a similar journey of self-actualization, all trying to reach their full potential. I think as a result, I was much more open to trying new things.

Q : I N W H A T W A Y S D I D U C L A C H A N G E Y O U ?KAJ: I arrived at UCLA a naive 18-year-old full of potential and curiosity. I left four years later having fulfilled as much of that potential as possible. The best part of leaving a place that you love is knowing that you got everything possible out of the experience. You left nothing on the court, so to speak. A lot of people leave college and later lament that they didn’t fully take advantage of the experience. I did take full advantage, but I credit my ability to do so to the faculty who pushed me to do my best when they could have just let me slide on my basketball achievements. Their insistence on excellence made me demand more from myself. I’ve maintained that attitude throughout my life and it has served me well. Q : A N Y P A R T I C U L A R C L A S S O R P R O F E S S O R T H A T R E S O N A T E D ?KAJ: My English Composition class, taught by Prof. Lindstrom, had a huge impact on me. He assigned us to write a personal experience essay and I wrote about visiting a jazz club in New York. When he’d graded all the essays, he said he would read the three best. He read the first two, which I listened to with the appropriate amount of jealousy and impatience. Then he read what he said was the best essay in the class. Mine. I was shocked and pleased. It was the first time that I really felt I had enough writing ability to pursue it beyond classroom essays. Q : H O W D O Y O U A P P L Y C O A C H W O O D E N ’ S P H I L O S O P H I E S T O E V E R Y D A Y L I F E ?KAJ: The main lesson Coach Wooden taught us was a reflection of his Boy Scout values: Be Prepared. To him, preparation was everything. “By failing to prepare,” he used to tell us, “you are preparing to fail.” He got that from Benjamin Franklin, but it sounded better coming from him. He had us prepare and prepare and prepare, which made us confident facing our opponents. I have found that lesson to be very pragmatic in my daily life. I try to anticipate what obstacles I’ll face and prepare for them beforehand. When I’m doing that I consider myself to be in a Wooden state of mind, ready to face anything.

P R E S I D E N T B A R A C K O B A M A A W A R D S A B D U L - J A B B A R W I T H T H E P R E S -I D E N T I A L M E D A L O F F R E E D O M A T T H E W H I T E H O U S E O N N O V . 2 2 , 2 0 1 6 I N W A S H I N G T O N , D . C . ( P H O T O : D E B O R A H M O R A L E S ) .



It has been 50 years since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar made his varsity debut for UCLA, scoring a then-school record 56 points in a 105-90 victory over USC on Dec. 3, 1966 in Pauley Pavilion. Th ree months later (Feb.

25, 1967), he scored 61 points vs. Washington State in Pauley to set the current Bruin single-game scoring mark.

His success on the court is littered with awards. He led John Wooden’s Bruins to three NCAA Championships (1967, 1968, 1969) and was named the Naismith National Player of the Year three times. He won six NBA titles with the Milwaukee Bucks (1971) and Los Angeles Lakers (1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988), was named the league’s Most Valuable Player six times and is the NBA’s all-time leading scorer (38,387 points).

Abdul-Jabbar was a charter inductee into the UCLA Athletic Hall of Fame in 1984. His No. 33 UCLA jersey was retired in 1990, and in 1995 he was enshrined into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. ESPN named him the greatest college basketball player of all-time.

But Abdul-Jabbar’s journey has extended beyond the basketball court, as his life away from the game has been just as successful. He earned a UCLA Bachelor of Arts with a major in history. His Skyhook Foundation helps underprivileged kids. He has served as the United States’ Cultural Ambassador. In November, he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom and was recently appointed to the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition and the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee.

A New York Times best-selling author, his new book, ‘Coach Wooden and Me,’ is slated to come out this summer.

Abdul-Jabbar recently sat down with Bruin Blue to talk about his eff orts away from basketball and how UCLA helped prepare him for that part of life.

By Chris Foster

A B D U L- J A B B A R W A S O N E O F J U S T A F E W F O R M E R

P L A Y E R S W H O S P O K E A T J O H N W O O D E N ’ S M E M O R I A L

S E R V I C E O N J U N E 2 6 , 2 0 1 0 A T P A U L E Y P A V I L I O N

(Photo : Don Liebig) .

CATCHINGup with

KAREEM

UCLA.edu/optimists

A legendary Bruin once taught the world that success isn’t defi ned by wins and losses, but by peace of mind from doing your best, leaving it all on the court. Even if your court is a chemistry lab, the space shuttle or a balance beam. A protégé of John Wooden, UCLA Women’s Gymnastics Head Coach Valorie Kondos Field fi rst teaches her team to become the best people they can be, knowing academic and athletic excellence will follow. Since 1991, it has—culminating in six NCAA championships, but, more importantly, over 100 young Optimists ready for the world.

VAULTING STUDENTS TO A LIFETIME OF SUCCESS.

WHO WILL YOU MOTIVATE?

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Q : W H A T D R I V E S Y O U T O B E A C T I V E O U T S I D E O F B A S K E T B A L L ? I T I S O B V I O U S T H A T Y O U H A D A C L E A R I D E A O F S O C I A L I N J U S -T I C E E V E N A S A P L A Y E R A T U C L A .KAJ: If you grow up a person of color in America — or gay, or a woman, or Muslim, or Jewish — you’re acutely aware of social injustice. It’s ingrained into the social structure of education, voting rights, and job opportunities, but it seems invisible to those who aren’t directly affected by it. It’s like a giant tapeworm inside America, sucking out the nutrition that would allow us to prosper, but we don’t even recognize its existence. Just because I’ve been able to achieve a level of success doesn’t mean I’m not mindful of those who have to work twice as hard to get half as far because of who they are. I won’t feel truly successful until everyone has the same shot at fulfilling their personal dreams. College students have been at the forefront of the greatest social and political changes in this country for the last 60 years. They risked their lives as Freedom Riders in the 1960s, in protesting the Vietnam War, and in fighting for social equality today. When I was at UCLA, I tried to do my part in furthering civil rights by supporting Muhammad Ali’s fight against the U.S. government, a fight that he eventually won in the U.S. Supreme Court. Q : W H A T O T H E R A R E A S A R E I M P O R T A N T T O Y O U P E R S O N A L L Y A N D W H Y ?KAJ: There really is only one issue: full civil rights, social justice, and economic opportunity for everyone. The fact that we are still fighting for it seems ludicrous, especially since those against it are directly contradicting the spirit of the U.S. Constitution.

Q : H O W D I D T H E S K Y H O O K F O U N D A T I O N C O M E A B O U T ?KAJ: It’s one thing to make speeches about what we need to do to make the world a better place, it’s a whole other thing to actually do something about it. The Skyhook Foundation is my way of doing something. We send underprivileged children to camp in the Angeles National Forest for five days every week of the school year to be scientists in the best science lab in the world: nature. They get away from the city for a while — some for the first time in their lives — and learn about the joys of STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) in an environment that encourages discovery and character development. Q : W H A T I S T H E G O A L ?KAJ: We have two goals. First, that they have fun. Second, that they are exposed to STEM in a positive way that may encourage them to pursue studying it as they go forward in school. Our kids get a hands-on, multisensory outdoor environmental learning experience unlike anything they could get in the classroom. This is important in inspiring them to appreciate the sciences more. STEM content offers a lot of career potential for kids, but many from poorer communities often don’t think of it as a viable choice. We’re trying to show them that it is. Not every child is going to become a scientist, engineer or tech mogul but knowledge of STEM subject matter is already a key to become competitive in today’s job market. One of the most rewarding aspects of the program is when kids come up to me and say, “I never thought I could become a scientist, but now I think maybe I can.” We hope to provide realistic alternatives for their future.

( L E F T ) A B D U L- J A B B A R M A D E H I S V A R S I T Y D E B U T F O R U C L A I N A G A M E A G A I N S T U S C O N D E C . 3 , 1 9 6 6 , S C O R I N G A T H E N - S C H O O L R E C O R D 5 6 P O I N T S I N A 1 0 5 - 9 0 B R U I N V I C T O R Y . ( C E N T E R ) A S A T H R E E - T I M E N A I S M I T H N A T I O N A L P L A Y E R O F T H E Y E A R W I N N E R , A B D U L- J A B B A R A N D C O A C H J O H N W O O D E N W O U L D C O M B I N E T O W I N T H R E E N C A A C H A M P I O N S H I P S I N W E S T W O O D F R O M 1 9 6 7 - 6 9 . ( R I G H T ) A F T E R D O N A L D S T E R L I N G W A S B A N N E D B Y T H E N B A F O R R A C I S T C O M M E N T S H E M A D E W H I L E H E W A S O W N E R O F T H E L O S A N G E L E S C L I P P E R S , A B D U L- J A B B A R A N D F O R M E R T E A M M A T E A . C . G R E E N ( L E F T ) S P O K E D U R I N G A P R E S S C O N F E R E N C E A T L O S A N G E L E S C I T Y H A L L O N A P R I L 2 9 , 2 0 1 4 ( P H O T O : N O E L V A S Q U E Z / G E T T Y I M A G E S ) .



Q : D O Y O U S E E A G R O W I N G D I V E R S I T Y I N S T E M ?KAJ: According to a study last year by Change the Education, the STEM workforce is no more diverse than it was in 2001. The good news is that there are a lot of people trying to change that. One of the problems experts have noted is that African-American and Latino students have less access to Advanced Placement courses in STEM and that others lack confidence to take AP classes. Girls are notably underrepresented in AP Math and Science majors in our colleges and universities. That’s part of what Camp Skyhook (campskyhook.org) is trying to change by making sure we include kids from neighborhoods of all cultural backgrounds. And that’s why we need all the help we can get. Q : Y O U O F F E R E D A S T R O N G M E S S A G E A T T H E D E M O C R A T I C N A T I O N A L C O N V E N T I O N . H O W B E S T C A N Y O U C O N T I N U E T O S T R E S S D I V E R S I T Y A N D U N I T Y ?KAJ: The next four years under the Trump Administration will be a challenge because there’s a clear backlash against civil liberties and rights. His choices for his cabinet and White House staff prove that. The hope of the Trump Administration, of many white billionaires is that there is a perception that they will increase the economy so no one will notice that Planned Parenthood is being defunded, that blacks’ voting rights are being restricted, that the LGBT community is being harassed, and so forth. Basically, it’s an attempt to buy America’s conscience. We have to raise our voices every time they try to make us all invisible. We may end those four years hoarse, but we will end it with integrity. Q : T H O U G H T S O N T H E P R E S I D E N T I A L M E D A L O F F R E E D O M ?KAJ: I don’t think of it as a personal achievement so much as encouragement to keep doing what I’m doing. Keep speaking out for social justice, keep supporting STEM education, keep writing about the effects of pop culture on society. It’s a reminder that the work is not yet done. Q : W H A T D I D Y O U T R Y T O A C H I E V E A S T H E G L O B A L C U L T U R A L A M B A S S A D O R ?KAJ: I wanted to expose kids from different countries to what’s good about American culture. I traveled around the world on behalf of the U.S. and met hundreds of energetic and hopeful children. I wanted them to know that America is their friend and that our culture is diverse and inclusive. Q : P L A N S , O R H O P E S , F O R T H E F U T U R E ?KAJ: I intend to keep doing what I’m doing: speaking on behalf of those marginalized who feel powerless, writing books that analyze society and books that entertain society. And talking about sports whenever anyone asks me because I still have a great love for sports of all kinds. Q : L O O K I N G B A C K , W H A T I S T H E M O S T S A T I S F Y I N G T H I N G Y O U H A V E A C C O M P L I S H E D A W A Y F R O M T H E B A S K E T B A L L C O U R T ?KAJ: It’s not one thing that I’m proud of as much as remaining consistent in my fight for social justice over the years. That fight manifests itself in different ways — the Skyhook Foundation to help children, political articles, speeches about systemic racism, visiting schools to promote STEM programs — but I keep plugging away. I still have faith that Americans want to live up to the promise of the U.S. Constitution and I couldn’t think that I accomplished anything in life if I wasn’t part of that. Q : W H A T D O O R S H A V E B E E N O P E N E D F O R Y O U B E C A U S E O F B A S K E T B A L L ?

KAJ: The usual doors that athletic fame brings: endorsement deals, cameos in movies and TV shows, meeting other famous people. What’s important is what you do with those opportunities. I have no problem with athletes who use their fame to make as much money as they can. Good for them. But I think they also need to use their fame as an opportunity to help the community so that others have more opportunities to succeed. Q : W H A T L E S S O N S D I D Y O U L E A R N F R O M B E I N G P A R T O F T H E N O . 1 C O L L E G E B A S K E T B A L L T E A M I N A M E R I C A ? E V E R Y O N E W A S O U T T O K N O C K U C L A O F F.KAJ: When you’re at the top of the mountain, you’re a clear target for all those trying to take your place. In sports, as in the movie “Highlander,” there can be only one. As I mentioned earlier, preparation was everything with Coach Wooden and he taught us how to prepare for all the teams that would come at us. That level of preparation imbued us with enough confidence that we believed we could beat any team that came at us. But he also taught us that sports isn’t real life. In sports, there’s room at the top for only one team, but in life there’s plenty of room for others and we should do everything we can to help those others reach the top. That’s what made the man so brilliant. Q : F R O M A B A S K E T B A L L S T A N D P O I N T , H O W D O Y O U W I S H T O B E R E M E M B E R E D ?KAJ: I hope I’m remembered as much for what I did off the court as what I did on it. But what I’d like sports fans to remember most is that I played as hard as I could every game throughout my college and professional careers. I didn’t make excuses when we lost and I didn’t take credit when we won. My pleasure came during each game, while I was in movement with my team, and we were playing together like a great jazz band, riffing on notes during our solos, but ultimately harmonizing as a unit. If you want to remember me for basketball, remember me in mid-play, when I’ve just made a spontaneous move that sent me leaping up, my body a soaring jazz solo by John Coltrane. My moment of mastery. That’s where I was happiest.

U . S . S E C R E T A R Y O F S T A T E H I L L A R Y C L I N T O N S P E A K S W I T H A B D U L - J A B B A R A F T E R N A M I N G H I M A U . S . C U LT U R A L A M B A S S A D O R AT T H E U . S . S TAT E D E PA R T M E N T O N J A N . 1 8 , 2 0 1 2 I N W A S H I N G T O N , D C . ( P H O T O : C H I P S O M O D E V I L L A / G E T T Y I M A G E S ) .

UCLA and the UCLA Athletic Department thank the 7,068

Wooden Athletic Fund members, including the Najarian Family.

The Wooden Athletic Fund is committed

to honoring the educational and athletic

legacy of Nell and John Wooden.

Together, members of the Wooden

Athletic Fund team provide invaluable

support for all UCLA student-athletes

and every gift has a positive impact

on their ability to succeed in the

classroom, in competition and in the

community.

This funding is directed to the people,

places and programs that need it

most, allowing UCLA Athletics to

act quickly to enhance the student-

athlete experience, retain coaches,

and seize opportunities.

The Wooden Athletic FundRichard, Susan, Erik, and

Cassidy Najarian Invest in

Richard, Susan, Erik, and Cassidy Najarian are passionately

committed to UCLA and supporting Bruin student-athletes

through the Wooden Athletic Fund. Richard earned his BS in

Electrical Engineering at UCLA in 1982, and was a four-year

member of the UCLA Men’s Water Polo team. He met his future

wife Susan (UCLA ‘81) while both were undergrads, and they have

been die-hard Bruin fans and supporters since. Following in his

father’s footsteps, their son Erik (UCLA ’16) was also affiliated with

UCLA Men’s Water Polo as a player and a team manager, while their

daughter Cassidy, now attending Southern Methodist University,

graduated from Palos Verdes High School where she was a CIF

champion soccer player. A Vice President of Marketing for GainSpan

Corporation, Richard has been in the wireless semiconductor industry

for over 16 years, using his UCLA education to develop wireless

connectivity solutions at several Silicon Valley technology startups.

Playing water polo for then UCLA Head Coach, Olympian, and UCLA

Athletics Hall of Fame Inductee Bob Horn, Richard was named to the

All-America list in 1979. He firmly believes that good coaching and being

part of an athletics program instills values that are key to success beyond

the classroom and the field of play. Richard further believes that it builds

leadership, discipline, personal commitment, and teaches one how to

work effectively with others, which are just a few of the qualities that build

character and lead

to success. For

these reasons, the

Najarians have been

donating back to

UCLA Men’s Water

Polo since the

late 1980’s.

They became

Wooden

Athletic Fund

members in

2015, already

increasing their

support one

membership level.Wooden Athletic Fund

Invest in Tomorrow’s Champions Today

310.206.3302WoodenAthleticFund.com

“I have so many memorable moments with regards to UCLA, the most recent being watching my son Erik’s water polo team win the 2015 NCAA National Championship-UCLA’s 113th national title. I know that today’s student-athletes face tremendous challenges both in and out of the classroom. The Wooden Athletic Fund represents a tangible connection to UCLA and its 700+ student-athletes who directly benefit from the opportunities it provides. As a former student-athlete, the Wooden Athletic Fund allows me to give back to my school and support aspiring student-athletes to reach their goals.”

Tomorrow’s Champions Today.

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21

� en, of course, softball went away, at least the Olympic variety.But before it did, Fernandez came away with some indelible memories

of her experiences that are as fresh today to the UCLA assistant as they were then.

“One of my favorite memories and experiences when I was competing was after the ’96 Olympics,” she recalled. “I was back at UCLA and I had this person walk up to me who was a professor and basically said, ‘I’m not a sports fan. I don’t watch sports. But I do watch the Olympics. And I just want to say thank you for representing our country.’ I’m like, ‘Oh my gosh. For the � rst time ever I was able to impact someone who wasn’t even a fan of the game and a fan of sports.’”

“� at’s what the Olympics do,” she added. “� e Olympics draw people from every walk of life. It’s a one, two-, three-week period, when every-body’s eyes are not on a sport but on patriotism. I think that’s the impact the Olympics have. It’s about representing your country.”

Paige Halstead has that dream, especially now that it’s possible again. UCLA’s star catcher/out� elder is also a member of the national team and is in position to compete for a spot on the 2020 team.

“I think about it all the time,” she admitted. “It’s de� nitely always in the back of my head. It’s de� nitely a dream I have, which would be an amazing one if it came true. I think everybody dreams about that.”

Fernandez believes that, when it comes to both Delaney and Paige, theirs are not pipe dreams.

On Delaney: “She is exceptional. I mean she is by far one of the best shortstops in the college game right now, and she’s come at the right time. For these kids during this period this is the future, and they’re the ones who are going to compete for that 2020 spot. I think she’s got a tremendous amount of experience. Being able to perform in some of the most pressure moments, she is always able to produce.”

On Paige: “She is the future. She is a physical specimen when it comes to her height, her strength, her build, the arm that she has. She continues to work on wanting to develop her game. She’s someone who has been in that Olympic system, that national team system as well. When you talk about behind-the-plate arm strength, she is outstanding. It’s exciting to see how much she has grown and continues to grow.”

It’s di� cult to quantify exactly how much having softball in the Olym-pics again will help the UCLA program in particular. � e Bruins have always managed to attract top talent in the sport and surely will continue to do so. � e Olympics are a nice every-four-year extravaganza, but the yearly accomplishments of the softball squad in Westwood serve as enough adver-tisement for the public as to the merits of the program.

Yet Fernandez recognizes that there is something very special about the Olympics, and that quality seeps down into the UCLA athletic aquifer.

“When you have the opportunity to prepare and you have four years to plan you have people when they’re at their best, barring injury,” she explained. “People have given a lot of preparation to have that one moment

D E L A N E Y S P A U L D I N G ( L E F T ) A N D P A I G E H A L S T E A D ( R I G H T ) A R E J O I N E D B Y F O R M E R U C L A S T A N D O U T A L L Y C A R D A A F T E R T H E T H R E E B R U I N S H E L P E D T E A M U S A C A P T U R E T H E W B S C W O M E N ’ S W O R L D S O F T B A L L C H A M P I O N S H I P I N 2 0 1 6 .

OLYMPIC

DREAMS


OLYMPIC

W I T H S O F T B A L L B A C K I N T H E O L Y M P I C S I N 2 0 2 0 , U C L A L O O K S T O A D D T O I T S T R A D I T I O N O F G R E A T N E S S

There once was a community of little girls who watched softball on television and dreamed of someday playing at the highest level of the sport. � en an evil force came along and snatched that dream away.

� is would be a tale of woe except for the fact that the evil force wasn’t exactly evil, just terribly misguided. And in the end, it made amends.

In 2005, the International Olympic Committee voted to drop softball from its roster of sports. A pastime that inspired girls and young women to someday reach the Olympic heights enjoyed by such illustrious UCLA Bruins as Dot Richardson, Lisa Fernandez and Sheila Cornell, suddenly no longer had that global showcase.

“You talk about a blow to the stomach,” explained Fernandez, who is now an assistant coach for the UCLA softball team. “It was something that was hard for us to deal with as a sport because it kind of came out of nowhere. When it came to TV ratings, when it came to ticket sales, when it came to participation, when it came to a following, we were nowhere near the bottom or the middle in comparison to other Olympic sports. If anything we were in the top half, if not in the top 10.

“For us to have our sport eliminated kind of truly blindsided us,” she added. “It wasn’t anything we expected. It wasn’t anything we obviously thought we deserved. We thought we did everything to show what our sport was about, opening eyes to the world in terms of what fast-pitch softball was all about.”

While the IOC committed that monumental ga� e by eliminating a sport that had worldwide appeal in both participation and observation, it managed to reverse itself. It only took 11 years or so, but atonement is atonement. Last August, the IOC voted to reinstate softball for the 2020 Games in Tokyo.

Now the mood is considerably brighter among those aspiring girls and young women.

“Honestly it’s the time of every softball player’s life right now,” said Del-aney Spaulding, shortstop for the Bruins and — as a member of the U.S. Women’s National Team — a prime candidate for the U.S. squad in 2020. “When it was actually being voted into the Olympics, we were streaming it and I was with a bunch of softball players from di� erent colleges and we were watching and crossing our � ngers, and of course we celebrated when it got back in. It’s such a really good time for the softball community.”

UCLA athletics in general is used to experiencing great and consistent success, and the softball program has certainly held up its end over the years. Since its inception in 1975, the Bruins have brought 12 national champion-ship trophies back to Westwood, most recently in 2010 under current head coach Kelly Inouye-Perez.

� e � rst Olympics to feature softball was in 1996, and the United States — with the aforementioned contingent of UCLA stars — wasted no time in bringing home gold. � e U.S. won gold in the sport in 1996, 2000 and 2004, and � nished second in 2008. Fernandez came away as a three-time gold medalist and also served as an alternate on the ’08 team.


DREAMSBy Michael Ventre

D E L A N E Y S P A U L D I N G ( L E F T ) A N D P A I G E H A L S T E A D ( R I G H T ) H O P E T O J O I N U C L A C O A C H L I S A F E R N A N D E Z A S B R U I N S W H O H E L P L E A D T E A M U S A T O G L O R Y I N O L Y M P I C S O F T B A L L .

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in time. Our sport managed. We fought and � gured out a way to get back in. Japan played a big part, since the Games will be played in Japan.

“For right now it’s been huge for us in terms of notoriety and publicity that we can build o� of,” added Fernandez. “It helps that our athletes have been on Olympic teams. It’s a major platform that reaches millions.”

Spaulding for one is stoked. She had that little-girl experience most softball players have, of gazing in amazement at the Olympic Games and dreaming big.

“It makes me very excited,” she said. “When I was growing up, I watched the Olympics with my dad. He would wake me up because of the time dif-ferences, because it was always in a di� erent country. He would wake me up in the middle of the night, or early morning, to watch softball games. Now that softball is back in the Olympics, it’s a cool moment. It’s pretty awesome.”

Most of the world has viewed at some point the moment of glory for Olympians, when they stand on the podium and listen to national anthems. � e gold medalist beams, the silver and bronze recipients also enjoy satisfac-tion over a goal that has been reached.

But relatively few over the years have actually had that experience. Fer-nandez recalls the feeling.

“For me I really put a lot of expectations and a lot of pressure on myself in order to represent my country,” she said. “So there wasn’t a day I was training or preparing that I wasn’t thinking about putting the United States � rst. I’d wake up in the morning, and the � rst thing I thought of was, ‘What

am I going to do today to win a gold medal?’ To have that thought in your mind every single day for four years, it takes its toll.

“For me, to be able to push myself to the limit in training and prepara-tion, to make sure I was going to be the best I could be coming into the Olympics, that was it,” she continued. “When I won the gold medal, the � rst thing was a sense of relief. I did it. I’m done. I did the job. I completed the task. I completed the goal that I set out four years ago to accomplish. For me as an athlete, my biggest fear was to disappoint. And I never wanted to not live up to the expectations that my coaches, my teammates, my fans had of myself as a player. � at motivated me to make sure I was prepared, to make sure I was ready to go.”

� at thinking is why USA softball has been so successful in the Olym-pics, and why the UCLA program is supremely proud of the part it has played in that success.

P A I G E H A L S T E A D , U C L A ’ S S T A R C A T C H E R / O U T F I E L D E R , I S I N P O S I T I O N T O C O M P E T E F O R A S P O T O N T H E 2 0 2 0 T E A M . ( P H O T O : J O S H U A G A T E L E Y )

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team in 1984. Lisa led the women’s team to its � rst two NCAA champion-ships, in 1982 and 1983. Both spent time on the AVP Tour, maintaining a level of celebrity in Hawai’i. Pono has coached club teams in Hawai’i. Lisa works as a broadcaster for University of Hawai’i women’s games.

� e Hawai’i volleyball community has “an intense internal strength,” said Speraw.

“� ere’s a di� erent sense of humility, as well as a sense of family and sel� essness. � e players coming out of there are really strong, not just in the game, but in the way they handle the game,” Speraw added.

Micah would hear stories about his parents’ athletic prowess from family friends. By then, he was already digging into the family business.

“We wanted our kids to try everything,” said Lisa.Volleyball, though, was part of the family. Micah started as a 7-year-old,

playing on his older sister’s club team. “We needed help,” recalled Lisa.As a youth player, Micah was part of a Ka Ulukoa club team that won six

consecutive national age-group championships from 2008-13. � ere was a focus to Micah’s approach that made him extremely competitive. Lisa saw that when her son was little in a youth baseball league where parents pitched to the kids.

“He was playing shortstop and the � rst ground ball, he threw it to � rst, but the � rst baseman couldn’t catch it,” Lisa said. “� e next ground ball, Micah just ran it over to � rst.”

It didn’t matter what the activity, Micah was set on winning.“You don’t want to play Monopoly with him,” said Lisa. “You’ll stay up

all night.”But there was an unsel� sh motive lurking behind that focus.As a freshman basketball player at Punahou, Micah would battle 6-foot-7

senior DeForest Buckner, now a defensive end with the San Francisco 49ers.“In practice, he asked to guard DeForest and the coach would tell him

that wasn’t going to happen,” recalled Pono. “Micah would be like, ‘No, no, I got him.’ Micah would get tossed around and there would be lots of levity. But Micah’s mind set was, ‘� is is going to make me better.’”

On the volleyball court, Pono could see his son developing a unique outlook.“It was, ‘just win, just win,’” said Pono. “He didn’t worry how good or

bad he was playing. When it was all done, then he would look back on how he played.”

It was another skill rooted in the family. Family gatherings often became intense volleyball tournaments, particularly when visiting Lisa’s family in Santa Barbara. Her twin sister, Kelly Van Winden, was an All-American at Cal Poly and was raising volleyball prodigies as well. Both her daughters earned college scholarships — Adlee Van Winden, who played for the Cal Poly women’s team, and Torrey Van Winden, who is a freshman on the UCLA women’s team.

� e Van Windens had a beach court in their backyard.

27

M I C A H M A ’ A , A F R E S H M A N A L L- A M E R I C A N I N 2 0 1 6 , P O S S E S S E S A U N I Q U E V I S I O N O F T H E G A M E . ( P H O T O : K A T I E M E Y E R S )

the FAMILYBUSINESSM I C A H M A ’ A S T A R S I N U C L A V O L L E Y B A L L


Micah Ma’a does remember the balloons.

“My parents showed me the pictures,” he recalled.UCLA’s talented sophomore relies on that as evidence

where his volleyball career began. Lisa Strand-Ma’a, his mother, recalls so much more. � e small apartment at Honolulu’s Kame-hameha School, where her husband, Pono Ma’a, ran the dorms and the school’s intramural program, became an arena.

Micah and his older sister would bat balloons back and forth. It was serious stu� . � ere was no net, no referee, no scoreboard. But that small apartment might as well have included a national television audience.

“� ey always played to win,” said Lisa. “Micah just had this great energy. I don’t think he ever felt 5 years old. It was like, ‘I want to play.’”

� at intensity has pushed Micah along a volleyball path that led to West-wood. � e Bruins have been among the nation’s top teams this season. Micah is a big reason. He was born to play this game.

Volleyball in Hawai’i is di� erent. � e sport is engrained in the culture and the Ma’a family holds a prominent place in that tradition. Pono and Lisa were both All-Americans at the University of Hawai’i. Misty Ma’a, their oldest daughter, played at the University of Miami. Mehana and Maluhia, the youngest daughters, are high school standouts.

“Everything in my family revolves around volleyball,” said Micah.He was not about to walk away from the family business.

Micah played football and basketball and baseball, and even dabbled in water polo, at Punahou School — “I always had a ball in my hand, even when I was sleeping,” he said — but volleyball was an easy career choice.

“If you’re from Hawai’i, it can be di� cult to make it in sports,” said Micah, who is 6-3, 180 pounds. “People in Hawai’i are not physically gifted. You don’t go around thinking, ‘Oh, I’m three inches taller.’ We’re just small guys. Volleyball is the easiest way to make it out.”

Micah brought that focus to UCLA last season. He was named to the AVCA (American Volleyball Coaches Association) All-America First Team after helping the Bruins reach the Final Four for the � rst time since 2006.

“Micah has this social awareness where he understands intuitively where his teammates are emotionally,” UCLA Coach John Speraw said.

Speraw saw that up close and personal in the third match last season. Micah, then a freshman, exerted those leadership skills against traditional power Penn State.

“� ere was a timeout and I’m giving instructions,” remembered Speraw. “Micah interjected, saying, ‘Hey, we’re going to do this and we’re going to do that.’ All the other guys were nodding their heads. I told my assistant, ‘We’re not going to be running timeouts much longer.’”

It was a small glimpse at the volleyball DNA Micah totes around.Pono and Lisa met as freshman at Hawai’i, where they became stars in

volleyball. Pono was selected � rst-team All-American in 1986 and second


By Chris Foster

the FAMILYBUSINESSB O T H C O L L E G E V O L L E Y B A L L P L A Y E R S T H E M S E L V E S , M I C A H ’ S P A R E N T S , P O N O M A ’ A ( L E F T ) & L I S A S T R A N D - M A ’ A , H A V E H E L P E D F O S T E R T H E I R S O N ’ S P A S S I O N F O R T H E G A M E . (Photo: Katie Meyers)


“We’d played two-on-two until the sun went down and we’d start again when the sun came up,” Micah said.

� e parents tried to tamp things down, insisting that no score be kept.

As Micah is quick to point out, “� at wasn’t going to happen.”It didn’t matter where the families were, a game could break out

at any moment.“We were in Lake Tahoe one time and the ski lifts were sold out,”

Lisa said. “� ere was a volleyball in the car — there’s always a vol-leyball — and there were the kids in their snow gear playing in the parking lot.”

Such round-the-clock training honed Micah’s skills. He was con-sidered one of the top players in Hawai’i as a senior at Punahou.

“You could see the athletic ability, but you see that in a lot of kids,” Pono said. “Micah had a cognitive understanding of the big picture — passing, setting, hitting. � at separated him.”

Speraw saw that as well. “Not many players are so in control of what they’re doing that

they can worry about what others are doing,” he said. “His vision of the game is unique.”

Micah was set on leaving home and Speraw, as the U.S. National Team coach, o� ered what others universities couldn’t.

“I want to play volleyball past college,” Micah said. “Coach Speraw is the best to learn from with his knowledge and experience. � ere is a long list of things that make him special.”

� e adjustment to UCLA took some time.“� e L.A. lifestyle compared to home is pretty di� erent,” Micah

said. “� ings are a little more fast-paced. People are always like, ‘go, go, go.’ It was kind of draining.”

Volleyball made assimilating easier.� e Bruins had not been to the NCAA tournament since win-

ning their 19th NCAA championship in 2006. Two weeks into the 2016 season, UCLA had the look of a contender. � e Bruins beat eventual national champion Ohio State and Penn State in the Pac-12/Big 10 Challenge.

Micah was named � rst-team All-Mountain Paci� c Sports Federa-tion after helping UCLA � nish second behind top-ranked Brigham Young. � e Bruins lost to Ohio State in the NCAA Semi� nals.

“I heard it had been a long time since UCLA went to the Final Four,” Micah said. “Helping us do that was great.”

But it left Micah chasing one more balloon.“Winning the title,” Micah said. “It’s not a one-day-at-a-time

kind of thing. It’s an everyday kind of thing with that goal in mind.”


M I C A H M A ’ A W I L L P L A Y A K E Y R O L E I F T H E B R U I N S H O P E T O M A K E I T B A C K T O T H E F I N A L F O U R A G A I N I N 2 0 1 7 . ( P H O T O : D O N L I E B I G )

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M A R C H 5 — D O D G E R T O W N C L A S S I CBig time college baseball returns to Dodger Stadium again this year, as the UCLA Bruins will headline the Dodgertown Classic on March 5 at Chavez Ravine. The Bruins will take on crosstown rival USC in the second half of a doubleheader at 3 p.m. The first game that day features Michigan and San Diego at 11 a.m. The Dodgertown Classic dates back to 2010 when Vanderbilt, Oklahoma State, UCLA and USC kicked off the event. Ticket information can be found online at www.dodgers.com/classic.

M A R C H 1 2 — S O F T B A L L V S . T E X A SIf you want the chance to take in two UCLA events in one day you can do just that on March 12, as following the gymnastics meet at Noon (see above), the Bruin softball team hosts Texas at Easton Stadium at 4 p.m. UCLA will be coming off a 19-game road swing when it hosts the Longhorns, as it marks the first of nine straight home games for the Bruins. UCLA returns eight starters from a 2016 team that made their second straight trip to the Women’s College World Series, and also have a stand-out freshmen class looking to make their mark in 2017.Time: 4 p.m. / Tickets: $8 general admission ($5 youth)

M A R C H 1 2 — G Y M N A S T I C S V S . N O R T H C A R O L I N ALed by legendary head coach Valorie Kondos Field, the UCLA gymnastics team will host its final home meet of the 2017 season on Sunday, March 12, as ACC foe North Carolina heads to Pauley Pavilion. It will also be Senior Day for Bruins Angi Cipra, Peng-Peng Lee, Mikaela Gerber, Hallie Mossett and volunteer coach Jordyn Wieber. UCLA features a star-studded lineup which includes the only two Olympic gold medalists to ever compete in NCAA women’s gymnastics in Olympians Madison Kocian and Kyla Ross.Time: Noon / Tickets: $16 general admission.

A P R I L 2 2 — W O M E N ’ S W A T E R P O L O V S . U S CThe crosstown showdown between UCLA and USC will be renewed in the pool on April 22, as the Bruins and Trojans are set to tangle in women’s water polo at UCLA’s Spieker Aquatics Center. UCLA’s lineup is significantly bolstered in 2017 by the return of U.S. National Team players Rachel Fattal, Alys Williams and Kodi Hill, all of whom redshirted in 2016 while helping Team USA qualify for the Olympic Games in Rio. Both Fattal and newcomer Maddie Musselman were part of the U.S. team that ultimately won gold in Rio, and both players will play a significant role in helping UCLA aim for its eight NCAA Championship in Indianapolis, Indiana, this May.Time: 1 p.m. / Tickets: Free

A P R I L 2 9 — F O O T B A L L S P R I N G S H O W C A S EFans looking to get an up-close-and-personal look at the UCLA football can do just that on April 29, as the team hosts its annual Spring Showcase at Drake Stadium beginning at 1 p.m. The Spring Showcase marks the last practice of the spring for the Bruins, who will not convene again on the field until fall camp in August. The day is typically highlighted by a post-practice autograph session where fans can also meet and take pictures with their favorite players.Time: 1 p.m. / Ticket Info: 310-UCLA-WIN.

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MARK CORMANYU C L A G R A D H A S R E T A I N E D C L O S E T I E S T O H I S A L M A M A T E R

Growing up in Tustin, California, his dream had always been to attend UC Santa Barbara. Yet when he was a senior in high school and it came time for him to fill out his application to the University of California, he purposely left the box blank

where your school choice needed to be checked off. He returned to that section of his application later to give it more thought.

“Sports were too important for me to go to a school that didn’t have them. I want to go to bowl games, Final Fours, and tailgate parties,” he said. “I thought, one day I’ll be a middle-aged man and if I go to [UC] Santa Barbara I won’t have any of those things to connect me to the school I attended.”

This was the reasoning that changed Mark Cormany’s decision; a deci-sion he never for one second regretted.

“Looking back, deciding to go to UCLA was the wisest decision I ever made,” said Mark.

There is no shortage of topics Mark can discuss relating to UCLA and how much earning his undergraduate degree there meant to him, nor can he deny the huge impact it has made on his life. During high school he attended UCLA games with friends and saw firsthand the connection

between one’s school and the passion shown by the fans who attended.“I saw these middle-aged people [at games] who were so passionate

about where they went to school,” said Mark. “In the back of my mind I thought, ‘I want that passion and that connection!’”

After graduating from UCLA with a degree in Political Science in 1986, Mark realized very quickly that his UCLA degree reaped a great deal of continued access to the university. Invitations to seminars and presenta-tions often came in the mail; he could get a library card, a recreation card, and any number of other alumni-related privileges. Mark, as he did during his undergraduate years, continued to attend football and men’s basketball games, but would buy tickets with his friends without much regularity.

“I decided that I wanted to get better seats to the games I was going to,” said Mark. “I could go to StubHub or other places for tickets, but I knew this wasn’t the connection I wanted to UCLA. I had gone to the Final Four in 2006 and decided I wanted to be more connected to the school and sit with UCLA fans in better seats and not have to put my whole itinerary together myself.”

During his 2006 trip to Indianapolis for the Final Four, Mark met Brian Smith, Assistant Athletic Director for Major Gifts, and inquired how to go about becoming more connected to his alma mater.

“I started doing the math on how to get better seats, and then the Pauley [Pavilion Renovation] project came up,” said Mark. “That’s when I really


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M A R K C O R M A N Y , F A R R I G H T , A T T E N D E D T H E F O O T -B A L L T E A M ’ S S E A S O N O P E N E R A G A I N S T T E X A S A & M I N 2 0 1 6 I N C O L L E G E S T A T I O N , T E X A S .


started getting involved, and Brian helped me maneuver through the donor levels and corresponding benefits. After making a gift to the Pauley cam-paign, I started donating to the Wooden Athletic Fund. This connectivity through WAF keeps me connected to this university, and I started giving at the Director’s Circle membership level. Now, my favorite UCLA activity is attending the Director’s Dinner.”

The Director’s Dinner is an exclusive, annual dinner where attendees dine at a different UCLA venue each year with every UCLA head coach and top administrators in attendance. Through these dinners, Mark, like many guests, got acquainted with head coaches other than the two he already knew — football and men’s basketball — and a whole new appreci-ation for coaches and other teams took hold.

“I met Adam [Wright, men’s water polo head coach] at my second Director’s Dinner and we hit it off,” said Mark. “I got to know him better and traveled to Budapest with the water polo team and really got to know the student-athletes. I gained an appreciation for different sports and how hard all the coaches work with recruiting, coaching, travel and all the other things they have to do. I’ve also gone to several UCLA softball golf tour-naments so I’ve gotten to know Kelly [Inouye-Perez, head softball coach] and other head coaches like Val from gymnastics and Derek Freeman from men’s golf. So it’s been fun branching out into other sports.”

Through his membership in Director’s Circle, Mark’s benefits jumped tenfold. He has been invited to go on away football trips and the annual donor football trip. These travels not only pushed Mark to see new places he never would have thought of going to before, but gave him a newfound respect of what it takes to run an athletics department.

“I only get a glimpse into the running of an athletics department, but it has made me really proud of UCLA’s integrity,” said Mark. “I respect the process and celebrate the wins and don’t hang onto the losses because I see so much of the human component involved. When I was a student, UCLA won three Rose Bowls and a Fiesta Bowl. We also lost to Irvine in the first round of the NIT. But I went to every game regardless, and winning or losing will never change my commitment to UCLA.”

This way of thinking was most likely passed on to Mark by his father. The sacrifices that his parents made so that he could earn a college degree was never lost on Mark, and he wishes that his dad, who passed away in the 1990s, could see him and the man he has become now due in large part to his UCLA degree and ensuing relationships.

“I played baseball and basketball in high school, and our football team never won any games, yet my Dad would attend all of our football games. His attitude was, ‘If you don’t suffer through the hard times, you haven’t earned the right to appreciate the good times.’ I feel that same way. Because my Dad worked weekends, we went on only one family vacation. I was 10 years old, and on our way, he took me to an ASU baseball game in Tempe and said, ‘Mark, this is a place you might consider going to college one day.’ He would also pull me out of school every so often to take me to a UC Irvine baseball game. We would bond at these games, but his message was clear that college was going to be part of my life. Education was stressed because my Dad never had the opportunity to go to college.”

Mark majored in Political Science at UCLA but always had a business emphasis in classes he took. Some years after he graduated, he worked at PacifiCare for a number of years, then decided to build his own business. His new business model was devised at an uncertain and disquieting point in his life. In the late 1990s, Mark was diagnosed with cancer. While recov-ering from surgery, he decided he wanted to have his own company and not work for anyone else. Since he had known many brokers from being in the health care business, he was able to start his own company, and in 1997, French Cormany Insurance was born.

“I grew my business by acquiring other businesses from people who were going to retire or leave the health care field,” said Mark. “One of the first guys whose business I bought was Bob French, who was a mentor to me. My ego isn’t such that I need to have my name all over the place, and I liked French Cormany, so that became my company’s name. I’m an insurance broker who handles employee benefits for companies — selling insurance is a really small part. So I guess I’m not your typical insurance sales guy.”

Mark has generously donated to the new Wasserman Football Center on campus as well as to the campaign to name the Terry Donahue Pavilion at the Rose Bowl.

“I sit in the club seats at the Rose Bowl, and when I take the escalator up, I can see my name on the list of those who contributed [to the Terry Donahue Pavilion.] I love seeing it there because it makes me proud to know I had a small something to do with it. But my ultimate goal is to be part of the 1919 Society.”

The 1919 Society is the Athletic Department’s elite membership group that recognizes the individuals who have contributed $1,000,000 or more in their lifetimes to UCLA Athletics.

“It’s my ultimate goal, because I think for a guy with my background, who became a self-made guy, what would be more awesome than giving $1,000,000 to your alma mater?”

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