Grinnell College Athletics

Diane “Dee” Fairchild served as Grinnell College’s director of athletics for 21 years, from 1986 to 2007.  When named A.D. in 1986, she was among the first female athletic directors in the state to be in charge of both men’s and women’s sports programs.  Over the years, Fairchild was responsible for a number of positive changes to the College’s athletics department and also coached tennis, golf, basketball, and field hockey.  She provided extensive overview of the building and completion of the Charles Benson Bear ’39 Recreation and Athletic Center, possibly the premiere athletic facility in all of Division III, as well as numerous state-of-the-art athletic fields.  She was a regular “team captain” and member of the Grinnell Town and Gown.  Her other positions at the College included chair of the Department of Physical Education, member of the Executive Council, chair of the Affirmative Action Committee and division chair of special programs.  She pursued her love of athletics in a variety of arenas.  She served as Midwest Collegiate Athletic Conference chair from 1986–87, Midwest Athletic Conference for Women/MCAC Merger Committee chair from 1991–94, Midwest Conference chair from 2006–07, member of the NCAA division III Athletic Management Council, and several other NCAA committees.  She was frequently asked to be an external reviewer of physical education and athletic programs at liberal arts colleges across the country, including Pomona, Wellesley and Bryn Mawr.  In 2013 at Grinnell, she helped to create the Title IX Policy which pertains to sexual harassment.  Fairchild was rewarded for her tremendous contributions to the Midwest Conference with the Conference Meritorious Award, and most recently she served as interim Midwest Conference commissioner.  Fairchild is already a member of the Mankato State University and Johnson State College Athletic Halls of Fame.  In 2007, she was declared an Honorary Alumna of Grinnell College.  She holds the title of associate professor emerita of physical education and lives near Grinnell.