About Tanya (Hough) Newkirk

Tanya Newkirk played basketball for the Miners from 1984-89 and was named as the team’s most valuable player in three of those seasons, while also earning first-team All-MIAA honors in two of those seasons as the Miners won 35 games in her last two seasons on the floor. In her 98 career games, Newkirk became the program’s all-time leader with 913 rebounds, including two of the top seven single-season performance ever, while also scoring 1,388 points which is currently the fourth-most in program history and also ranking third all-time with 534 made field goals.

Newkirk also served as a graduate assistant coach for one season for both the basketball and softball programs, while also spending a season as a student trainer for the women’s soccer team.

She earned her B.S. degree in life sciences in 1989 and following graduation, she worked as a a physical therapy assistant at Atchison Hospital, then went into coaching at the middle school and later high school levels. She started coaching at Atchison Middle School in 1992 with the basketball and volleyball programs, then went to Atchison High School to work with the basketball and softball programs, eventually becoming the head girls basketball coach. Following two seasons as the head coach for the Tremont High School girls basketball team, she returned to Atchison Middle School to head the basketball program as well as the boys and girls track & field teams.

Newkirk has also served with the PEO Women’s Educational Organization in all offices from secretary to president, as well as on multiple committees and groups for the schools that her children attended. She has also served on the YMCA Board and local theater groups and in various ministries at her church, including the youth and women’s groups.

Newkirk and her husband, Tim, moved back to the Springfield, Mo., area to get closer to home and currently live on a small farm where she enjoys gardening, trail riding and camping. They have five children, including three adopted from Colombia in 2007, while their other two children competed in athletics at the collegiate level.