Olympic silver medalist and UMKC alumna Courtney Frerichs (B.A. ’15) will speak at the “Roos in the City” commencement celebration for the Class of 2021 at the T-Mobile Center.
The mid-year commencement will take place Sunday, Dec. 19 at 3 p.m. at Kansas City’s downtown arena. There will be a single ceremony for all academic units. More than 1,000 graduates are expected to participate.
Anyone who would like to submit messages of congratulations to our graduates can do so using this online form.
Frerichs raced to a silver medal at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in the 3000-meter steeplechase. During her athletic career at UMKC, the native of Nixa, Missouri, was an 11-time conference champion, five-time All-American and set seven school records that she still holds. She graduated summa cum laude from UMKC in 2015 with a bachelor of arts in chemistry.
Upon completing her NCAA eligibility, she signed a professional contract with Nike and joined the Bowerman Track Club. She has competed professionally for the last five years, during which she has made two Olympic teams (2016, 2020), three World Championship teams and won a silver medal at the 2017 World Championships. After the 2020 Olympics, she reset her American record in the event, becoming the first American woman to break the nine-minute barrier.
She currently lives in Beaverton, Oregon and is married to fellow Roo Griffin Humphreys (B.B.A. ’16). She trains full-time while also pursuing a master of science in nutrition at Auburn University.