Wilmington College has officially put shovels in the ground on the Jenna Parlette Running Center, turning a long-held wish into reality with the help of a record $23 million gift from a former coach and accounting professor. The indoor track will finally give Quakers runners a year-round training home and let the school host indoor meets for the first time, all while serving as a living tribute to a beloved athlete who died after collapsing during a 2013 race.
Groundbreaking And Timeline
The college held a public groundbreaking on April 3, with construction set to begin this summer in the area off Elm Street between Herman Court and Williams Stadium. The facility will rise between the stadium and the Center for Sport Sciences, according to Wilmington College. College officials said President Corey Cockerill and Board chair J. Brent Bill were among those who took the mic at the ceremony. The running center is planned as a centerpiece of the larger Scheve Athletic Center project.
Remembering Jenna Parlette
For many on campus, the project is about far more than bricks and rubberized track. Jenna Parlette was a standout distance runner at Wilmington who collapsed while leading a cross-country race at Franklin College in 2013 and died days later, her family and the school have said, per Dayton Daily News. In the years since, teammates and supporters have pushed for an indoor track, organizing memorial events that kept her name and story at the center of campus life. The college already hosts the annual Jenna Strong Invitational to honor her legacy.
How The Gift Came Together
The long-discussed project moved from wish list to construction schedule thanks to a $23 million estate gift from the late Jerry Scheve, a longtime Wilmington coach and accounting professor who died in May 2025. His donation is funding the Jenna Parlette Running Center along with a Hall of Champions and other upgrades throughout the athletics complex, according to Wilmington College. Scheve coached the Lady Quakers to the 2004 NCAA Division III national championship and finished his career with 518 victories, the school notes. Administrators have described the gift as transformational for the small rural campus.
What It Means For Students And The Town
Coaches at the groundbreaking said the indoor track will change the game for winter training and recruiting, giving athletes a place to run through snowy months and drawing regional meets to Wilmington, as Local 12 reports. Ron Combs, who coached Parlette, said it was powerful to see the legacies of two people so closely tied to the college come together in one facility, while family members described the day as both bittersweet and hopeful. College leaders said the center is expected to serve not only student-athletes but also the broader student body and community members once it opens.
Construction on the running center will unfold in phases this year as the Scheve Athletic Center buildout continues. The college has not yet announced an opening date, but officials say the new facility is intended to become a key resource for the campus and the wider region when it is complete.
