(2010) - A faculty member at the University in four decades, Claire Chamberlain was named an instructor of Physical Education at Lowell State College in 1971 and was a driving force for women's athletics both at the college and the Northeast Region.
Alongside fellow inductee Denise Legault, Professor Chamberlain co-founded five sports at Lowell State - softball, volleyball, basketball, tennis and field hockey - as well as club co-ed archery from 1971 until the merger with Lowell Technological Institute in 1975.
Professor Chamberlain not only served as coach of women's tennis and basketball teams in the programs first years, but, with Ms. Legault, also helped found the Massachusetts Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (MAIAW), the state branch of the regional and national outfits EAIAW and AIAW.
Affiliation with the AIAW enabled women's programs in the region to compete for national championships, which the NCAA had yet to recognize.
Professor Chamberlain served as President of the MAIAW and helped coordinate and run the first-ever MAIAW Division II and III tennis tournament in 1976 and inaugural basketball tournament at Mahoney Gymnasium in 1977. She also served as the MAIAW's first-ever commissioner of ethics and eligibility and helped to write the MAIAW constitution, bylaws and championship handbooks.
All the while, Professor Chamberlain was the head coach of the women's tennis team for 11 years (1973-83), women's basketball team (1972-75) and co-ed archery program.
She received the MAIAW's highest award, the Honor Award, in 1984.
Even with a full slate, Professor Chamberlain's commitment to the University never wavered as she taught physical education from 1971-91, and chaired the department from 1984-91.
When the Physical Education department was closed in 1991, she transferred as an associate professor and became the Academic Coordinator of Clinical Education for the Department of Exercise Physiology within the Department of Physical Therapy until her retirement in 2008.
She also chaired and served 27 years on UMass Lowell's Athletic Hall of Fame committee.
Professor Chamberlain's induction into the UMass Lowell Athletic Hall of Fame is the latest of several honors in recent years. She is also a member of the Northeast Women's Hall of Fame and received the University's Francis Cabot Lowell Award in 2009.
