In Memoriam: Andrea Schmid-Shapiro

Born in Hungary, Schmid-Shapiro competed in the Olympics for her homeland in 1952 and ’56, earning a gold medal, two silvers and a bronze. She defected to the U.S. in 1956 and went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in physical education and a Ph.D. in higher education from UC Berkeley. She came to SF State in 1963, serving as head coach of the women’s gymnastics team and teaching as a professor of Kinesiology. With her San Francisco State colleague, Blanche Drury, she brought gymnastics to California schools, teaching workshops, mentoring new coaches and guiding the development of the sport in our state. In her early days at San Francisco State, she taught gymnastic, rhythmic gymnastics and the gymnastics analyses courses for teacher preparation students. She also sponsored the Women’s Recreation Association. She went on to teach sport psychology at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Schmid-Shapiro was a superb advisor for both students and faculty. She had very high standards and expected others to work hard to develop their best abilities — and she supported them through the process. She was inducted into the USA Gymnastics Hall of Fame in 2001.

Schmid-Shapiro is survived by her husband, Charles Shapiro; her daughter, Aniko Molnar; and two granddaughters.