 |
2007 WOMEN OF EXCELLENCE AWARD RECIPIENTS
Doris Burke | Paula Vogel, ABD, BA | Beatriz E. Perez, MPH
Gemma Guinguing | Women's Fund of RI | Maureen A. McDonough-Roddy
TRAILBLAZER
 |
DORIS BURKE
Television Announcer
ESPN/ABC Sports
Born in West Islip, New York and raised in Manasquan, New Jersey, Doris Burke is widely acclaimed as one of the most versatile and talented women in sports television, and is regarded as a true pioneer in sports broadcasting. She was the first woman to call a New York Knicks game on radio and on television, the first woman to call a Big East men's game, and the first woman to be the primary analyst on a men's basketball conference package. In addition, she is the only broadcaster, male or female, to work men's and women's college basketball games and WNBA and NBA games as an analyst and sideline reporter.
A graduate of Providence College, Burke has received many accolades for her basketball prowess including being named Providence College's Female Athlete of the Year. She was the fifth woman ever inducted into the Providence College Hall of Fame.
Her broadcasting career began in 1990 calling women's games for her alma mater on the radio. That same year, Burke began calling Big East Women's games on television and, in 1996 she began calling Big East men's games. She has been the lead analyst for ESPN's coverage of the WNBA and since 1997 has been the primary radio and television voice of the New York Liberty. In 2003, Burke was named to ESPN's top men's basketball team working with Dick Vitale on the elite men's games and working the sidelines for ESPN and ABC for their coverage of the NBA. Also in 2003 she was honored by USA Today with a Rudy Award as the Best New Face in Sports Television.
In the spring of 2004 Burke was honored with induction into the Institute for International Sport's Scholar Athlete Hall of Fame and in the spring of 2005 Providence College awarded her with an honorary degree. In October of 2006 she was inducted into the New England Basketball Hall of Fame. Also in 2006, she became a member of the North Providence Hall of Fame. Despite being an established television personality, Burke says her proudest accomplishment is her family. She is married to Gregg Burke, Interim Director of Athletics at the University of Rhode Island, and has two children, Sarah and Matthew.
