Tyler Williams has made an immediate impact in his first year at UAFS – on and off the court.
The junior guard is the Lions' second-leading scorer with 12.3 points per game and their second-best 3-point shooter with 47 3-pointers. And, he's their third-leading rebounder, averaging 3.3 rebounds per game.
Williams also has been a leader among his teammates and student-athlete peers in the classroom and the UAFS community.
He's a member of the Lions Leadership Academy, a member of the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society and a member of the Heartland Conference Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll, and later this month, he will be inducted into Sigma Alpha Pi, which is UAFS' chapter of the National Society of Leadership and Success.
This fall, the Edmond, Okla., native was among a large group of Heartland Conference student-athletes nominated by their schools to attend the prestigious
NCAA Student-Athlete Leadership Forum and was one of only three selected to represent the conference at the Leadership Forum.
He'll be joined by Camille Dedeaux, a volleyball player from St. Edward's, and Bria Salazar, a soccer player from Rogers State at the Leadership Forum, which will be April 11-14 in Orlando, Fla.
"It is an honor and privilege to represent UAFS. Out of all the many student-athletes to be chosen was very exciting and humbling," Williams said. "To be chosen means the school puts their trust in me, and I take this as a great responsibility to do my best in representing the student body and our school."
The NCAA Student-Athlete Leadership Forum engages a diverse and dynamic representation of student-athletes, coaches, faculty and administrators. Student-athletes selected to attend the forum return to campus with invaluable leadership skills, the experience of exploring the relationship between personal values, core beliefs and behavioral styles and a thorough understanding of the NCAA as a whole, the different divisional perspectives and the valuable role of
Student-Athlete Advisory Committees (SAAC).
The Leadership Forum, which was created in 1997, has been a life-changing experience for more than 5,000 student-athletes, many who have grown personally and professionally, gained a new network of peers and friends, as well as felt the rewards and importance of community service.
"This opportunity will expose me to new ways of thinking, provide me with ways to overcome challenges and learn additional leadership qualities and skills that will allow me to provide solutions to others as we lead student-athletes back on our respective campuses," Williams said.
In 2002, the NCAA began divisional regionally-based leadership conferences for Division I, II and III student-athletes, coaches and administrators. Division I, II and III student-athletes, coaches and administrators met regionally to discuss issues and information impacting the student-athlete experience. In the fall of 2010, the NCAA consolidated Leadership Forum participants from Divisions I, II and III into a single forum at one site on the same weekend.
Currently, each Division I and Division II conference office selects student-athletes from among their active member schools and an administrator from the conference office, to represent their conference at the forum.
"Tyler is an outstanding young man and a great representative of UAFS Athletics," UAFS Director of Athletics
Curtis Janz said. "He is a good leader, and the Leadership Forum will be a great experience for him. Leadership is one of the UAFS Athletics fundamental principles, and anytime one of our student-athletes has this opportunity, it makes all of us stronger."
Williams, who's majoring in organizational leadership, has dreams of playing professional basketball overseas after graduating from UAFS with hopes of eventually becoming a coach. He said many of the things he will learn and experience at the Leadership Forum will help develop him as he enters the next phase of his life.
"This allows me to increase my knowledge and skill level, so I can pass on to others what I have learned when I pursue my next step of graduate assistant," Williams said.
