Athlete Leadership - Special Olympics Indiana

Empowering Athletes to Lead and Inspire

Special Olympics Indiana’s foundational leadership program is Athlete Leadership University, which meets two weekends per year (Fall and Spring). Starting with the “Introduction to Athlete Leadership” course, athletes learn about Special Olympics, create a personal mission statement, and plan how they can lead in the organization. As athletes continue their training they develop basic leadership skills, apply these skills to specialty areas, and prepare themselves for leadership opportunities within the organization.

Athlete leaders select one of seven majors — communication, events, governance, health and fitness, sports, technology, and leadership through visual arts. Each major consists of a series of courses leading to graduation two to three years later. Following each class session, an athlete leader must complete a practicum related to the course topic. Review our Handbook for Athlete Leaders for more details on Athlete Leadership University and the curriculum.

State Office Contact

Elesia Yoon

Dean, Athlete Leadership University

[email protected]

Event Details

Spring 2025

Dates: April 26-27

Registration: Opens Monday, Feb. 24.

Practicums: Fall 2024 practicums are due Monday, March 17.

Tentative schedule:

Day 1:

10 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.: Leader networking, activities and mentor training.
11:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.: Opening session, course instruction, lunch break.

Day 2:

8:30 a.m. – 1 p.m.: Course Instruction, lunch break
1 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.: Closing session
2:45 p.m.: Class photo

*-All times Eastern

Location: Butler University

Courses

- Core Course: Introduction to Athlete Leadership (first course for a new leader)
- Core Course: Understanding Leadership
- Communications: Global Messenger I
- Events: Event Management
- Governance: Introduction to Governance
- Health & Fitness: Introduction to Health & Fitness
- Sports: Principles of Coaching
- Technology: Digital Media
- Technology: Presentation Design (new class focused on creating slides, flyers and more)
- Visual Arts: Leadership Through Visual Arts II
- Core Course: Leadership Capstone

General Information

Athletes who participate in Athlete Leadership Council (ALC) discuss ideas and problems, respond to program proposals, make suggestions and propose recommendations to their County Programs and State Office. Athletes have opportunities to participate in their County ALC and Indiana ALC. The SOIN Board of Directors approved the athlete-led recommendation for every county program to have an ALC. The SOIN organizational policy provides guidelines to County Programs for participation in the statewide ALC. For more information, read the Athlete Leadership Council Overview and the Athlete Leadership Council handbook for process details, examples,and tips for County ALCs

Click here to read the Athlete Leadership Council Overview