The purpose of this study was to establish justifications for leadership academies and examine the effectiveness of athletic leadership academies in fostering good character from the perceptions of head coaches and administrators currently at institutions with Peak Performance leadership academies. The participants were athletic administrators and head coaches at seven Jeff Janssen Sport Leadership Academies; the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill, University of Pittsburgh, Yale University, Illinois University, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem State University, and Baylor University. The instrument was a survey created by the researcher with factors that the respondents rated on a Likert scale of one to five. The highest ranked justifications for leadership academies were the need for good character development for leaders and the importance of the responsibilities of team captains. The components of the leadership academies that were found most valuable were the mission statement, the educational programs and workshops offered for student athletes, and the idea of continuing education for student athletes. The results found one significant finding of the difference of means between male and female respondents for the provisional value of the leadership academies. The significance in the non-significant findings is that the idea and programs of the leadership academies are not as well projected as originally believed.