When Margy Retica Hughes started her career at the College of Saint Benedict, women’s athletics were considered ‘recreation’ and opportunities – and finances – were limited. By the time she retired 37 years later, the CSB athletic department had grown into one of the top departments in the MIAC – and in Division III.

Hughes came to Saint Benedict in 1966 as a professor in the physical education department and an advisor for the Women’s Recreation Association. Even when Title IX was passed in 1972, without a male athletic department budget to compare to, it was difficult to ask for money. Hughes, a Professor Emerita at CSB/SJU, used her position in the physical education department to work with athletics to create full-time positions. The coaches taught physical education classes and also coached a Blazer athletic team.   

As budgets grew, the coaches were hired purely as coaches with no teaching assignment, but Hughes kept working. She worked on facility planning committees, and was heavily involved in the building of CSB’s swimming pool and Claire Lynch Hall, which opened up more opportunities for CSB student-athletes. Hughes was also instrumental in advancing Saint Benedict’s application for acceptance into the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference starting in the 1985-86 school year.

While she was always looking for ways to further Blazer athletics, she also taught the students at CSB and SJU and helped them build skills for a lifetime of engagement in sport. In 1982 she moved into the role of Physical Education Chair, and when the CSB and SJU physical education departments were combined, she became the joint department chair until she retired in 2003. She was responsible for the addition of the Coaching Certification program, and always worked to advance coaching skills in the curriculum.

Hughes was a charter member of the CSB Athletic Hall of Fame, and the department hands out the Margy Hughes Inspirational Award each year to an individual or team that has been an inspiration to the department throughout the year – much like Hughes was to her colleagues and the hundreds of CSB student-athletes served through the programs and opportunities she helped build.