The Longhorn Leaders program engages students at UT Austin to work with at-risk middle school students in the area.

The program started in the fall of 2003 as a community leadership upper division course in the School of Social Work. Dr. Michael Lauderdale, who co-founded and runs the Longhorn Leaders program, teaches the course. Any student can take it, but the program particularly utilizes the visibility of student athletes to communicate the importance of academic and personal success with middle school students. Course requirements include readings and lectures on adolescent development, peer pressures, interpersonal communication, and counseling techniques. But much of the class time is spent in the local schools, where each Longhorn Leader makes several personal presentations that emphasize academic excellence and life success skills.

We talked about the program with professor Lauderdale, and with two current Longhorn Leaders: Antwuan Davis, a sophomore in the College of Education and a UT Longhorn cornerback; and Breonna Copeland, a sophomore in the School of Social Work.



Leading by example

Leading by example


Posted May 19, 2015. Video by Miguel Gutierrez Jr.