While athletic accolades were abundant as she played basketball for the Spiders, recent graduate Jaide Hinds-Clarke also worked for social change on and off campus. Her activism and efforts toward building a community of inclusion earned her a nomination for the NCAA Woman of the Year award, which honors the academic achievements, athletic excellence, community service, and leadership of graduating female college athletes.

Outside of being an A-10 all-conference student-athlete, Hinds-Clarke co-founded Shades of Pride, an affinity group for LGBTQ students of color that operates out of the Office of Common Ground. She received a Jones Impact Award for Black Excellence, a CCE Service for Change Award, and a Diversity Richmond Black & Bold Award for her leadership.

She also received the 2020 Dr. Leonard S. Goldberg Award for Good Citizenship, the 2020 LGBTQ Catalyst Award, and the 2020 Outstanding Civic Engagement Award from UR’s athletic department. She was the community engagement chair for WILL* (Women Involved in Living and Learning), served on the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, volunteered on the Mayor’s Youth Council, was a member of the Black Student Alliance at UR, and interned with the Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities.

“Because I’ve had such a great experience at UR, I take pride in representing UR on and off the court,” she said in a recent interview. “I’m humbled by all the people who have invested in me, and I try to live in a way that will make them proud.”

Hinds-Clarke studied leadership studies; sociology; and women, gender and sexuality studies during her undergraduate career and is pursuing graduate school in sports leadership at VCU this fall.