Dorene Menezes, Massachusetts – 2000

Dorene Menezes has had an extensive involvement in women’s sports.  For 15 years, she taught physical education and then assumed the responsibility of director of Physical Education, K-12.  She has been head coach of field hockey, basketball and volleyball.

Dorene was the first girls’ basketball coach at Seekonk High School for the 1969-1970 season. From 1974-1984 her teams qualified for seven state tournaments and four league championships.  In 1977-1978, they had an undefeated season.  She coached 18 all-conference players, 2 players scoring over 1000 points. One player scored 1227 points and was the 1978 Globe Players of the Year. Another player scored 1023 points.  Three of her players received full scholarships in the 1970’s.  She has 18 years of winning seasons in basketball coaching. 

Prior to her career at Seekonk High School, she coached at Jesus Mary Academy for 3 years.  She was also head coach of women’s basketball at Boston State College (1971-1973), and at Providence College (1973-1974).  Her Providence College team was the first women’s team from Providence to play in the Civic Center (prior to a men’s game).  Dorene also coached field hockey at Wheaton College (1977-1981) and at UMass, Dartmouth (1982-1983).

Dorene was a nationally rated basketball official and a sectionally rated field hockey official.  She officiated volleyball and umpired softball games for the Bristol County Girls’ League.  In addition, she officiated one of the men’s semiprofessional basketball games in Roxbury, MA (one of the first women to officiate a men’s game).  She was a forerunner for equal pay for coaches in basketball.

In 1995, Dorene was inducted into the Somerset High School Hall of Fame as an athlete and into the Seekonk High School Hall of Fame as a coach.