University of Jamestown Booster Club Opens Nominations for Athletic Hall of Fame

The University of Jamestown Booster Club is accepting nominations for the UJ Athletic Hall of Fame and two named awards that recognize coaching, youth service and post-Jimmie community service. Nominations are open from the public under rules that allow anyone except the nominee to submit and permit posthumous candidates.

The Athletic Hall of Fame “has existed since 1979,” and the Hall “inducted its first class in 1979,” honoring former Jimmie coaches, stand-out athletes and athletic supporters across all sports in which the college has competed. The Rollie Greeno Award, “established in 1994,” honors individuals who have shown “a commitment to youth through their careers in the education and/or coaching professions.” The Jim Clark Award, “established in 2017 to honor former Jimmies track and field head coach Jim Clark,” recognizes people who “have demonstrated a commitment to serving others through their career since leaving the University of Jamestown.”

The university advises nominators to submit entries via an online nomination form on the school’s athletics pages; the announcement also states, “Nominations can be offered by anyone except the person being nominated. The person does not have to be alive to be nominated.” The Athletic Hall of Fame induction ceremony is “hosted during homecoming,” and senior athletes continue to be recognized each year at the Senior Athletic Banquet.

Local impact is straightforward. Nominating a former Jimmie or a longtime coach is a low-cost civic action that preserves Stutsman County sports heritage while spotlighting individuals who helped shape youth and community programs. Names on past induction lists show the range of honorees from teams to individual stars: the 1984 Football Team and Kelli “Dewey” Duvall ’03 were among 2016 inductees; the 2004 Baseball Team and Dick Karlgaard ’51 were listed for 2014; 1993–1994 Men’s Basketball, Shawna Doty-Myers ’98 and John Backhaus ’70 were noted for 2012; and Bonnie (Pfannsmith) Freije ’88, Rick Hack ’81, Cory Mantyka ’93 and Andy Wade ’91 appeared under 2011. These examples illustrate that the Hall recognizes both team accomplishments and long careers across decades.

The Jimmie Booster Club frames its mission in energetic, hometown terms: “Your Jimmie Booster Club was established in 1985 with an initial goal of ‘assisting the College with athletic scholarship aid in developing a more well-rounded and competitive athletic program.’” The booster page also declares, “For the last 50 years, we’ve been doing just that and so much more,” a discrepancy that the Booster Club should clarify for readers who track institutional timelines. Booster membership continues to offer perks such as game tickets, season passes and exclusive fan items; promotional language on the site includes “Go Jimmies!” and “As your friendly, neighborhood Booster Club Director, I welcome you to the Jimmie Pride family!”

Practical next steps for residents: find the Athletic Hall of Fame nomination form on the University of Jamestown athletics/JimmiePride site and prepare supporting details such as years of participation, awards and a short biography. Confirm submission deadlines and any required supporting materials with UJ Athletics before sending nominations. The nominations process is a chance for families, former teammates and coaches across Stutsman County to enshrine local figures whose athletic and educational work shaped the community; the next honor roll will be revealed at homecoming when inductees are celebrated publicly.