The Lady Razorback Museum
| Welcome to The Lady Razorback Museum: Celebrating the Achievements of Young Women | |
| Take the Tour||Who is in the Museum||The Wall of Champions||Basketball Wing || Volleyball Wing || Gymnastics Wing || The Theater | |
| Considered the nation’s first on-campus museum dedicated solely to the achievements of female student-athletes, the Lady Razorback Museum opened to rave reviews in 1999. Located in the north lobby of Barnhill Arena, the 9,000-seat home of Arkansas volleyball and gymnastics, it features all eleven women’s sports. The museum highlights the individual and team champions at the University of Arkansas during the three decades of varsity competition. The display is more than trophies. The academic achievements of female student-athletes, Arkansas’ numerous statewide NCAA Woman of the Year recipients and the role of athletes as leaders in the community are highlighted. The major displays of the museum are its Wall of Champions, celebrating the achievement of Arkansas’ women on the conference and national level, and the Great Moments Theater, a DVD interactive theater filled with highlights of the first three decades of Arkansas women’s athletics. The giant photo mural entitled "Celebration" which rings the Great Moments Theater and the department’s welcoming message to visitors have become the signature displays of the museum. "The initial goal was to enhance our recruiting," UA Director of Women’s Athletics Bev Lewis said at the dedication, "but we soon found that we were tapping into something so obvious for men and so overlooked for women. "It is so natural for a boy to walk into the backyard with his bat or his ball and imagine himself the hero. It’s because he can look on the television or read in the paper or go to a museum and see men achieving success. What we created was a special place where young girls can come and see women that are larger than life; women who have dreamed the dream and achieved it." Within months after the museum’s opening, the Lady Razorbacks added a new feature. A page on the Arkansas women’s athletics website, www.ladybacks.com, was constructed and features pictures of nearly every display so visitors can experience the ambiance even from the comfort of their own home. At the entrance to the museum, the Lady Razorbacks have included this message to explain the purpose and intent of the museum.Welcome to the University of Arkansas Women’s Athletics Department, where the dreams of little girls come true. Where future doctors and lawyers, mothers and partnerslearn the strength of teamwork, the power of their determination, and the glory of achieving their goals. Here we celebrate those women who chose this place to live their dreams, to realize their goals, and to achieve greatness. This space is dedicated to those young girls who will come with that twinkle in their eye; To see the past in hopes that they will learn that this is where they can come to build their future. Welcome to a special place,where every person from the coaches to the trainers; from the tutors to the fans have only one goal in their hearts- Transforming the dreams of little girls into the achievements of women.Welcome to the Home of the Lady Razorbacks. | |
