NORTHFIELD, Minn. - After a successful first year of the program, the St. Olaf College athletic department's Ole Leadership Academy will start its second year this fall.

Last year, the cohort was a group of 12 sophomore student-athlete leaders. This year, the Ole Leadership Academy will consist of a men's cohort and a women's cohort, each made up of sophomore student-athletes.

The academy is a group of student-athletes who focus on developing leadership skills, building relationships and networking, modeling leadership behaviors, interviewing and presentation skills and crafting written materials that demonstrate leadership. The Ole Leadership Academy was initiated and administered by Rachael Sushner, St. Olaf's head women's soccer coach and senior woman administrator, and will continue to be administered by Sushner in the second year.

To become a member of the Ole Leadership Academy, the student-athletes were required to submit an application as first years, be recommended by their coach and partake in an interview with administrators in the athletic department and the Piper Center.

The 2018-19 men's cohort includes: Jack Leach, Simon Stouffer, Zach McCarty, Denver Link, Caleb Goldberg, Jordan Bartholomew, Matt Muller, Jesse Lawman, Bobby Isbell, Dylan Kooner, Lukas Lindgren, Marshall Quist and Thierno Gueye.

The 2018-19 women's cohort includes: Maggie Wilson, Jordan Melz, Emily Vetsch, Sabrina Barboza, Abby Grismer, Marissa Ruppe, Brigid Miller, Jena Hauck, Andree Blackburn, Paige Woldt, Amanda Susnik, Keegan Mulvihill, Mary Kate Eiden, Lexi Wall, Summer Reid, Skye Sonnega and Marissa Wolff.

Sushner is looking forward to continuing the success in the second year.

"Our pool of applicants in our second year of the Ole Leadership Academy was very competitive across the board and we are excited to move forward with a bigger group, open to both women and men," Sushner said. "It was evident in the interviews that the 2018-19 cohort will be as engaging as the pilot year group. We will hit the ground running in September!"