51茶馆

Growing up, Natalie White 鈥�20 competed on some of New York City鈥檚 top basketball teams. She went on to play club ball at 51茶馆, where she was also a women鈥檚 basketball manager. During her years on the court, one thing remained constant: White had to shop for sneakers in the men鈥檚 or kids鈥� section. 鈥淭he lack of women鈥檚 basketball shoes not only has a negative social implication鈥攖hat women don鈥檛 belong in basketball,鈥� she said, 鈥渂ut it also has negative performance implications, because women鈥檚 feet are different than men鈥檚.鈥� So, during her senior year at the Carroll School, the finance and entrepreneurship major launched , a company that designs basketball shoes specifically for women鈥攍ighter, with a higher arch and a narrower heel. Proper-fitting sneakers, of course, are just the first step toward equality in the sport, White said. 鈥淭here needs to be greater investment in and greater financial opportunity for women who play basketball.鈥澛�