Lindenwood senior volleyball player Allyson Clancy has been selected as one of 220 student-athletes to attend the NCAA Student-Athlete Leadership Forum on April 11-14. The leadership forum represents a collaboration between the leadership development and Division I, II and III governance groups at the NCAA national office.

In addition to the student-athlete participants, over 80 conference and institutional representatives, holding roles as administrators, coaches and more, will descend on Orlando to engage in the program alongside their athlete nominees. These administrators can develop and grow as participants, absorbing the lessons and building their leadership toolkits with the student-athlete attendees.  Representing Lindenwood will be Assistant Athletic Director for Academic Services Casey Finnell. 

Playing a vital role in the forum will be 20 administrators and coaches, selected through a rigorous application process, who will serve as facilitators for the four-day immersive educational experience. These facilitators gathered in February in Indianapolis to engage in a training session to hone the central curriculum they will impart on the participants at the forum and to evaluate and develop their effective facilitation strategies. 

"It is my hope that student-athletes walk away from the Student-Athlete Leadership Forum with a clear vision of themselves as leaders, with strategies on how to extend that leadership into their current academic and athletic endeavors, and an ability to translate these experiences into a blueprint of leadership for life after college," said DeeDee Merritt, NCAA acting director of leadership development.   

During the forum, participants will be separated into small "color teams" for in-depth discussions on relevant leadership topics that student-athletes and administrators will be able to apply on campus. The facilitators will lead several sessions daily to explore aspects of leadership to spur conversations that will help the student-athletes think critically and transfer these newly formed perspectives to issues they will face within their teams and institutions.

Attendees will be afforded the opportunity to hear two profound keynote speakers. Featured at the April event will be Chris Norton, a motivational speaker and former Division III football player at Luther. After suffering a traumatic injury during a game, Norton was told he would never be able to walk again, but with a mindset of perseverance and the support of his loved ones, Norton proved the doctors wrong by walking across the stage at his graduation. Norton's story of resilience was the subject of the documentary "Seven Yards," as well as the book "The Seven Longest Yards: Our Love Story of Pushing the Limits While Leaning on Each Other," set for a July 9 release.

Also speaking to the leadership forum audience will be Daron K. Roberts, a speaker, author and transition coach whose story of transition from his time at Harvard Law School to an NFL coaching position served as the foundation for "Call an Audible," which received critical acclaim from Sports Illustrated as one of 2017's best sports business books.

This year's forum will feature a refined focus on mental health and its connection to intercollegiate athletics. For the first time since the forum's inception, there will be a mental health professional on-site throughout the program. Jessica Mohler, clinical sports psychologist and assistant director of the Midshipmen Development Center at Navy, will speak with visiting athletics administrators and coaches about important tips on navigating the mental health space in athletics. The NCAA Sport Science Institute also will be featured at the forum, highlighting the resources available to athletes and exploring common trends with student-athlete mental health.

During the forum, the student-athletes will learn about NCAA governance structures and how committees function to make informed decisions impacting the membership. They also will learn more about the role and structure of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and how impactful these organizations can be at the national, campus and conference levels.

Additionally, the student-athletes will participate in a community service project to benefit the One Love Foundation, a prominent nonprofit organization aiming to educate young people about healthy and unhealthy relationships and developing leaders of change in this area. Participants will assemble care packages to be distributed at domestic violence shelters in Orlando and Jacksonville, Florida.

NCAA leadership development, located in Indianapolis, coordinates and facilitates education and training for student-athletes, coaches and athletics administrators. The staff annually hosts programs, at little or no cost to members, using expert curriculum designed to enhance the well-being and personal development of college athletes. The staff also provides ongoing education and topical training to athletics professionals who identify and serve student-athlete needs.

For more information, visit ncaa.org/leadershipdevelopment.