Charlaine Vivian Stringer was born in Edinborn, Pennsylvania, on March 16, 1948. She was the oldest of six children. Edinborn is a small mining town in western Pennsylvania. She knew that her parents were struggling with money and that her family was lucky to have dinner on the table every night. Stringer has always been a very determined, athletic person since she was very little. She played sports with the boys in the neighborhood. She couldn't play sports in high school because there were no girls' teams. She decided to try out for the cheerleading squad. She was cut from the team because of her race. She sued the school for denying her a position because she was black, and she won the case. She was given a spot on the cheerleading squad and became the first African American cheerleader in her town. She showed her desire to excel and succeed and was the best member on the squad. This was the first of many accomplishments to come. Vivian has been National Coach of the Year and has taken many teams into the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Her husband died in 1992, and since then she has been a single parent working full time. She has two sons and her daughter is in a wheelchair. Stringer survived breast cancer. However, in her opinion her biggest accomplishment is touching the lives of young women and helping them become the best they can be. For her, winning is second to enriching the lives of her student athletes. Vivian makes them work together as a team. If two players don't like each other, nobody is able to tell. On the floor, during practice, and games they work together with no problems. It lets them know that even if they have a problem with one another that they are still going to have to get along with each other. This prepares them for real life. C. Vivian Stringer is still creating history. There are many stories in the book about her players. Stringer describes one player as, "a gorgeous athlete, but she could be insensitive to the short comings of others, and her bluntness hurt people's feelings. Tasha could be sharp with her teammates sometimes, too, though I never had to worry about her bringing her best game." Stringer talks about how she taught them to get the most out of themselves and the team by working together. She wants to make sure individuals find out who they are. An individual may be good at something in life but that is not who they are; it is only a little piece of them. The effect that Stringer has on her girls is what is creating history right now. The confidence that Vivian instills in her team is what will continue to affect history in generations to come. Even though Vivian has had many high moments and accomplishments she has also had many difficult moments in her life as well. Vivian was kicked out of Slippery Rock College at the end of her freshman year. After taking summer courses to try and redeem herself in academics, she was asked to leave school. That served as a wake up call and she begged to be able to stay at Slippery Rock. The Dean said that if Vivian made up the work she had failed she would be allowed to reapply in January. Stringer lost her scholarship, had to work two jobs, and had to find a place to live. Vivian describes this as the most humiliating experience of her life. Vivian stuck with it, made up all the work, and was readmitted for the second semester. She learned that academics come before athletics, and that she had to keep her priorities straight. This is a lesson she has applied throughout life for herself, her team members, and her students. Before this assignment was announced, I went up to Springfield, Massachusetts, where the Basketball Hall of Fame is. There was an announcement listing the people that were going to be inducted this year. C. Vivian Stringer was one of those people. She was chosen to be inducted for the 825 wins that she has earned as a coach in her lifetime. I wanted to find out more about her, and this assignment gave me the perfect opportunity. The effect that learning about Vivian has had on me is that athletics comes after academics, but family comes before everything. I used to think that basketball was my number one priority. I now know that is it only a small piece of me not who I am. Learning about Stringer has shown me that women are able to accomplish more than what some people believe.