Tamika Catchings to Speak at Cleveland State in 2023

Napierra Alexander
Wednesday, April 13, 2022 12:00 AM
Athletics, Community, Events, Press Releases, All

CLEVELAND, Tenn.- Recently, Cleveland State Community College hosted Archie Manning to campus for a night of conversations about his life in the National Football League and raising three sons, two of whom became college and professional football stars. Over 1,300 people were in attendance, and over $106,000 was raised for the CSCC Foundation. Building on this success, CSCC has selected former Lady Vols basketball player Tamika Catchings as its speaker in February of 2023. Catchings will speak about her career and life experiences throughout her 16 seasons in the WNBA. 

“Tamika Catchings is the perfect choice for our next major speaker,” stated Dr. Bill Seymour, CSCC President. “Find another person who has won a NCAA National Championship, WNBA Championship and an Olympic Gold Medalist four times!  My daughters and I enjoyed watching her in Thompson-Boling Arena multiple times as one of Pat Summitt's best players.”

Cleveland State offers a space for influential leaders to connect with the community and share their experiences to uplift others. Catchings has been a record breaker in basketball and community leader throughout her career. The Lady Vols had a record of 134-10 with four SEC regular season championships, three trips to the Elite Eight and two trips to the Final Four during Catchings' collegiate career. She was a part of Pat Summitt's undefeated, 39-0 squad in the 1997-98 season. 

Catchings released a book in 2016 called Catch A Star: Shining through Adversity to Become a Champion. It tells Catchings’ story of overcoming her hearing loss, separation from family, high expectations and the pain of a debilitating physical injury.

“Tamika Catchings is a legend in the world of sports,” stated John Squires, Executive Director, Advancement and Planning at CSCC. “Her story is inspirational, and she has worked with organizations throughout the country to help youth. We are looking forward to hosting her in 2023.”

Tickets for this event go on sale this fall. For more information on becoming a sponsor, contact Lee McChesney at jmcchesney@clevelandstatecc.edu.

About CSCC

For more information on Cleveland State Community College, visit the website at clevelandstatecc.edu or email clscc_info@clevelandstatecc.edu. If you are interested in applying, visit mycs.cc/applynow. Students are currently enrolled online and on-campus through the CSCC main campus in Cleveland, Tennessee, as well as CSCC’s Athens Center in Athens, Tennessee and Monroe County Center in Vonore, Tennessee.

CSCC earned the Tennessee Board of Regent’s 2019 College of The Year. CSCC directly serves Bradley, McMinn, Meigs, Monroe, and Polk Counties in Tennessee. The College System of Tennessee is the state’s largest public higher education system, with 13 community colleges, 27 colleges of applied technology and the online TN eCampus serving more than 140,000 students.