ORLANDO, Fla. – Lock Haven University’s JaKia Gumby (Middletown, Pa./Middletown), a member of the Lady Eagle indoor and outdoor track and field teams, represented the Haven at the annual NCAA National Student-Athlete Development Conference. Only one or two student-athletes from each NCAA member institution are selected to attend this prestigious workshop.

Held in late May in Orlando, Florida, student-athletes from NCAA Divisions I, II, and III all joined together to openly discuss issues that affect them on their campuses and communities. The National Student-Athlete Development Conference also provided student-athletes with the opportunity to enhance their leadership, communication, decision-making and problem-solving skills.

For Gumby, the experience was beneficial on both personal and athletic competition levels. “The NCAA leadership conference was an eye-opener in terms of discovering what type of person and leadership style I possess,” explained Gumby. “I believe I can now begin to develop myself into a leader, not just on my team but in my life. The most memorable thing I will take away from this is the rare chance I had to sit down and talk about issues going on at Divisions I, II, and III campuses and how they deal with them and what they feel needs to be changed.”

The 2008-09 academic year will mark the final two seasons in an LHU uniform for Gumby, who returns as one of the Haven track and field team’s top throwers. Gumby is the reigning Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Indoor shot put champion, and was also second in the discus and third in the shot put at the 2008 PSAC Outdoor Championship. A Sport Administration major, she has earned multiple PSAC Scholar-Athlete honors, including one in 2008, and was also most recently selected as a 2008 Arthur Ashe Sports Scholar.