Student-Athletes Embrace Leadership on Colorado Trip

UT Arlington Mavs Blog



















It is only natural to want to stay
in your comfort zone.

On a leadership retreat to the
glorious mountains of Colorado over the summer, eight UTA student-athletes were
launched well outside of the known commodity of their comfort, or green, zone.

Under the direction of UTA
student-athlete development specialist Tim Kennedy, eight of UTA's best and
brightest embarked on a trip to test their limits.

"This was a valuable life-skills experience for some of
our student athletes," Kennedy said. "During the trip, I got to
witness our student-athletes get taken out of their green zone and watch them
make the needed adjustments and continue to press through their challenges."

Logan Austin (baseball), Tamerah
Gorham (track), Beau Eggers (track), Cy'Andria Newton (softball), Chineme
Obikudu (track), Samantha Hughes (track), Tori Shelton (track) and Emoni Taylor
(track) joined Kennedy on a venture to Noah's
Ark, planted in picturesque Browns Canyon just outside of Denver.

The Maverick student-athletes
turned off their electronics, broke from 21st century life, and spent seven
days surrounded by the gorgeous sights of Colorado.

[embedded content]

"We all had to push ourselves
to another level," Austin said. "It was a lot of fun encouraging
others and getting out of our comfort zone."

After arriving from Arlington, the
UTA student-athletes immediately put their new found relationships to the test
with a white water rafting trip. After the excitement of the rafting journey,
the Mavs embarked on a four-day hike to scale the mountaintops, a far cry from
the hustle and bustle of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex.

"It was also great to see them working together during the whitewater rafting trip and backpacking trip," Kennedy said. "They really got a chance to work on the team-building skills by encouraging each other during the difficult times. It was also great seeing them build meaningful relationships and the bond that they got to ...

Read More