The Boston College hockey program is home to back-to-back Hockey Humanitarian Award finalists this year. Last season, Keri Clougherty held the honor for the Eagles. This year, Kara Goulding is following in her friend’s footsteps.
“I credit a lot of what I’ve gotten involved with to [Keri],” Goulding said in an interview with Boston College. “I’m very grateful for her and her guidance and…for our team. Obviously, we want to have a successful hockey team and win games and win championships. That’s the goal. But the wanting to help other people, that’s been something that has always been talked about in our locker room. And I think that is just as important as winning games as well.”
The Hockey Humanitarian Award is given each year to a hockey’s finest citizen; a student-athlete who contributes greatly to their team and community through leadership and volunteerism.
How Goulding cares for others
Along with being the second consecutive finalist, Goulding is also the fourth Eagle to be a finalist. She has taken BC’s mission of “being a person for others” and used it to give back to those around her through service, advocacy, and leadership.
Some of the work Goulding does is through Newton Athletes Unlimited, an organization that supports over 300 children and adults with disabilities by offering them year-round programs that promote emotional, intellectual, social, and physical growth. It’s an initiative that her teammates also take part in.
“It shows what BC’s all about being a person for others,” Goulding said about the team effort to volunteer. “I think about that model all the time, just like ‘how can we help and support other people?’ and to see a whole team having that mission and wanting to support that mission is really exciting.”
Goulding also helps with Team IMPACT. The non-profit connects children battling serious or chronic illnesses with college teams. The experience helps the children form lifelong bonds and life-changing outcomes by allowing them to become an official member of a college team for two years. During that time they do everything a regular team member does, like attending practice, games, and dinners.
A passion for mental health
One of Goulding’s biggest missions is being a mental health awareness advocate. Tragedy and triumph shaped Goulding’s personal journey as an advocate and led her to become an ambassador for Morgan’s Message at Boston College. The organization’s mission is to amplify stories, share available resources, and expertise to help the mental health of student-athletes. It also aims to build community by and for athletes through conversation and advocacy. At BC, the student-athletes meet on a weekly basis and talk about what they are going through.
This organization carries extra poignancy for Goulding: when she was a child, her older sister Maeve unexpectedly died from cardiac arrest. Goulding wrote in a letter on the Morgan’s Message site about how affected she still is by her sister’s death as an adult. Morgan’s Message is an organization that aims to amplify stories, share available resources, and expertise to help the mental health of student-athletes. It also aims to build community by and for athletes through conversation and advocacy.
After her sister’s death, Goulding wrote she aims to find ways to celebrate her older sister and described life as a “mixed bag.”
“We all get some good, and we all get some bad, but it’s through the bad that we can choose how we want to be as humans,” Goulding wrote. “I know for a fact that I want to honor my sister and continue to do that. If not with her, then for her mentality.”
Extending her reach to the BC campus
The conversation over mental wellbeing is more positive than it was in years past. Goulding understands the importance of that.
“Mental health is a big thing now. It’s always talked about. We all have to realize it’s such a big part of our lives,” Goulding said in a video about Morgan’s Message. “The more we talk about it, the more we get people to know why we need to talk about it.”
Her advocacy also touches fellow Boston College student-athletes. Goulding is the president of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. As president, Goulding’s role helps her serve as the voice for all the student-athletes in school. She organizes community service initiatives and organizes community service events. Thus furthering her desire to follow the model of being a person for others.
“I think about it all the time, ‘how can I make sure that no one forgets what BC’s motto is?’ and just try to be that person that is living it every single day,” Goulding described. “It serves every part of the work I do.”
Continuing to help the Boston community
She also helps foster meaningful community engagement across Boston College athletics. She organized a game for the HEADstrong Foundation that raised over $4,000. The money went to Nick’s House, a home away from home for families who travel for cancer treatment.
Away from campus, Goulding volunteers at Franciscan Hospital. There she dedicates time supporting patients and families. It’s part of how Goulding continues to seek ways to help vulnerable populations in the Boston area.
While Goulding finished her collegiate career with the Eagles, her impact on the community will remain. She added that the award is a great reminder of how so many people in the world of sports care about others.
“That’s the most important thing about it all, there’s so many athletes out there trying to change people’s lives and use their platforms. I think it’s cool.”
The 2026 Hockey Humanitarian Award is celebrating its 31st season this year. Three of the five finalists are women. This year’s recipient will be announced on Friday, April 10, 2026 during the NCAA Men’s Frozen Four weekend. This story is part of a series highlighting the three female finalists for the award. To learn more about the organizations Kara Goulding has been involved with you can visit Team IMPACT, Newton Athletes Unlimited, Morgan’s Message, and HEADstrong Foundationfor more information.
