Lisa Rubin

Streamlining key learner transitions explore the connections between the hospitality and tourism industries and institutions of higher education in Southern Nevada. We provide research-informed recommendations for improving both transitions to the workforce and college attainment. We focus on two areas: transitioning graduates of college programs to the industry and transitioning industry professionals into educational opportunities (e.g., professional development, courses, certificates, degree programs).

In this application I proposed a visit to The University of Texas at Austin for the Big 12 Faculty Fellowship. Daron K. Roberts, Founding Director for the Center for Sports Leadership and Innovation (CSLi) at UT, invited me to engage in scholarly work, share my research, and meet with students. This is the first time CSLi has invited a faculty fellow to the center in its short history. During this visit we plan to discuss various collaborative projects involving CSLi's mission, which aligns with my research on student-athlete development and the work experiences of athletic administrators. Daron and I are part of a team that received the 2018 NCAA Innovations in Research and Practice Grant so we hope to build on this excitement with additional collaborations to benefit students at both institutions.

College students, including athletes, have limited exposure to financial education prior to enrolling in college (Britt et al., 2015). Athletes juggling two full-time roles as athlete and college student have limited time for financial education and the opportunity to work. Some athletes receive athletic scholarships and some do not, but either way, many athletes must seek additional funding and student loans to pay for college. Huston’s (2010) model demonstrated connections between financial literacy, behaviors, and education to serve as a framework for our study. The purpose of this study was to determine college athletes’ subjective and objective financial literacy, how they applied this knowledge, and their preferred mode(s) of financial education to pilot financial literacy education geared specifically for athletes based on their preferences. Data was collected from two institutions in the same Power 5 conference: monthly spending logs, focus groups, interviews, a financial knowledge survey, and pre- and post-tests flanking a financial literacy module in first-year experience courses and summer bridge. A Money 101 course was piloted over eight weeks, and peer financial counseling was offered. As athletes might gain access to their name, image, and likeness (NIL) for potential income in the near future, financial education is paramount.

The purpose of this study is to explore student-athletes’ leadership development and experience in a two year leadership cohort program. Specifically, we are seeking to assess growth and the influence of the leadership training program after each year. The Leadership Academy was designed and is co-facilitated by the Directors of Sport Psychology and Student-Athlete Development for the Athletic Department. The research aim is to discover how students have developed during the Leadership Academy, through both self-assessment and 360 degree feedback from coaches and teammates. Self-assessment includes interviews after each cohort year following eight sessions of the Leadership Academy curriculum and a leadership assessment tool. The Student Leadership Practices Inventory (LPI) 360 Assessment is a tool grounded in research that has a 360 degree feedback component. The intent is for five observers (one coach and four teammates) to take the Observer portion of the Student LPI Assessment to provide external perspectives on Leadership Academy participants’ leadership development. This applied research is designed to evaluate in vivo development through a research to practice to assessment model. The practice component to this experience includes a spectrum of opportunities to apply leadership development in Leadership Academy meetings and outside of meetings with their teams. Each session has components of learning, activities, debriefing, and evaluation (of the session by the participants). Sessions conclude with a “Commitment Exercise” to apply what participants are learning with their team between each session (e.g., “Initiate a conversation with a teammate with the specific goal of increasing trust between the two of you”). The findings of this research will not only guide the future development of student-athlete leaders and the curriculum of this Leadership Academy, but will add to the body of literature on how to effectively identify, develop, and evaluate leadership within university athletic departments.

Participation in athletics may provide students with the opportunity to develop many skills and abilities. Developing students’ leadership skills impacts their wellbeing, especially in the high pressure realm of intercollegiate athletics. These skills can be developmental and eventually transferable to life after sports. Kansas State University’s athletic department identified this need to develop emerging leaders by creating an inaugural Student-Athlete Leadership Academy that began in 2014. The program is piloting its first cohort in the 2014-2015 academic year. The cohort requires a two-year commitment from participating students. The program objectives include a) develop awareness and personal understanding, b) identify personal strengths and areas for improvement, c) explore leadership methods, d) learn leadership skills, e) practice leadership skills, f) build a network of peer leaders, and g) create a leadership culture. The program organizers developed a distinct curriculum for each cohort year. The Leadership Academy organizers and principal investigator are interested in evaluating the student-athletes’ leadership development and experience in the inaugural emerging leaders cohort, through interviews and survey instruments, utilizing role theory as the conceptual framework. Research will analyze the impact of the program on leadership development and would allow for programming modifications, adjustments, and/or improvements for the veteran leaders curriculum henceforth and also the incoming cohort of emerging leaders starting in Fall 2015. If this program is successful at Kansas State University, it will serve as a model for other athletic departments to engage potential student leaders and generate involvement from the coaches in the importance of student-athlete wellbeing and development.