Beyond Barriers: Lauren Holtkamp

“See a role model. Be a role model.”

During Beyond Barriers: Because of Title IX, Lauren Holtkamp said, “See a role model. Be a role model.” This quote stood out to me because it shows that girls can do anything that they set their mind to. It inspires them to do what they want, even the unexpected, like being she was.

My panelist Lauren Holtkamp was the third woman to become a full-time NBA official during the 2014 - 2015 season and spoke about her journey to becoming being a referee. Lauren has now officiated more than 205 regular season games for over four seasons as an official. Lauren works in a male-dominated industry and has made a huge impact by serving as an example to young girls that they can do what they want to no matter your gender. She exemplified, “If you can see her, you can be her.”

Lauren started her career in a summer camp where she refereed a basketball game for the first time and fell in love with it. After summer camp, she attended a meeting to learn more about pursuing refereeing as a career. She realized that out of all of the people there, she was only one of four females in the room. Despite realizing that refereeing is made up of mostly men, she decided to do it anyway. She didn’t care what others thought and ended up refereeing many games including championships. By doing this she has inspired so many girls like me to do what they are truly passionate about whether that is being a doctor, scientist, or even an engineer.

#WFFTampaBay #WFinalFour #BeyonBarriers2019 #NGWSD #LaurenHoltkamp