The Emerging Young Leader Award is designed to recognize established and future leaders among recent William Penn University alumni. Standards for recognition include one or more of the following: demonstrated leadership capability, substantial indication of a commitment to service of others, demonstration of potential for leadership/distinction in the long term and a substantial commitment to William Penn University and its mission. The award is open to all alumni who are within their first 10 years of graduating from William Penn.
Madison Lantz-Farris came to William Penn in 2017 from Corona, CA. She knew as soon as she stepped on campus this would be her home away from home. Being a member of the Women’s Golf Team along with her studies, Lantz-Farris learned how to manage her time. She was a member of Alpha Lambda Delta, the freshman honor society. At William Penn, she earned a BA in 2021 majoring in Psychology and Human Services and earned a Master of Sport Management in 2023.
Following her undergrad degree, she worked with Nik Rule, former athletic director at WPU now serving as Commissioner of the Heart of America Conference, collaborating with him in business operations and strategic initiatives as a graduate assistant. Her role expanded to include student-athlete development, gameday creative content, strategic marketing, ticketing and social media. Her ability to create efficiencies within the athletic department was evident.
Lantz-Farris rose to national recognition during the COVID-19 pandemic when she was elected NAIA National Chair of the Association of Student-Athletes (ASA). Included with the National Chair role was serving as Co-Chair of the Council of Student-Athletes and an ex-officio, non-voting member of the NAIA Council of Presidents. She stated, “It was an honor to be elected to this position. I was excited to represent William Penn and the Heart of America Conference, being able to enhance the environment and be the voice for NAIA student-athletes.” Prior to this promotion, Lantz-Farris had been serving as WPU’s Chair of the ASA as well as a representative for the Heart of America Athletic Conference.
She was later promoted to a dual position as Admissions Counselor and Student-Athlete Development & Creative Coordinator on campus before being promoted to Director of Admissions in 2024 at William Penn. Connecting with students is one of her many strengths, promoting and sharing the WP experience to potential Statesmen came naturally.
After a year as Director of Admissions, Lantz-Farris was hired at the Heart of America Athletic Conferences offices as the league’s new Assistant Commissioner of Operations and Strategic Initiatives in 2025. She also will take on the key leadership role at the conferences offices as Senior Woman Leader. In her new role, Lantz-Farris will help guide the Heart’s operational processes, coordinate partnership fulfillment, serve in administrator positions within conference governance and have a key role in enhancing championship leadership from the conference office.
She brings innovation, organization and passion for the student-athlete experience. Under her guidance, this year ASA was developed into a dynamic student-athlete engagement platform, advancing the voice of student-athletes across the conference.
Congratulations, Madison.