Illinois States Office of Student Life announced Wednesday the 60 students who will be taking part in this years LeaderShape Conference including 11 Redbird student-athletes from five teams that will be attending this years event.
The student-athletes include Erin Cunningham from gymnastics, Monique Witkowski from swimming, Jaci McCormack and
Megan McCracken from womens basketball, Jessica Janik, Emily Kabbes and Savannah Knowles from volleyball and Darius Givens, Jonathon Lyons, Antwan Oliver and Geoff Pearson from football.
These 11 student-athletes will take part in the Office of Student Life sponsored event on May 11-16. The purpose of this conference is for the development of leadership skills through a series of discussions and activities.
This retreat teaches students what it takes to become better leaders, said Jane Fulton, assistant athletics director for academics and life skills. Students have to be in good academic standing, take an active role in the community and they have to write an essay on why they feel they should attend.
Any student is able to apply and 60 students are chosen from various organizations on campus. The athletics department has been sending representatives since 1997.
Representatives and leaders from organizations encourage students to apply, and then they are chosen based on their criteria, Fulton said.
LeaderShape, located in Champaign, is a nonprofit corporation that services a variety of organizations throughout the country. According to their website, just under 15,000 participants from colleges, universities, and corporations from across the country have attended the LeaderShape Institute.
