Katie Lever ran track and cross country for Western Kentucky University from 2012-17, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in Communication Studies and master’s degree in Organizational Communication. She is currently a doctoral candidate at the University of Texas in Austin’s Moody College of Communication, where she studies NCAA discourse in the field of rhetoric and language. Her research focuses on athlete rights, issues in intercollegiate athletics, and college sports reform. Over the course of her graduate career, she has presented her research at three national conferences and authored/co-authored two book chapters. In her spare time, she is a freelance sports writer for LRTSports.com, an online resource for prospective college athletes dedicated to transparency and educational empowerment in collegiate athletics. Her work has also been featured in Tropics of Meta, FanSided, Extra Points, and Forbes. As a member of the Drake Group’s educational working group, she is a passionate advocate for college sports reform. In June of 2021, Katie became the first Chief Communications Officer of The Drake Group.