Talk to Reagan for a few minutes and you’ll quickly come to admire her. This fall, she’ll be a junior at Hampton University, majoring in Strategic Communications and on the pre-law track. She served as class vice president in her freshman and sophomore years. She’s articulate, determined, and clearly poised to excel.
Reagan believes in taking initiative. So when she learned about our Black Student Leadership Network (BSLN) and our NBA HBCU Fellowship Program, she was eager to do both. “I want to become a sports agent,” she explains, “so I think pairing the BSLN and the HBCU program is going to be great for me when it’s time for me to take those steps.”
This summer, Reagan joined nearly 70 students from Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) for paid internships in a variety of departments across NBA team offices. Reagan served with the Los Angeles Lakers, using principles she learned through CDF to build her leadership skills. “One thing that remained with me from orientation is just to put myself out there,” she says. “The little things you do will build up and people will start to see the leader you are. You might not know if you have the right answer, but it’s more important that you took the initiative to ask a question or say something that was on your mind rather than staying quiet. We’re learning how to be leaders and to advocate for the things that we want, like change, justice, and equity.”
In partnership with Fearless Dialogues, Children’s Defense Fund provides professional development, alongside education on social justice concerns and servant leadership during the NBA HBCU Fellowship Program to help students like Reagan boost their economic mobility. We’re excited and honored to be a part of their leadership journey.