General | 5/15/2026 11:30:00 AM

PITTSFORD, N.Y. – St. John Fisher University Director of Athletics and Recreation Jennifer Granger has been named the recipient of the 2026 Jean Giambrone Award, the Rochester Press-Radio Club announced. 

The organization annually presents the Jean Giambrone Award to a woman who has made an exemplary lifetime commitment to local women's sports. Granger will be recognized during the Rochester Press-Radio Club's Celebration of Champions on Tuesday, June 9, at ESL Ballpark. 

The award is named after long-time journalist and University of Rochester Hall of Famer Jean Giambrone, who spent 42 years at the Times-Union and, in 1965, became the first female golf writer to be awarded press credentials at The Masters. Giambrone has been called the woman who opened doors for female athletes and was widely considered Rochester's First Lady of Sports. 

"I am humbled to be named this year's Jean Giambrone Award recipient," Granger said. "To be associated with someone who broke barriers for women in sports and had such a profound impact in this community and beyond is an incredible honor."

Granger joins former women's lacrosse head coach Linda Michele as St. John Fisher's second recipient of the Jean Giambrone Award. Michele earned the honor in 2020. 

A 1995 graduate of St. John Fisher, Granger became the fourth director of athletics and recreation in the university's history and the first woman to earn the role with her appointment last July. Granger served as the department's interim director from June 2024 to June 2025. She previously worked as Fisher's associate athletic director and senior woman administrator (2021-24), assistant athletic director (2017-21) and athletics business manager (1998-2017).