Clements Spearheads New Initiatives in Dukes Lead Program

Being a "Double Duke" has become part of Cassidy Clements' mantra. Having been in the Harrisonburg area for almost 10 years now, Clements did not hesitate at the opportunity for more.

In February 2023, Clements returned to JMU as the Assistant A.D. for Student-Athlete Leadership. In her new role Clements also took over the Dukes Lead program, an initiative she was heavily involved in as a graduate assistant between 2018-2020.

Dukes Lead aims to support athletes outside of their sport by providing learning opportunities, networking events and mentoring for life after college. Clements hopes that Dukes Lead will "invest in the student-athlete experience."

"This program is designed to take the student-athlete experience and continue to provide additional information for them to grow as individuals while they're playing," Clements said.

The program revolves around four central areas: civic and community engagement, career readiness, leadership development and human development. Clements is particularly excited about the human development aspect of the program.

"In this space we can work together to provide athletes with resources on how to be the best teammate, and how to transition from athlete to a professional," Clements said. "That is something I'm really passionate about."

Having been around the Dukes Lead program before, Clements had the opportunity to understand the foundation and original goals of the program. Since taking over the program, Clements has focused most of her efforts on reworking the mandatory events for athletes.

"Mandatory events create a barrier for what the student-athletes envision as their own individual journeys. I really wanted to make sure that this programming is very hyper individualistic so that our athletes can choose whether or not this impacts them."

Providing the athletes with more freedom around the events has been a major task for Clements the last few months. However, Clements is thankful that the "upper level administration has been very open to my ideas and my changes."

When Clements took over the program, Dukes Lead was in the midst of a program review which allowed her to gather feedback from coaches and athletes.

"When I got feedback I really noticed the mandatory requirements is where there is pushback. I'm hopeful that next year, we can create a space where each student-athlete feels like the events they choose directly impact their experience here," Clements said.

Part of collecting feedback included working closely with members of JMU SAAC and using their voices to speak for the greater athlete population. Through their interactions, Clements learned that the main concerns revolve around time commitments as an athlete.

Clements hopes that by stepping back from mandatory programs the athletes will understand "they can be successful by attending things that they want to be involved in rather than a set quantity."

One of Clements' biggest priorities in changing the program setup is to "enhance student-athlete ownership."

"I want to make sure that each student-athlete can share their experience and have the autonomy of building out their own journey because not every student-athlete is the same," Clements said. "There are no perfect parallels, and I hope that this can be a space for them to share their goals and journeys.

Over the summer while most athletes are away, Clements has been focused on cultivating relationships with community partners and university stakeholders to set up recurring civic and community engagement opportunities.

In addition, Clements has been working on designating hours during the semester to work one-on-one with the athletes and provide catered mentoring.

"We can spend time diving deeper into resume and cover letter preparation, interview and internship search and so many impactful things. It might seem a bit scary, but now they can have a guide in that area," Clements said.

Throughout her career, Clements has focused heavily on relationship building. Since her time as a graduate assistant, she has aimed to increase the number of one-on-one meetings with athletes each semester. Working closely with each athlete to get them to success is one of Clements favorite parts of her job.

"Being able to really sit down with a student athlete and learn their story is why I do what I do," Clements said. "I want them to be able to share their story and their journey. I want to be able to be a part of getting them where they want to go."

Building the relationships with the student athletes during their time at JMU is important for Clements, however keeping in touch and hearing about their success down the road makes all her hard work worth it.

"I strive to get those calls and hear about where they have been and what they have accomplished since they have left," Clements said. "These student-athletes are so special. They deserve a heck of a lot of attention and so much when they leave here. Anything that they set their sights on, they will make it happen."
Clements wishes that all her athletes will utilize the resources and people around them during and after their time at JMU, just as she did in her own time as a Duke.

"There are so many people in your corner as a student-athlete, and these people impacted my life enough for me to want to come back here and be a part of that same space because what's being done here is different," Clements said. "It's so cool to see just what JMU is capable of and how big of a force we can be in athletics."

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