Social media offer great opportunities for student-athletes to develop character, connect and encourage others, and learn Internet etiquette that can help them in their academic and professional pursuits. Unfortunately, we continue to see examples of irresponsible online social networking by both professional athletes and student-athletes. As such, we have identified social media training as an important element in developing leadership, communication, and team-building skills.

In keeping with the mission of the Institute, we hope this guide will be useful to you as a coach, administrator, parent, chaplain, mentor, or anyone invested in sports. We intend for it to serve you with key messages and activities you can use to teach your student-athletes about the opportunities that come with effective online media use.

• A crash course on the major social networks, including the latest usage statistics among student-athletes
• A look at the potential negative side effects of irresponsible social networking
• New opportunities athletes can gain to elevate themselves and their teammates through effective social media use
• A package of 4 team exercises and 4 program ideas you can use as social media teaching tools with your student-athletes
• A list of additional resources about social media trends, youth social media use, and more