General 11/30/2025 1:00:00 PM Chris Brannick

Karyna Yurchenko Sails At NCAA Leadership Forum

UCO Tennis Senior Among Hundreds Of NCAA Leadership Participants

DALLAS – Karyna Yurchenko represented the University of Central Oklahoma at the NCAA Leadership Forum in November and participated in four days of leadership development among 245 NCAA student-athletes, administrators, and coaches.

Yurchenko is a senior on the UCO tennis team and was the 2025 recipient of the prestigious Arthur Ashe Service Award. She attended the conference hosted by the NCAA leadership development staff, the four-day event aimed to provide learners with the opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of their core values, develop emotional intelligence, embrace vulnerability, grow their personal network and develop leadership skills.

"I had a wonderful time spending four days connecting with fellow athletes, athletic directors, and coaches across all of the divisions," Yurchenko said. "I felt honored to represent the University of Central Oklahoma and the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association at the forum. Four incredible days of daily activities, team discussions, and development sessions to learn what it really takes to be someone who can lead and inspire others."

The forum, held in the Dallas area, served 184 student-athletes, as well as nine coaches and 52 administrators. Division I and II conference offices and Division III schools nominate select student-athletes and administrators to attend the forum, which is hosted annually.

Building relationships was a key focus of the program and was encouraged through small group activities. Learners were each assigned to a color team (Yurchenko was Team Red) with about 30 other student athletes, coaches and administrators, as well as two trained facilitators, who serve as college athletics administrators on campuses throughout the NCAA membership.

Facilitators guided learners through a series of workshops that encouraged introspection and discussion about leadership. Attendees also had the opportunity to take part in division-specific governance sessions, a community service activity to support domestic violence survivors, and well-being sessions.

This year's program theme, "Adjust Your Sails," aimed to equip student-athletes with leadership skills and empower them to take on greater responsibilities and apply the lessons learned when they are on campus and out in the world.

"My favorite part was being able to learn more about myself," Yurchenko said. "I got to meet other student-athletes in leadership positions and see the integration of fun activities to get hands on experience of the concepts discussed with the speakers and during group sessions."

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Players Mentioned

Karyna Yurchenko: 5' 6"; Senior

Players Mentioned

Karyna Yurchenko
: 5' 6"; Senior