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Collegiate Recovery
Leadership Academy

Dedicated to building tomorrow’s leaders and improving recovery support on campuses across the country.

The Collegiate Recovery Leadership Academy (CRLA) is an academic year-long fellowship program for students who are passionate about the intersection of addiction and mental health recovery, leadership, and advocacy. Students who are accepted into the CRLA will implement a recovery focused impact project on their campus, receive advocacy training, attend two in-person events, and be part of a supportive cohort of peers from around the country.

Applications for this year’s CRLA are now closed — thank you to all of our applicants!

I think one aspect of what collegiate recovery means to me is that it's non-judgmental and it respects the diverse experiences of all students regardless of their approach to recovery.
Two words that stand out are inclusivity and community. Just seeing how many different recovery paths there are and what you're in recovery from, that was awesome to see during our time in the academy.

Applicant Criteria

  • Student must be enrolled in post-secondary coursework throughout the duration of the 2023/2024 academic year
  • Student must be interested in addiction and mental health recovery, leadership, and advocacy.

Benefits of the Leadership Academy include:

  • Involvement in shaping the future of recovery
  • Deepen professional and personal development
  • Social justice and advocacy training to create sustainable change
  • Build relationships with other passionate students
  • Two all-expense paid trips to connect with peers and mentors from around the country

Accepted Students Receive:

  • All-expense paid trip to attend the SAFE Project Collegiate Recovery Leadership Academy Summit in Washington, DC (November 2023)
  • All-expense paid trip to attend the SAFE Project Leadership Retreat (June 2024)
  • Support to plan and implement a recovery focused impact project on campus
  • Personalized educational and advocacy training

Testimonials

Before I started my journey with the CRLA I thought that I was alone in my vision to bring addiction recovery awareness to higher education. This program has shown me that is not the case and that I am in fact surrounded by many others who share my values, hopes, and dreams.

Melissa H., Iowa State University

The CRLA gave me a voice. I felt empowered and accepted. I learned that there is value to my lived experience and that my past is my greatest resource. I was able to connect with other students in recovery and feel like less of an imposter. I learned I was not alone and that, if I had the courage, I could make a difference on my campus, and I did, all because the CRLA supported me every step of the way.

-Matthew P., Florida Atlantic University

This was an absolutely incredible program. Not only has this helped to grow our campus program, but I myself have grown. I have gained confidence and been able to connect with people I never would have been able to connect with without this program.

-Lilinoe K., University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa

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