Campus Recreation and Leadership Development
Pathways for Student and Community Transformation

Published: January 2019

Download the MSL NIRSA Report

With the generous support of the NIRSA Foundation, NIRSA members now have access to a resource intended to enhance the understanding of how to positively influence leadership development in students.

Since 2012, NIRSA has collaborated with the Multi-Institutional Study of Leadership (MSL)—an international research program focused on advancing the understanding of how higher education can best contribute to the leadership development of college students—to look specifically at campus recreation’s potential influence.

Campus Recreation and Leadership Development: Pathways for Student and Community Transformation is authored by Dr. Benjamin Correia-Harker, Director of Assessment & Research at Interfaith Youth Core, and Dr. Stacey Hall, Director of Campus Recreation at the University of New Hampshire.

Major findings from this report include:

  1. Campus recreation participants are more engaged and feel more like a part of their communities.
  2. The development of leadership attributes varies across recreational activities.
  3. Participation in campus recreation activities varies by student demographics.
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This resource was created through the support of the NIRSA Foundation.

Learn more about the NIRSA Foundation »

For questions regarding this report, please contact NIRSA Research Coordinator Ruben Guzman.

For questions regarding the NIRSA Foundation’s support of research, please contact NIRSA Foundation Coordinator Kameron Carroll.