Garrett Lussi is a senior baseball student-athlete at North Georgia. He is currently the Peach Belt Conference's SAAC representative.

I recently had the honor of representing North Georgia College & State University (NGCSU) at the NCAA Division II Leadership Academy in Naples, Florida. This trip not only opened my eyes to what kind of leader I can be on and off the field but what kind of person I truly am. The Academy taught me the qualities it takes to be a leader and what exercises I can use to enhance those skills to better myself and NGCSU. The Academy showed us what hard work and dedication can accomplish when people work together as well as provided us with the necessary tools to be positive agents of change on our respective campuses.

When we arrived at the Academy, we were broken into hexagon teams. They chose to call them hexagon teams because there are six different attributes that make up Division II. The six groups were: learning, passion, resourcefulness, service, balance, and sportsmanship. The hexagon teams consisted of people from many different Division II schools in the southeast, with no one group having more than one representative from the same institution. In those six groups, there were two facilitators that worked with us and guided us on what being a leader entitles and how we as student-athletes and administrators can strive to get more out of a certain situation instead of settling for just enough to get by. The facilitators were from all over the country and brought in by the NCAA because of their strong leadership attributes and their ability to exemplify those qualities.

After learning more about my personal behavioral style and characteristics of great leaders in our hexagon teams during the first half of the Academy, we had the chance to learn more about Division II and meet with our respective schools the rest of the weekend. One issue that was emphasized greatly (not only in the Division II National SAAC meeting we had, but in our conference meetings as well) was making sure we were stressing good game environment at all of our contests. One of the many good ideas mentioned was to have a student-athlete from both schools meet at the middle of the field or court and each read a sportsmanship statement provided by the conference SAAC. This would help promote good sportsmanship, not only with the two teams competing, but with the fans as well. Along with the Positive Game Environment Initiative, we further learned as student-athletes how we can play a large role on our campus with the NCAA Division II Strategic Positioning Platform and Community Engagement Initiative.

Another topic highly publicized over the weekend was Division II's Make-A-Wish initiative. Statistics showed that last year alone Division II raised a total of $316,958. We found out to grant one child's wish would cost $5,000 and Division II was able to grant over 60 wishes. Over the five year span Division II has been involved with Make-A-Wish, we have raised more than $765,000. This not only showed how great of an impact the student-athletes of Division II have made towards Make-A-Wish as a whole, but what type of positive impact we can make on a child who is less fortunate by getting everyone involved in our campus community to help make a difference.

NGCSU cross country and track coach Amanda Harris was the administrator that accompanied Brit Smith, a women's tennis student-athlete, and myself to the Leadership Academy. Coach Harris felt this academy was extremely beneficial for her ability to better coach her student-athletes. She learned about her own leadership style and ways to communicate more efficiently. Overall, she was very impressed with what the Academy offered.

Reflecting back, the Leadership Academy was an inspirational experience that really opened my eyes to who I am and how I can better myself not only as a teammate but as a person. It showed me that I can create positive change in myself, my school, and my community. If anyone ever has the opportunity to experience a Division II Leadership Academy, do not hesitate to attend. You will undoubtedly be a more effective leader and positive agent of change when you leave.