Monmouth's McNeil Named Lifetime Achievement Honoree by Women Leaders in Sports
Monmouth University's McNeil has been named a Lifetime Achievement Honoree by Women Leaders in Sports — a career-defining recognition in women's athletics leadership.
In brief
Monmouth University's McNeil has been named a Lifetime Achievement Honoree by Women Leaders in Sports, one of the most prestigious recognitions available to women working in collegiate and professional athletics administration. The announcement, made by Monmouth University, places McNeil among an elite group of leaders whose careers have shaped the landscape of women's sports.
Key Takeaways
McNeil has been announced as a Women Leaders in Sports Lifetime Achievement Honoree.
The recognition was announced by Monmouth University.
Women Leaders in Sports is a leading national organization dedicated to advancing women in athletics.
A Lifetime Achievement Honor That Carries Weight
The Women Leaders in Sports Lifetime Achievement award is not handed out casually. The organization — a nationally recognized force in collegiate athletics — reserves this distinction for individuals whose bodies of work have made a measurable, enduring difference in how women are represented, elevated, and empowered within sports institutions. For McNeil, the honor reflects a career that has clearly left a mark well beyond Monmouth University's West Long Branch, New Jersey campus.
Women Leaders in Sports, formerly known as the National Association of Collegiate Women Athletics Administrators (NACWAA), has spent decades building pipelines for women into leadership roles across athletic departments, conferences, and governing bodies. Its annual honors are closely watched across the collegiate sports world. According to the NCAA, advancing gender equity in athletics leadership remains one of the most pressing structural priorities in college sports — making recognitions like this one carry institutional as well as individual significance.
Monmouth University and the Broader Push for Women in Athletic Leadership
Monmouth University, a private university and member of the Coastal Athletic Association, has positioned itself as a program that takes women's leadership seriously. McNeil's recognition adds to a growing national conversation about who holds power in athletic departments — and who has historically been overlooked.
Across the country, women remain underrepresented in athletic director roles and senior athletics administration despite comprising a significant portion of the collegiate athlete population. Organizations like Women Leaders in Sports exist precisely to change that calculus — through professional development, advocacy, and, critically, public recognition of leaders who have blazed trails. McNeil's Lifetime Achievement designation signals that her contributions to that mission have been substantial and sustained.
For readers tracking women's power in sports and institutions, this honor fits squarely into the broader arc documented in WDCM's DC Power Players Index — where influence, tenure, and institutional impact define who gets remembered. Follow more stories like this one under our Power Moves tag.
Lifetime Achievement honors in sports administration rarely make front-page news — but they should. They document the women who built the infrastructure that younger generations of athletes and administrators now benefit from. Every Title IX compliance office, every women's coaching pipeline, every equity audit in an athletic department has people like McNeil somewhere in its lineage.
As NPR's education coverage has noted in broader reporting on gender and institutions, representation at the leadership level shapes outcomes at every level below it. When organizations like Women Leaders in Sports name a Lifetime Achievement Honoree, they are doing more than celebrating one person — they are defining a standard for what sustained commitment to equity in athletics actually looks like.
Watch for the formal Women Leaders in Sports ceremony where McNeil will be officially honored. Monmouth University is expected to mark the occasion as well. As the collegiate athletics landscape continues to evolve — particularly with ongoing debates around NIL, conference realignment, and gender equity mandates — leaders with McNeil's tenure and recognition will remain central voices in shaping what comes next.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Who is the Women Leaders in Sports Lifetime Achievement Honoree from Monmouth University? Monmouth University's McNeil has been announced as the Women Leaders in Sports Lifetime Achievement Honoree, according to an announcement from Monmouth University.
What is Women Leaders in Sports? Women Leaders in Sports is a national organization dedicated to advancing women in collegiate and professional athletics leadership, formerly known as the National Association of Collegiate Women Athletics Administrators (NACWAA).
What does the Lifetime Achievement Award from Women Leaders in Sports recognize? The Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes individuals whose careers have made a sustained and significant contribution to advancing women in sports leadership and athletics administration.
What conference does Monmouth University compete in? Monmouth University is a member of the Coastal Athletic Association.
Reporting drawn from: Monmouth University. Washington DC Magazine provides original analysis, DC-specific context, and editorial perspective beyond the source material.This article was produced with AI assistance and reviewed by WDCM editorial staff. Washington DC Magazine is committed to accuracy, transparency, and editorial integrity. If you believe any information in this article requires correction, please contact editor@washingtondcmagazine.com.
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CAN I KICK IT? screens New Jack City at the Sylvan Theater, Washington Monument, on Aug. 22. (Courtesy SHAOLIN JAZZ)
The live-cinema series CAN I KICK IT? returns to the National Mall this month with what its producers are calling the "Gangsters on the Mall" chapter of their free outdoor summer run. On Saturday, August 22, the SHAOLIN JAZZ production brings the 1991 crime classic New Jack City to the Sylvan Theater at the Washington Monument for a night of film, music, and community under the DC summer sky.
What sets the event apart is the sound. As the film plays, DJ 2-Tone Jones builds an original score in real time, reimagining one of the most iconic crime movies of the ’90s through hip-hop, soul, funk, and more. It is less a movie screening than a live performance built around the film.
The details:
Film: New Jack City (1991), with a live soundtrack by DJ 2-Tone Jones
When: Saturday, August 22 — seating opens at 7:30 p.m. (bring lawn chairs and blankets); film begins at 8:30 p.m.
Where: Sylvan Theater at the Washington Monument, Independence Ave SW & 15th St NW
A parking note from the organizers: expect road closures and restricted parking east of 14th Street NW due to a separate race event in the District. Roads west of 14th Street NW will be accessible and available for parking.
New Jack City is the second of three screenings in this year’s free CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series, which opened with Black Panther at Skyland Town Center and concludes with Scarface at the Lincoln Memorial on September 5. Produced by the Washington, DC-based multimedia arts company SHAOLIN JAZZ, the series has presented more than 150 live cinematic experiences at venues across the country, from Lincoln Center to SXSW.
"I wanted to be able to tell good stories with substance and remove the ‘ego’ out of the art," said Andrew Huang during a recent interview. Now, he’s building his career at the intersection of discipline, creativity and innovation.
Andrew Huang, founder of New Place Studios. (Courtesy photo)
As a Chinese American, Huang was reared with a deep respect for hard work, consistency and excellence. He describes his childhood as "not so affluent" and later attended college to hone his passion for videography. "In college I tried to do something I loved, which was video, but along the way I knew that I had to find a job. And so I thought, ‘what was the low hanging fruit to get to that stable 9 to 5 job?,’" he stated.
Later in life, Huang found himself working for corporations where his creativity was often limited, eventually leading to burnout. "I worked in a corporation for a long time and there were a lot of missing pieces. I wanted to fill in gaps missing in corporate video production," said Huang.
He later described how his upbringing and a mindset of "survival" led him toward a corporate career. However, his desire for balance and authentic storytelling ultimately pushed him to take the entrepreneurial leap.
"I founded a new place where you can create video and film with ‘substance and style,’" said Huang. His desire for work-life balance and passion for storytelling naturally evolved into a small business based in Virginia. With the launch of New Place Studios, the entrepreneur quickly found himself reconnecting with the values that would become the foundation of everything he creates behind the camera.
Huang said being a business owner has allowed him to first embrace himself. While others may see video as simply capturing moments, he sees it as a way to preserve stories that inspire, connect and leave a lasting imprint.
By combining cinematic visuals with cutting-edge production techniques and a keen understanding of branding, Huang helps organizations and individuals communicate their vision with purpose. He said understanding a client’s "why" serves as the compass for delivering the services they need.
One benefit of working with a small business, he said, is that clients get to see the production process unfold through a micro lens while working with the same faces throughout the entire project. "The work feels personal," said Huang.
Huang does not regret leaving behind the flash-over-substance mentality and corporate hustle culture. That does not mean the Asian American entrepreneur has been without challenges in the industry. "It’s relatively hard to find other Asian American creatives or people who would want to work with me in the DMV," said Huang.
He identifies the industry culture in which everyone is trying to blend in, creatives may fear displaying their Asian identity and some feel pressure to adopt an American corporate persona. He also points to what he describes as a level of gatekeeping within the industry. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration’s 2024 statistics, Asian American and Pacific Islander entrepreneurs own more than 3 million businesses and employ 5.2 million people in the United States.
After tapping into organizations such as SCORE, which offers free small business mentorship, New Place Studios has become a trusted creative partner throughout the DMV (Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia). The company produces a range of creative services, including commercials, corporate branding, documentaries, film, 2D animation, motion graphics and photography.
For Huang, entrepreneurship has become more than a departure from corporate life. It has given him the freedom to create with intention, build meaningful connections and tell stories that go beyond the surface.
The 2026 CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series. Poster courtesy of SHAOLIN JAZZ.
For three Saturdays this summer, some of Washington’s most familiar public spaces will do something they rarely do after dark: fill up with blankets, lawn chairs, and the sound of a movie being scored live, in real time. CAN I KICK IT?, the traveling “live cinema” series produced by the DC-based multimedia arts company SHAOLIN JAZZ, is bringing a free outdoor run to the city — pairing three era-defining films with an original soundtrack performed on the spot by DJ 2-Tone Jones.
The premise is what sets it apart from a normal screening in the park. Rather than simply pressing play, 2-Tone Jones builds a score as the film unfolds, pulling from hip-hop, soul, funk, jazz, rock, electronic music, and sounds from around the world. The result, the organizers say, is less a movie night than a one-time performance — the same film you know, wired to a soundtrack you have never heard and will not hear again. Guest DJs warm up the crowd starting at 7:30 PM before each 8:30 PM screening.
The 2026 outdoor schedule
All three events are free and open to the public.
Saturday, August 8 — Black Panther at Skyland Town Center. A pop-up marketplace and community activities kick off the evening; guest DJs at 7:30 PM, film at 8:30 PM. Marvel’s superhero epic gets a one-night-only live score in Southeast DC.
Saturday, August 22 — New Jack City at the Sylvan Theater, Washington Monument. Seating begins at 7:30 PM; the film starts at 8:30 PM. The 1991 crime drama plays out at the foot of one of the country’s most recognizable landmarks.
Saturday, September 5 — Scarface at the Lincoln Memorial. Seating at 7:30 PM; film at 8:30 PM. The series closes with Brian De Palma’s crime saga against the backdrop of the Memorial, scored live from start to finish.
First up: Black Panther at Skyland Town Center on August 8. Poster courtesy of SHAOLIN JAZZ.
A DC company with a national footprint
SHAOLIN JAZZ describes itself as a Washington-based arts company working at the intersection of music, film, art, and culture, and CAN I KICK IT? is its signature production. According to the organizers, the series has staged more than 150 live cinematic experiences around the country — at performing arts centers, museums, festivals, and cultural institutions including Lincoln Center in New York, SXSW, the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Republic Square in Austin, the Tacoma Armory, and The Cary Theater.
“CAN I KICK IT? has always been about creating a shared experience,” said Gerald Watson, co-founder of SHAOLIN JAZZ. “When you combine iconic films with live music in public spaces, something special happens. People aren’t just watching a movie — they’re experiencing it together. That’s what makes these nights so memorable.”
Cinema as a community event
The DC run lands as cities across the country look for new ways to activate public space through arts and culture — and this series is a straightforward pitch for how to do it: take a landmark everyone already knows, add a film everyone has an opinion about, and let a live soundtrack turn the evening into something neighbors experience shoulder to shoulder. Families, film buffs, and music fans are all invited, and admission won’t cost a thing.
The CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series runs August 8, August 22, and September 5. All events are free; check SHAOLIN JAZZ (shaolinjazz.com) for the latest details and any weather updates before heading out.
