Wayne State University Athletics

General 6/5/2026 9:05:00 AM Jeff Weiss, Senior Associate Director of Athletics/Media Relations

Turner Selected For WSU's Academic Leadership Academy

DETROIT -- Dr. Candice L. Turner, Wayne State University Deputy Athletic Director and Senior Woman Administrator, has been selected for the WSU Academic Leadership Academy (ALA).

"I applied to the Academic Leadership Academy because, while my professional context is rooted in Athletics, I see myself first as an academic and higher education leader who is deeply committed to advancing the student success agenda across the institution," stated Turner. "I am consistently looking for innovative ways to create connected systems that improve access, belonging, well-being, and career readiness for students while also fostering environments where people feel valued as an important part of the broader university ecosystem. I'm most looking forward to learning alongside colleagues across the university and strengthening my ability to lead collaboratively and strategically in service of institutional impact."

Wayne State University (WSU) is committed to developing effective academic leaders who empower others by working with them collegially to achieve common goals, build a community of scholars, teachers, and practitioners, and sustain a high level of morale and engagement. To this end, the Office of the Provost has created the Academic Leadership Academy (ALA) to support the development of the leadership skills and capacity of WSU faculty, academic personnel, and staff. ALA aspires to increase the number and broaden the impact of skilled leaders at WSU who can contribute to the mission of the University and enhance the lives of its students, employees, and surrounding community members.

The ALA was created to offer leadership training to full-time faculty and staff, who often do not have the opportunity to engage in leadership development and mentoring prior to taking on informal and formal leadership roles. The aim of the ALA is to offer leadership development and mentoring in a systematic and evidence-based way to grow the leadership capacity of current and emerging academic leaders who can empower others to be successful in their endeavors at WSU, in their disciplines, and in their communities.

The ALA is a one-year program designed for represented faculty and staff who have some knowledge and experience working toward the mission of WSU and in their areas of expertise and are prepared to build their capacity to be more effective leaders at WSU in their disciplines, departments, schools/colleges/units, and/or communities, in either formal and informal leadership roles. Program participants, known as ALA Fellows, will build on their emerging leadership skills by applying what they learn during the Academy to their current roles as well as to a leadership project or special focus of their choice.

Dr. Turner's leadership project revolves around The "Warrior Forward" Student Success Ecosystem, which is a strategic leadership initiative designed to create a more connected and coordinated approach to student success at Wayne State University. The project focuses on integrating academic support, career readiness, wellness services, and experiential learning into a unified model that better supports students from enrollment through graduation and into their professional careers.

Initially piloted within Athletics, the initiative uses the student-athlete experience as a structured environment to test and refine systems that can later scale across the broader university community. The project seeks to move beyond siloed services by fostering intentional collaboration among Athletics, Academic Affairs, Student Affairs, Enrollment Management, Financial Aid, and Career Services.

Key components include aligning early-alert and academic intervention systems, embedding career development milestones throughout the student experience, proactively integrating wellness and mental health resources, and strengthening support for first-generation and underrepresented students during critical transition points.

At its core, Warrior Forward reflects the belief that student success is a shared institutional responsibility. The long-term vision is to create a sustainable, university-wide ecosystem that improves persistence, student well-being, academic achievement, and post-graduate outcomes while reinforcing the university's mission of access, opportunity, and transformational education.

Print Friendly Version