Red Cross Collegiate Leadership Program

Developing Leadership Skills and Helping Save Lives Since 2007

Application closed for Class of 2021

The Next Application Period Begins in Fall 2021
We are no longer accepting applications for the Red Cross Collegiate Leadership Program Class of 2021. Please check back in fall 2021 to apply for the Class of 2022. Thank you.

Our Partners

The American Red Cross welcomes our partnership with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) in the Red Cross Collegiate Leadership Program.

Overview

Benefits

Commitments

The Red Cross Collegiate Leadership Program begins with an intense two weeks of training, mentoring and networking that will help you develop your leadership skills, discover your purpose, and prepare for your bright future. And that’s just the beginning: you’ll return to campus with a life-saving mission of organizing Red Cross blood drives for your classmates and community!

Through the Collegiate Leadership Program, you’ll become part of a special tradition of young people who work with the Red Cross, the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) to:

Inspire a new generation of Red Cross volunteers and leaders
Promote diversity of Red Cross Blood Services Regions’ donor recruitment
Champion a philanthropic cause
Impact local communities
Empower through training, mentoring and networking opportunities
Foster leadership opportunities

Program Benefits

Participating student-athletes must agree to:

A $2000 scholarship
A two-week internship at the American Red Cross Headquarters in Washington D.C. Program dates: June 7 – June 18, 2021 (with travel dates on June 6/June19).
Roundtrip transportation to Washington D.C., room, board, and stipend
Coaching and mentoring by senior American Red Cross leadership and representatives from NAIA and NCCAA
An opportunity to make a significant impact on your campus and community through organizing successful blood drives that help save lives

Participant Commitments

Participating student-athletes must agree to:

In addition, participating NAIA and NCCAA Institutions must agree to support and recognize the student-athlete if he/she decides to form a Red Cross Club on campus.

Attend the Red Cross Collegiate Leadership academy in Washington D.C., for two weeks in June. Program dates: June 7 – June 18, 2021 (with travel dates on June 6/June19)
Organize and market Red Cross blood drives/activities on campus
Serve throughout your junior and senior years

Overview

The Red Cross Collegiate Leadership Program begins with an intense two weeks of training, mentoring and networking that will help you develop your leadership skills, discover your purpose, and prepare for your bright future. And that’s just the beginning: you’ll return to campus with a life-saving mission of organizing Red Cross blood drives for your classmates and community!

Through the Collegiate Leadership Program, you’ll become part of a special tradition of young people who work with the Red Cross, the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) to:

Inspire a new generation of Red Cross volunteers and leaders
Promote diversity of Red Cross Blood Services Regions’ donor recruitment
Champion a philanthropic cause
Impact local communities
Empower through training, mentoring and networking opportunities
Foster leadership opportunities

Benefits

Program Benefits

Participating student-athletes must agree to:

A $2000 scholarship
A two-week internship at the American Red Cross Headquarters in Washington D.C. Program dates: June 7 – June 18, 2021 (with travel dates on June 6/June19).
Roundtrip transportation to Washington D.C., room, board, and stipend
Coaching and mentoring by senior American Red Cross leadership and representatives from NAIA and NCCAA
An opportunity to make a significant impact on your campus and community through organizing successful blood drives that help save lives

Commitments

Participant Commitments

Participating student-athletes must agree to:

In addition, participating NAIA and NCCAA Institutions must agree to support and recognize the student-athlete if he/she decides to form a Red Cross Club on campus.

Attend the Red Cross Collegiate Leadership academy in Washington D.C., for two weeks in June. Program dates: June 7 – June 18, 2021 (with travel dates on June 6/June19)
Organize and market Red Cross blood drives/activities on campus
Serve throughout your junior and senior years

A Life-Saving Purpose

Our program participants embrace a mission that has helped tens of thousands of people in their time of need.

+130

campuses have participated in the program and sponsor
blood drives

+161,518

pints of blood have been donated

+2,902

blood drives have been organized by program participants

Approx. $328K

in athletic scholarships awarded

Application Instructions

BEFORE you fill out the application, please carefully read and consider all of the questions. You can only submit a complete application so please make sure you have everything you need before applying.

As part of the application process, you and your school will need to sign the NAIA/NCCAA Institution and Student-Leader Agreement Form. Before proceeding with the application, please first print out and have the appropriate people sign and fully agree to this document so that you can upload it as part of your application. Applications submitted without signatures will not be accepted.
You will also need to upload an unofficial transcript and a resume.
APPLICATION DEADLINE IS DECEMBER 11, 2020

Selection Process

All applications will be reviewed by the American Red Cross and students will be selected for phone interviews. The Red Cross will notify students who are accepted to the Red Cross Collegiate Leadership Program by January 2021.

Please note: Only one student per school will be accepted into the program.

The Red Cross / NAIA Collegiate Leadership Program engages a character-driven athletics association and student-athletes in a national initiative to help save lives through blood collection on college campuses. The character traits and skill sets emphasized through sport competition are the skill sets the Red Cross is looking for in volunteers and future leaders.

Meet Our Alumni

From 2007 through today, the Red Cross Collegiate Leadership Program has attracted high-caliber student-athletes from all over the U.S.

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Class of 2019

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The Class of 2017 - Samantha Davenport, Ryan Heinser, Michelle Henry, Jensyn Meyer, Emily Morgan, Gabriella Pedroza, Jenna Roux, Larissa Tate, Carolina Velez, Jose Ventura, Sophia Weisbruch, Kelly Workman

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The Class of 2017 having fun on a walking tour of Washington, D.C

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The Class of 2016 - Left to right: Nathan Lane, Reise Wyatt, Brenda Feasby, Pablo Ripodas Laquidain, Samantha Carr, Hannah Moody, Bailei Brown, McKenna Barkus, Jennifer Johnson, Brooke Runyon*, Mackenzie Burnworth, Helen Taylor, Lauren Van Horn, Brian Hamil

*Congratulations to Brooke, who won a 2017 "Women Helping Women" award from Indiana University for her work with the Red Cross/NAIA program.

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The class of 2016 enjoyed exploring Washington DC.

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The Class of 2015 - Sarah Barris, Sonja Bilden, Sidney Bosley, Katarina Frickleton, Che’Ron Lewis, Alex Lunneborg, Jordan Mathison, Paul ”PJ” Peterson, Eric Smith, Randi Sturtz, Natassja Thomas, and Kylie Townsley.

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The Class of 2015 poses outside the historic Red Cross headquarters building.

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The Class of 2014 - Kelley Cohron, Ysen “Tico” Dalipi, Kayla Day, Jerica Drago, Nicole Gill, Haylie Gutierrez, Ja’Keisha Haynes, Megan Mosiniak, Bryan Palmer, Kaitlin Pontikes, Madalyn Smith, Zachary Sollie, and Julia Tyree.

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The Class of 2014 meets with Red Cross CEO Gail McGovern

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The Class of 2013 - Sara Allen, Samantha Bryant, Karleigh Creighton, Cheyenne Eisenhour, Audrey Eisentrout, Connor Hausauer, Tiffani Marshall, Karli Myers, Tyler Nance, Brittany Rooze, Savannah Stigers, and Jamie Zimmerer.

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The Class of 2013 shows their enthusiasm about visiting the US Capitol.

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The Class of 2012 - Zach Aldrich, Tamara Bates, Aaron Back, Derek Gross, Taylor Hosna, Hannah Husmann, Kate Kendall, Molly Knight, Emily Koch, Konner McIntire, Alec Meddings, Clayton O’Neill, Kamari Palmer, Jacob Simmonds, and Baily Tom.

Red Cross Collegiate Leadership Program