Southern Athletic Director Gabrielle Dillard: Only Black Female H.S. AD In Durham Public Schools

Durham, NC – For Southern High School Athletic Director (AD) Gabrielle Dillard, the return to sports this summer marks the beginning of her first year as an AD after a season that began, and ended, prematurely due to the pandemic. Dillard is the only African American female high school AD in Durham Public Schools (DPS), and the only African American and female AD in the Big Eight 3A Athletic Conference.

The North Carolina Athletic Association lifted its dead period today, June 15, to allow schools to resume athletic activities under COVID-19 guidelines and the go-ahead from their local officials. 

The tentative start date for athletics in the DPS system is July 6.

The Atlanta native became the AD at Southern in January after the previous AD Jeremy Miles left for another job.

“I was happy because this is what I went to school for,” Dillard. said.

“I’m passionate about sports, and I’m passionate about helping our youth get to the next level in sports. So I was ecstatic. I was very, very, happy, especially being an African American woman. At the age of 30, getting into this type of role, it means a lot because you don’t really see that.”

Dillard made the 20-minute drive and walked into her office at Southern last Monday for the first time since Friday, Mar. 6., to help prepare for the school’s drive-thru senior graduation ceremony held last Thursday (June 11).

But for Dillard, the earth stopped two days earlier on March 4 when Southen had its last athletic activities on campus.

“That day we had a softball game on-campus, a  women’s soccer and we had a baseball game, but the baseball game was away,” Dillard said. “And all I remember is, my principal telling me, ‘Dillard, after today, more than likely, the kids won’t be coming back out here to finish their season. COVID has just hit. We have cases in Durham. We have to shut the school down.’

“So in my head, I’m thinking of ways how I can efficiently get athletics shut down for my kids to understand a virus has hit. And for me to actually say athletics has to shut down, I was in disbelief. And not only that I had a family event to happen in my life at the very same time. They both hit me. So I was filled with emotion. Sad emotion that day.”

Heartache on the athletic field is nothing new for Dillard. As a six-year-old, her dream was to run in the Olympics. But during her senior year of high school, she suffered a torn ACL and meniscus.

According to Dillard, at one point, she thought she would never be able to do anything physical: let alone compete on the collegiate level.

“In my head, I was thinking, no college coach is going to want somebody who’s hurt,” Dillard said. “And then I was hearing throughout my senior year I couldn’t compete to that level that I needed to and that I wanted to.  So it set me back more mentally than physically.”

Dillard fought her way back and earned a spot on South Carolina State University’s (SCSU) Track and Field team. Though one day in practice, her knee gave out again.

She continued her career as a cheerleader, but tucked away her track spikes and pivoted to a new dream.

After earning a B.A. from SCSU in 2013,  Dillard went to N.C. Central University and earned an M.A. in Athletic Administration in 2016. Dillard started at Southern High School as an assistant cheerleading and women’s track coach during her first year at Southern in 2017-18.

According to Dillard, her goals for Southern athletics are to create strong students in the classroom; get more young ladies involved in sports; create winnings programs, not only in football but across all sports; and increase recruiting.

During the COVID-19 sports shutdown, multiple Southern athletes committed to schools such as senior basketball standout Ricky Council IV, Wichita state, and rising senior football phenom Jaylen Wright, who is a verbal commit to the University of Tennesse. 

Sports are coming back, but it’s still unknown if fall sports such as football will return. According to Dillard,  it could cost the school district thousands of dollars to make sure athletic departments have the proper protective equipment such as non-contact forehead thermometers, facemasks, individual water bottles, and sanitary wipes.

“[When Southern sports return] it’s going to feel great,” said the 2019 initiate of the Durham Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., “because I love to see my kids get out in the field being active doing what they love to do.

“Sports are a  gateway just to keep our kids focused, keep them out of trouble and they need it. They need sports.”

(Feature image courtesy of Gabrielle Dillard)