Every year, athletes and coaches toss around words like “leadership” and “chemistry” in an attempt to achieve the intangible factors that turn a good team into a great one.
For North Carolina, the vague generalizations have been condensed into a science.
A year ago, Director of Athletics Dick Baddour created the Carolina Leadership Academy in an effort to provide leadership instruction for UNC’s athletes.
To mark the anniversary of the program’s inception, NCAA President Myles Brand will speak today at 5 p.m. in Koury Auditorium at the Kenan-Flagler Business School and then participate in a roundtable discussion on college athletics. The panelists include Chancellor James Moeser, ACC Commissioner John Swofford and former UNC President Bill Friday. The event is free and open to the public.
In the 12 months of the academy’s existence, the results have not yet become visible on the field, but athletes and coaches concurred that the program has had positive effects.
“Talking to students, coaches and staff, (Baddour) perceived a need that we had to actually work on leadership, that it doesn’t happen by itself,” said senior associate athletic director John Blanchard, who implemented Baddour’s plan in setting up the Academy.
Blanchard secured the private funds necessary to hire leadership guru Jeff Janssen, who has worked with groups from sports teams to Fortune 500 companies.
Then Janssen went to work with the teams, and though the jury is out on whether his efforts will dramatically improve UNC athletics on the field, players and coaches seem to be on board.
“I feel that this is the future, a tremendous investment of the money,” said women’s soccer coach Anson Dorrance. “It was a stroke of genius on the part of Dickie Baddour.”