Patrick Penn served Oberlin College from 1973-95. As a charismatic young man, Penn was originally hired to lead the Yeomen basketball program as its head coach.
The winningest coach in program history, Penn compiled 141 wins in 14 seasons, leading the Yeomen into the top four teams in the region and into the NCAA Tournament. One of the first African-American collegiate head coaches in the nation, Penn’s goal was to find the most qualified players for Oberlin regardless of color or ethnicity.
“Coach Penn’s philosophy was that he expected you to act like gentlemen and play your game,” his former assistant coach, Gray Punnel said. “He was like a father to a lot of the kids and there was no problem you couldn’t talk to him about. To him, the most important thing was graduating. He was hard on the kids, but they loved him for it.”
Penn became the chair of the physical education department in 1975 and continued to coach basketball through the 1987-88 season. He became the dean of student support services in 1987 and was promoted to the dean of student life and services in 1990.
In his roles at the College, Penn worked diligently on improving race relations and student safety. He passed away on February 20, 2001.
