Stuckey To Attend NCAA Leadership Conference

April 12, 2007

LAWRENCE, Kan. — University of Kansas Jayhawks football student-athlete Darrell Stuckey is one of 330 NCAA student-athletes selected to participate in the 2007 NCAA Leadership Conference that will be held May 27-31, 2007 in Orlando, Fla., the NCAA recently announced.

As part of the NCAA’s CHAMPS/Life Skills Program, the mission of the leadership conference is to provide a group of the nation’s top NCAA Division I, II and III student-athletes an opportunity to actively participate in challenging and thought-provoking activities that will enable them to become better leaders on their campuses and in their communities. Each institution nominates four student-athletes who have demonstrated an ability or strong desire to be leaders and would benefit from a significant leadership experience. In order to be eligible, applicants must be in good academic standing and must have athletics eligibility remaining in the following academic year.

“It’s an honor to be chosen to represent The University of Kansas at the NCAA Leadership Conference,” Stuckey said. “I feel like it’s a once in a lifetime opportunity. At the conference, I’m looking forward to taking the initiative to better myself in an environment with people with common interests. I expect them to take us out of our comfort zone, challenge us to solve problems and to think outside the box in all situations, while being under pressure. I also hope to improve my networking and social skills.”

The annual NCAA National Leadership Conference provides NCAA student-athletes with a forum to openly discuss issues that may affect them on their campuses and in their communities, while also providing them with the opportunity to enhance their leadership, communication, decision-making and problem-solving skills. The NCAA National Leadership Conference also promotes better communication among student-athletes, coaches, administrators, faculty and communities. The five-day leadership conference consists of daily exercises and activities to help the student-athletes develop as individuals and as contributing members to a group.

Stuckey is a member of the Jayhawk Student Athlete Advisory Leadership Committee (SAAC), as well as the Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on Intercollegiate Athletics. Stuckey is also very active in Kansas Athletics Community Service activities. As a redshirt freshman on the football field last fall, he appeared in seven games while starting the final four contests of the year. He collected 32 total tackles including 27 solo stops and recorded three pass break-ups at the safety position. He notched a career-high nine tackles against Kansas State. A Kansas City, Kan., native, he is majoring in pre-communication studies.

Stuckey was selected from a total of more than 1,300 nomination forms that were submitted by college and university officials who have NCAA CHAMPS/Life Skills programs on their campuses. Following the leadership conference, the student-athletes will be asked to share their experiences and topic discussions with their campus SAAC, as well as other campus leaders. The participants also are asked to develop an action plan that addresses an issue on their campus or in their community and implement the plan once they return to their schools.