Angel McCoughtry, the , rebounding and steals, led UofL to its first NCAA title game in 2009. She now plays for the WNBA’s Las Vegas Aces. Earlier this month, she helped create the WNBA/WNBPA Social Justice Council to address issues like inequality and systemic racism.Ěý

, this season’s WNBA jerseys will include the names of people who have experienced social injustice – a way to bring the conversation to a bigger audience.

McCoughtry announced this initiative by posting an Instagram photo of her Aces jersey with Breonna Taylor’s name on it. Taylor was fatally shot by the Louisville Metro Police Department in March after officers executed a no-knock search warrant.

“This is a way to use our platform to be a helping hand during these trying times,” McCoughtry wrote in her post. “Silence is an ally for EVIL and when sports resume WE WILL NOT BE SILENT.”

The WNBA season is expected to return later this month.

Meanwhile, former UofL Football and current Atlanta Falcons player Jamon Brown has done plenty of activism work in his former community recently. , who was selected in the NFL draft in 2015, established the Jamon Brown Foundation to help those in need in Louisville.

In March, Brown launched a through that foundation to specifically provide financial support for those affected by the COVID-19 outbreak.

Most recently, Brown has been using that platform to attend and speak at local protests, , “I’m a citizen before I’m a football player. I’m a Black man before I’m a citizen. But I’m a human before I’m any of those … I’m trying to do what I can to shed light on what’s going down.”

Brown has influenced a number of current UofL players to join him in using their voice to raise awareness. Indeed, a number of those players have marched beside Brown and have led efforts to clean up the community and participate in other service events.

UofL’s football staff has also encouraged current players to use their voices.Ěý

Defensive coordinator Bryan Brown told the Courier Journal that this encouragement comes from head coach Scott Satterfield: “That’s one thing Coach Satt said, we need to make sure we don’t let this thing die, you know about racial diversity, racial tension and police brutality against people of color, we don’t need to let it die down.”

This year’s recipients include Kimberly Dil, Rachel Florek, Jazmine Jones, MaKenzie Kelley, Ainsley Mattingly and Emmy Wuensch.Ěý
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Dil, a junior on the rowing team, volunteers with Dreams with Wings, which empowers individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities and autism by recognizing their strengths, and helping them contribute to their community and pursue their dreams. She also volunteered with Louisville Ironman, Norton Children’s Hospital, JCPS, and Louisville Metro Animal Services. Dil has dedicated a total of 109 hours to the Louisville community.

Florek, a junior on the lacrosse team, has spent numerous hours teaching children about the game of lacrosse and has also volunteered her time to local schools, participating in Read Across America literacy initiatives. She also worked with Dreams with Wings, Angel Tree, Norton Children’s Hospital, Girls on the Run, Americana, and Dare to Care. Florek has dedicated a total of 84 hours to the Louisville community.

Jones, a senior on the women’s basketball team, completed a weeklong mission trip to Jamaica through FCA this past summer. Throughout the school year, she also participated in the Card Pal program where student-athletes pair up with students at the West End School and write letters to each other. She has participated with several other organizations including JCPS, Team Inspire, Ronald McDonald House, Berrytown Community Center, Camp Quality and Portland Promise Center. Jones has dedicated a total of 68 hours to a mission trip and the Louisville community.
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Kelley, a freshman on the Ladybirds dance team, was an avid volunteer at the Parkland Boys and Girls club. She began her volunteer work in September as a consistent volunteer with their after-school activities program. She has also volunteered at several cancer/health focused walks and initiatives, including Louisville FC Climb, Kidney Walk and Walk/Run to End Childhood Cancer. Kelley has dedicated a total of 141 hours to the Louisville community.
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Mattingly, a sophomore on the rowing team, has given back through several mission trips. She went to Heart Butte, Montana to assist on the Blackfeet Tribe Reservation and also visited Tijuana, Mexico. Throughout the school year, she participated in the Card Pal program where student-athletes are paired with students at the West End School and write letters to each other. She has also worked with other organizations such as FCA, Louisville Ironman and Ronald McDonald House. Mattingly has dedicated a total of 77 hours to mission trips and the Louisville community.

Wuensch, a sophomore on the rowing team, has worked with animals through the Charlottesville Albemarle Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (CASPCA). She was also a frequent volunteer at the Berrytown Community Center through their Metro Parks Adaptive and Inclusive Recreation area. During her time there, she was actively engaged in their wheelchair basketball program. She has also volunteered with the FCA, JCPS, UofL Disability Resource Center, and the Louisville Ironman. Wuensch has dedicated a total of 84 hours to the Louisville community.
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To celebrate the week, 80ĚýUofL student-athletes and staff from 17 different teams read books to students from 13 different elementary schools and non-profit organizations throughout Louisville.
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“I thought this was such a good experience to be with the students and to see how receptive they were to us reading to them,” said freshman softball player, Lexi Carver. “To be able to put a smile on their faces when we get to read to them, it means a lot to me.”
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UofL student-athletes not only read to the elementary students, they also answered questions about what it’s like to go to college and to be an athlete.

“I remember when I was kid and student-athletes would come speak to us and now I’m in that position to give back in the same way and to positively impact them,” said Keith Oddo, a fifth-year men’s basketball player.Ěý

Football player Russ Yeast said he was grateful to be able to show young students that reading is empowering.

“We were able to tell them the importance of staying in school and how literacy is important to making it through school,” he said.Ěý

This initiative is part of a number of community service efforts put forth by UofL’s athletics department.ĚýThe University of Louisville athletics department was named the winner of the 2019-20 NCAA Team Works Award Competition for outstanding community service in Division I. This marks the second time the Cardinals have won the award in the six years of the competition.