Mike Rockman

BUFFALO, NY - Men's tennis player Mike Rockman (Toronto, Ontario/Thornhill) will represent the University at Buffalo at the 2005 NCAA Leadership Conference from May 29 through June 2 in Orlando, FL. The five-day conference provides student-athletes with an opportunity to participate in daily activities that will enable them to be better leaders on their campuses and in their communities as well as to develop as individuals and as contributing members of a group.

"I'm honored to be going to the conference, especially since it's such a small selection of student-athletes," said Rockman. "I want to come back with better ideas on how to be a good leader. I'm taking it very seriously and I want to make the most of my experience there. I'm really looking forward to it."

The NCAA Leadership Conference "provides NCAA student-athletes with a forum to openly discuss issues that may affect them on their campuses and in their communities, while also providing them with the opportunity to enhance their leadership, communication, decision-making and problem-solving skills." Activities will also help student-athletes enhance their critical-thinking and collaborative skills. The conference also helps promote better communication among student-athletes and their coaches, administrators, faculty and communities.

The NCAA Leadership Conference is an outreach of the successful CHAMPS/Life Skills Program, and it involves over 300 student-athletes from Division I, II and III institutions across the country. Each NCAA member institution that has a CHAMPS/Life Skills Program can nominate four student-athletes who would benefit from this significant leadership experience. Nominees must be in good academic standing and have athletic eligibility remaining for the following academic year. A selection committee then picks one of the four nominees from each institution to attend the conference. The inaugural NCAA Leadership Conference was held in 1997.

Rockman was the Bulls' Coaches' Award recipient this past season after leading Buffalo with a 27-12 singles record and being named to the All-Mid-American Conference Second Team. His 27 singles wins are a UB single-season record. Rockman, who was the Bulls' Top Newcomer in 2003-04, has a career 47-27 singles record and 15-24 doubles record in two seasons at Buffalo. He has been selected as UB's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee's (SAAC) Athletes-for-Athletes Officer for 2005-06.