Senior Sara Morgan selected for Best Buddies International Young Leaders Council

MURRAY, Ky. – Sara Morgan, a senior elementary education major from Louisville, Kentucky, has been selected to serve a two-year term on the Best Buddies International Young Leaders Council (YLC).

The Best Buddies International Young Leaders Council is a leadership program that connects student perspectives with the staff experience to support Best Buddies International initiatives.

Acceptance into the YLC is highly competitive, with acceptance rates ranging from 9% to 20%. This year, nine new members were selected from seven states to serve two-year terms, joining the existing council of 37 members representing 15 states and two countries.

Best Buddies, a student organization at Murray State University, works to promote inclusion. Morgan currently serves as co-president of the Murray State chapter.

The YLC is dedicated to the education and engagement of student leaders, providing emerging leaders with unique opportunities for personal and professional growth. Morgan applied for the program in July 2024 and underwent a rigorous selection process before being notified of her acceptance in September.

"You first submit a paper application with a résumé and cover letter," Morgan said. "From there, you're selected to move on to interview rounds, where it's a camera-off interview. There are two members interviewing you—typically the chair or co-chair, along with a second-year member of the council—and they ask various questions."

During her two-year term, Morgan will work on the council's digital media initiative.

Morgan has been involved with Best Buddies since her freshman year of high school and was encouraged to apply by a former YLC member.

"I was a founding member of the chapter at my high school, and the founding president was actually part of the YLC,” said Morgan. “She reached out to me one day to be part of one of the YouTube videos. It has been in the back of my mind since high school. It was just a matter of finding the right time to apply."

Morgan’s work will focus on increasing engagement on social media, with the goal of reaching a wider audience to introduce more people to Best Buddies and support other chapters.

“Most of what I’ll be working on is increasing engagement on social media to reach an audience we might not normally reach and support other chapters through those platforms,” Morgan said. "Right now, I'm partnered with another council member to work on video editing. She’ll handle the captions to make the content more inclusive."

Selise Ridolfi, faculty adviser for the Murray State Best Buddies chapter and instructor in the special education program, praised Morgan's leadership.

"Sara has excelled as president of Murray State’s Best Buddies chapter," Ridolfi said. "Her appointment to the Best Buddies International Youth Council is well-deserved. She has shown her dedication to the Best Buddies mission by creating opportunities for Murray State students to foster one-on-one friendships with individuals with disabilities in our community. Sara exemplifies the qualities of a leader—her drive, commitment, creativity, and compassion allow her to excel on the Best Buddies International Youth Council."

Morgan expressed excitement about the opportunity and how the skills she gains will benefit her future career in education.

“Best Buddies is what sparked my interest in pursuing a career in education,” Morgan said. “Being able to take what I’ve learned through peer tutoring and Best Buddies and apply it in the classroom will help me create inclusive environments for students. I hope to either open an elementary chapter somewhere or support students with Individualized Educational Plans or 504 plans, particularly those with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and help them succeed in the general education classroom.”