By Joseph Lyell —

Director of athletics Vince Tyra and president Neeli Bendapudi held a press conference Oct. 25 to introduce a program that will promote ethical leadership in athletics.

The project will facilitate initiatives and training aimed at instilling integrity, service and learning into policies and routines of athletics leaders.

Tyra personally donated $100,000 to help launch the project. Adidas and athletics department will each kick in $100,000 per year for 10 years, meaning the project has secured $2.1 million in funding.

Tyra said college of business faculty will help with the program, and some athletics staff members have already started training.

U of L is also offering the training to other ACC athletics departments, and educational materials produced by the college of business for the program will be available for purchase by any organization.

The training is rooted in moral and positive psychology research, and studies about organizational scholarship and leadership.

Professor of management Ryan Quinn will lead the training, and he said the university wants to include all of the campus community in its message.

“The long-term goal of this project is to promote scientific inquiry into how character and leadership work and how they can be improved,” Quinn said.

College of business dean Todd Mooradian said the program is an opportunity to help leaders and individuals excel within U of L and beyond.

“We are especially pleased to be developing focused and impactful offerings for athletics administrators and coaches,” Mooradian said.

Mooradian said the college has plans to develop a formal academic center for the teaching of ethical leadership skills, and he expects programming from the project will be presented at other universities and in business arenas.

Photo by Joseph Lyell / The Louisville Cardinal