Colorado University Athletics
CU's Walton Attends Black Student-Athlete Summit
January 21, 2019 | Men's Basketball, Neill Woelk, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
BOULDER — This was supposed to be the year that Colorado sophomore Dallas Walton took the next big step in a promising basketball career.
But a knee injury suffered early in fall practice sidelined the Buffs' 7-footer for the season, forcing him to spend the year rehabilitating his knee after surgery for a torn ACL.
But while Walton's basketball career has encountered a bit of a detour, other career development opportunities have arisen as a result. Earlier this month, Walton had the chance to attend the annual Black Student-Athlete Summit on the University of Texas campus.
There, he attended three days' worth of seminars, lectures and discussions centered around issues and opportunities that confront black student-athletes in today's world of college athletics.
"I thought I might as well have the chance to enlighten myself and give myself another opportunity by going to an event like this where I can network and meet a bunch of interesting and cool people," Walton said. "It kind of opened my mind and will also help out the school in terms of diversity and inclusion."
Walton said one of the major focuses of the summit was that student-athletes should take full advantage of the educational opportunities presented. While the thought of a pro career is enticing, there are other options presented to student-athletes that shouldn't go unused.
"What they were telling us at the conference was don't give up the dream of trying to go pro, trying to make it big," Walton said. "That can still be a big dream. But you can also expand your opportunities for yourself by investing yourself in the school … That was one of the big things that was really interesting to me, is that you can expand your opportunities. You don't have to limit yourself."
Walton, a communications major, called the event "mind opening" in terms of looking at his long-term prospects. He said speakers at the summit encouraged student-athletes to pursue advanced degrees,
"None of these were really things that I'd thought too much about," Walton said. "Networking with the people there, talking about fellowships and graduate school was really interesting."
The summit, spearheaded by Leonard Moore, UT vice president for diversity and community engagement, has been an annual event since 2015. Also attending from Colorado were track and field/cross country athlete Madie Boreman and CU Athletics associate director for academics and development Medford Moorer.
According to the event website, the conference "brings together leading scholars and thinkers, high-impact practitioners, and students from around the globe. It offers sessions, workshops, and a town hall meeting that serve to elicit thought, discussion, and ideas that can be implemented to serve and improve the experiences of black student-athletes across the country."
Walton brought back ideas he hopes to share with fellow Buffs as CU continues its emphasis on diversity and inclusion.
"Many black student-athletes here can feel kind of isolated when they first get on campus," Walton said. "It's new for them, especially if they come from a background that's not majority white. Helping those students out can also help them become activists themselves, and help them help the next guy."
One key, Walton said, is to get involved in campus affairs. A point of discussion at the summit was how different schools help black student-athletes progress and develop as part of the overall university community.
"We have to talk to other athletes, get together and talk to each other," Walton said. "Expand your opportunities. You don't have to limit yourself."
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
