Galloway, N.J. – Stockton University junior
Jeanmarie Harvey (River Edge/River Dell), a member of the women's track & field team, participated in the
NCAA Student-Athlete Leadership Training session on June 17-18. The two-day program was virtual and included 200 student-athletes from all three NCAA divisions.
The goal of NCAA Leadership Training session was to equip student-athletes with personal development skills that will serve them on an off the field. The theme of this year's session was "What's Your Leadership DNA?", with a focus on leading oneself before leading others.
Harvey is a three-year letter winner for Stockton whose specialty is the pole vault. She is a three-time NJAC all-conference performer in the vault, highlighted by NJAC First Team honors plus All-Atlantic Region recognition for the 2020 indoor season. Harvey also has an NJAC Honorable Mention nod in the 4x200 relay.
Harvey recently took some time to discuss her experience with the NCAA Student-Athlete Leadership Training program:
Can you describe your experience with the NCAA Leadership Training and what it was about?
My experience at SALT (Student Athlete Leadership Training) was amazing. Throughout the two days we got to learn a lot about inside-out leadership, which is how who we are makes up who we are as a leader.
Each day, we had two sessions which were small groups of about 16 student athletes and two team leaders. The first day's small group sessions focused on reflecting on leadership and also learning about our personal values and why they are important in leadership. The second day, the sessions where focused on authenticity, using our core values in our leadership journey and then developing our own leadership philosophy.
Throughout the two days we also would join a Zoom call with all 200 student athletes at SALT and we would get to hear from other students in different groups. Lamarr Pottinger, who is the Associate Director of Leadership Development at the NCAA, led all of those sessions. On the second day we also had Jonathan Sprinkles as our keynote speaker. He brought us a presentation on the power of connection and talked about how every individual needs something different in every moment.
What was your favorite part of the NCAA Leadership Training?
My favorite part of SALT was getting to learn from other student-athletes across the NCAA. There were 146 different schools represented from across all three divisions. Getting to share ideas and hear other people's stories was really motivating and inspiring. All of us had very different core values but all shared a common goal of becoming a better, more authentic leader.
What did you learn from the NCAA Leadership Training that maybe changed your outlook about being a student-athlete?
From the leadership training, I learned a lot about myself and gained a lot of confidence as a leader. It changed my outlook on leadership by showing me how much staying true to yourself matters a leader. SALT also showed me that just like being an athlete, leadership is something that needs to be practiced. It isn't a role you just step into. Everyone has the ability to be a leader no matter your class rank or position on the team. One of my favorite things I heard at SALT about this is that "Leader is an attitude, it isn't a title you are given. Leadership is a journey that has no finish line."
