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New Jersey athletic trainer receives state, national recognitions

Article reposted from NJ.com
Author: Community Bulletin

Washington Township High School athletic trainer Eric Schwartz  has been selected as the recipient of two prestigious awards within his field.

Schwartz is among a group of winners of the National Athletic Trainers Association (NATA) Athletic Trainer Service Award, and the sole winner of the Athletic Trainers Society of New Jersey’s (ATSNJ) Distinguished Service Award for 2018. Schwartz was nominated for the awards by WTHS head athletic trainer Tanya Dargusch. The duo have worked together since Schwartz joined the department in 2011.

“Eric is very deserving of these awards,” said Dargusch, who won the NATA Service Award in 2008 and the ATSNJ Distinguished Service Award in 2007. “He has been a leader in the athletic training profession, on both the state and national levels. He carries that same excellence in the work he does here with our athletes at Washington Township.”

The prestigious NATA Athletic Trainer Service award recognizes NATA members for their contributions to the athletic training profession as a volunteer at the local and state levels. Recipients have been involved in professional associations, community organizations, grassroots public relations efforts and service as a volunteer athletic trainer.

Schwartz and his fellow NATA award recipients – 20 years as a member of NATA is required – will be recognized during the general session at the 2018 NATA Convention in New Orleans on June 28 at 3 p.m.

The ATSNJ Distinguished Service Award goes to a member with a minimum of 10 years of experience as a certified/licensed athletic trainer in New Jersey and focuses on achievement and service within the state.

“We congratulate Eric on another fine honor recognizing the work he does with our student-athletes at WTHS, also noting the work he does for the ATC profession across the State of New Jersey and our country,” Washington Township Director of Athletics Kevin Murphy said. “What an awesome year 2018 is shaping up to be for Eric and his family. We’re thrilled to have him working at WTHS.”

Prior to coming to Washington Township, Schwartz was head athletic trainer at Allentown (N.J.) High School (2005-11) and Notre Dame High School in Lawrenceville, N.J. (2000-05), and an athletic trainer at West Windsor-Plainsboro (N.J.) High School from 1999-2000.

Throughout his career, Schwartz has been heavily involved in local and national organizations for the advancement of athletic training. He currently is the president of the Jersey Athletic Trainers Political Action Committee Board of Directors. He’s a past president of ATSNJ, where he served on numerous committees, including the conference committee, government affairs, secondary schools, and wrestling rules.

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Valdosta State’s Bobby Tucker Joins Georgia Hall of Fame

Article reposted from The Valdosta Daily Times
Author: The Valdosta Daily Times

The Georgia Athletic Trainers Association (GATA) announced the induction of Charles R. (Bobby) Tucker, licensed athletic trainer and certified athletic trainer, to its Hall of Fame on Wednesday — the highest honor given by the association.

The Hall of Fame induction ceremony will take place at the GATA annual conference in Macon on Jan. 20.

The bulk of Tucker’s career has been spent at Valdosta State University, where he has served many roles in his time there, beginning as a student manager/athletic trainer from 1970-75.

Tucker returned to VSU as a men’s assistant basketball coach in 1978 and served in the role until 1986, when he began a 20-year run as an athletic trainer and professor for the school.

In 1990, “Coach Tucker” as he is known at VSU took on the job of faculty athletic representative for the athletic department before also becoming the department’s compliance director in 2006, all while continuing to teach for the university and serve as an athletic advisor.

He retired from Valdosta State in 2014, but Tucker continues to help out in the athletic department as an advisor. That same year, he was inducted into the Valdosta State Athletics Hall of Fame. Tucker received the GATA’s Warren Morris Sports Medicine Person of the Year Award in 2007.

The Georgia Athletic Trainers’ Association is an organization committed to education of its members and enhancement of the profession of athletic training, leading to better healthcare for the population which it serves. The GATA is proudly composed of licensed athletic trainers in many different settings.

Over 1000 licensed athletic trainers from professional, collegiate, and high school teams to industries, physician offices, and rehabilitation clinics all work together to promote and practice the profession of athletic training within the state of Georgia.

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ATHLETIC TRAINER JIM GOSSETT INDUCTED INTO EATA HALL OF FAME

Article reposted from Columbia Athletics
Author: Columbia Athletics

Columbia University Associate Athletic Director for Sports Medicine and Head Athletic Trainer Jim Gossett has been inducted into the Eastern Athletic Trainers Association Hall of Fame and ’49 Club, the organization announced on Monday. He was honored before nearly 1,500 athletic trainers, athletic training students and other healthcare providers at the EATA’s 70th annual awards banquet held Saturday evening at the Sheraton Hotel in Boston.

 

The EATA’s ’49 Club was established to recognize illustrious members of our profession whose contributions have been significant, substantial and long-standing. These individuals have shaped the profession through their exceptional accomplishments and dedication to service, leadership and professionalism. This award is considered the highest honor presented at the EATA Annual Meeting.

 

One of the best-known and highly honored athletic trainers in the nation, Gossett is in his 39th year at Columbia. He administers a staff of eight full-time assistants that work with all 31 Columbia teams. He has worked with most of Columbia’s teams but has been particularly identified with football, soccer, fencing, rowing and wrestling.

 

As a well-known athletic trainer in the New York Metropolitan area, Gossett was selected to serve as a spokesperson for Gatorade, Inc., and the National Athletic Trainers Association. His role is to promote healthy practices to prevent heat-related illness during the hot weather months, and to serve as a resource, including on-air interviews with CBS, NBC, ABC and Fox television affiliates in the New York area. The New York State Board of Regents reappointed Gossett to the State Committee for Athletic Trainers. His 15-year appointment was to the State Board for Professions, which regulates athletic trainers in New York State.

 

On the national scene, Gossett worked as the head athletic trainer for the United States fencing team in the 1991 World University Games in Sheffield, England and spent two seasons as the athletic trainer of the U.S. National Lightweight Crew. He was the athletic trainer for rowing at the 1988 Olympic Sports Festival and for track & field at the 1987 Festival and Pan American Games. He also spent four summers as an athletic trainer for the ABCD/Nike basketball camps.

 

In 2004, Gossett was presented the Dan Libera Service Award for outstanding contribution to the Board of Certification. He was honored by the National Athletic Trainers Association with the Most Outstanding Athletic Trainer Award in 2003, for which he was nominated and chosen by his peers, and received the All-American Football Foundation’s Outstanding Athletic Trainer Award. Previously, he had been honored by the New York State Athletic Trainers Association with the Thomas J. Sheehan, Sr. Award, its highest honor, and by the Eastern Athletic Trainers Association (EATA) with the Joseph A. Blankowitsch Award. A former president of the EATA, he was further honored with the 1994 Cramer Award for outstanding service, presented by Cramer Products in conjunction with the EATA.

Gossett was one of the original athletic trainers selected as an “Eye in Sky” for the National Football League. His role over the past six years has been to spot mechanisms of head and neck trauma during the New York Giants home games. As part of the NFL’s attempt to identify concussions sustained during games, Gossett’s role has continued to evolve and the program has grown. Gossett was privileged to be selected to work at both Super Bowl LXVII in New Orleans and Super Bowl LXVIII in New Jersey.

An Indianapolis, Ind. native, Gossett attended Indiana State University, graduating in 1978. He joined the Columbia staff in August 1979, shortly after receiving his master’s degree from the University of Arizona.

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Minnesota Vikings Athletic Trainers Honored as NFL Staff of the Year by Peers

Article reposted from Vikings.com
Author: Vikings PR

http://www.vikings.com/media-vault/videos/Vikings-Trainers-Named-Staff-of-the-Year-By-Peers/0d155493-c182-42bc-b90e-b5ecfcd54391

The Vikings athletic training staff was recognized this week as the Ed Block Courage Award NFL Athletic Training Staff of the Year.

All 32 NFL athletic training staffs and membership of the Professional Football Athletic Trainers Society vote on this prestigious award.

The role of the athletic training staff goes unnoticed by most fans of the game, but plays a vital role in the health and welfare of the players and the success of the team. Long hours, thankless work and a varied skill set make the athletic training staff indispensable to any NFL club.

The Vikings have had the fortune of a talented staff and allocation of resources to give the players the best advantages available. The Vikings staff has dealt with injuries are far-ranging as a broken femur, multiple-ligament knee injuries and dislocations.

The staff’s ability to heal the bodies and minds of the players and have them return to the field to continue their careers is a testament to their educations and skills as well as their demeanor and professionalism in the face of pressure and the stress of emergency situations.

The Vikings staff, led by Director of Sports Medicine/Head Athletic Trainer Eric Sugarman earned the award for the first time in their tenure with the Vikings, in Sugarman’s 12th season with the team.

“It is always very gratifying to be honored by your peers,” Sugarman said. “Because of that, we feel that it is the highest of honors. We have always taken pride in treating our players with the respect, honesty and gold standard care they deserve. To be recognized for that is very humbling for all of us.

“This is a team award,” Sugarman added. “The gratitude should go to all of my assistants, and the team physicians, whom I believe are the absolute best in the business. The support of the Wilf ownership group, [General Manager] Rick Spielman, the front office and Coach [Mike] Zimmer is always unwavering. It takes a village to succeed at this job. We are fortunate to have terrific independent consultants, massage therapists, chiropractors and a nutritionist who contribute to our success.”

The Vikings Athletic Training staff includes Sugarman; Tom Hunkele, Coordinator of Rehabilitation/Assistant Athletic Trainer; Rob Roche, Assistant Athletic Trainer; David Jantzi, Assistant Athletic Trainer/Physical Therapist and Albert Padilla, Assistant Athletic Trainer. The staff will be recognized at the Ed Block Courage Award ceremony in Baltimore. The award is only the second in the history of the Vikings franchise. The first recognized Fred Zamberletti and Chuck Barta in 1996.

The Ed Block Courage Award for NFL Athletic Training Staff of the Year is voted on by the PFATS membership and recognizes one NFL athletic training staff annually for their distinguished service to their club, community, and athletic training profession.

Block was the Head Athletic Trainer for the Baltimore Colts from 1954-1977. Block suffered a massive coronary during training camp in 1978. The players that he cared for over his career are the same players that rushed to his aid, performed CPR and saved his life that summer.

Following that incident, he continued to serve as an Athletic Trainer Emeritus with the Colts from 1979 to 1983, where continued to mentor the athletic trainers that followed. Block was inducted into the NATA Hall of Fame in 1974. His tireless contributions toward the health care of the Baltimore Colts, was second to his efforts as a humanitarian. Block made significant contributions to improve the lives of children everywhere. The Ed Block Courage Award Foundation is committed to provide hope for children who are abused and neglected.

 

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Moore to Receive MAATA Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer Award

Article reposted from Washington College
Author: Washington College Athletics

Washington College Director of Athletics Thad Moore, who previously served as the school’s Head Athletic Trainer, will be presented with the Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer Award by the Mid-Atlantic Athletic Trainers Association (MAATA) at that organization’s annual symposium May 19th in Ocean City, Md.

Moore, who still assists as needed with the College’s athletic training efforts and works as an ATC Spotter for the NFL at M&T Bank Stadium, has a long history of service in professional organizations in the field. He served six years as President of the Maryland Athletic Trainers Association (MATA) and is in his 14th year as chair of MATA’s Political Action Committee. He is also currently a member of MATA’s Legislative Committee after serving nine years as that committee’s chair. At the district level, he spent six years as a member of MAATA’s District Council.

Moore was part of a core group of athletic trainers that obtained licensure for athletic trainers in the state of Maryland in 2009. As president, he reinstated the state symposium in 2005 and it is still active today. He also helped create the MATA Hall of Fame, helped organize the honors and awards process, and created the first statewide email group to better communicate with members.

On behalf of MATA, Moore provided athletic training coverage for various state championship events from 2004-2012. He also continues to help provide coverage for the annual Special Olympics of Maryland Unified Sports Bocce Ball Championship at Washington College.

The MAATA Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer Award is the latest of a growing number of honors for Moore. He received the MATA Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer Award in 2012 and a Service Award from MAATA a year later. In 2014, he was named the Division III Athletic Trainer of the Year by the College/University Athletic Trainers’ Committee (CUATC) of the National Athletic Trainers’ Association (NATA) and received a NATA Service Award. In February of that same year, he was one of four recipients of the College’s annual Presidential Distinguished Service Awards.

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North Carolina Athletic trainer Nominated for 2018 Newell Award

Article reposted from Gaston Gazette
Author:  Eric Wildstein
He’s the first to treat school athletes when they’re injured, and he’s by their side until they’re back in play.

Jarrett Friday has been on-site as a certified athletic trainer at all school sporting events at Hunter Huss and Forestview high schools since 2004. He’s one of five such trainers from CaroMont Health who treat athletes at Gaston’s public schools with sports programs. The North Gaston graduate has treated everything from ACL tears to concussions, and he also serves as a mentor educating future athletic trainers and other students through his work.

“It’s just to teach them my life lessons, how to actually be a servant to your community give back to your community and be successful once they leave high school,” said Friday, who also discussed the satisfaction gained from rehabbing an athlete from injury. “You see them at their lowest of lows when they’re hurt. To see them return to full participation after an injury is very rewarding.”

Friday’s dedication to his job and service to the community has earned him a nomination as the regional nominee for The 2018 Newell National Athletic Trainer of the Year Award. Presented in partnership with Gastonia-based Carolina Orthopaedic & Sports Medicine Center and other leading orthopaedic practices nationwide, the award recognizes athletic trainers for the service and leadership they provide local athletic communities.

He will be up against the other regional nominees from across the country to be considered The 2018 Newell Award National Athletic Trainer of the Year, which will be announced in spring 2018. The National Award recipient will take home $10,000 for themselves and an additional $2,500 for their school.

Several other local candidates considered for regional nomination for the award include Tomas Chao of South Point and East Gaston high schools, and Trent Hayes of Gaston Christian School.

Friday earned his undergraduate degree in sport management and athletic training from Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, where he later earned his master of education degree in physical education and health and human performance.

He says it was a career that he never considered before getting to college because North Gaston did not have athletic trainers when he was a student. Then, his college suitemate introduced him to a volunteer program for athletic trainers and it instantly piqued Friday’s interest.

“I volunteered for a week and switched my major just like that,” Friday said. “I was able to be involved in athletics, which I really loved and I was able to do medicine. I just fell in love with it.”

Soon after coming to work in Gaston, Friday and other athletic trainers in the county had a hand in designing new concussion protocols and other advanced methods of treating sports-related injuries. Fast-forward to today, Friday says athletic trainers, along with coaches and others involved in Gaston’s school sports programs, continue to adopt more effective and proactive methods of treating sports injuries.

But Friday says Gaston is the only public school district in the Carolinas where a single athletic trainer covers multiple schools. He hopes to use his platform as a regional nominee to encourage the county to employ a dedicated athletic trainer at each high school with a sports program.

Our athletes are getting bigger, faster, stronger every year,” he said. “Injuries are prevalent. I think it’s a need for the student-athletes. I wish we could move toward that model.”

You can reach Eric Wildstein at 704-869-1828 or Twitter.com/TheGazetteEric.

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Tom Lawrence inducted into the Michigan Athletic Trainers Society Hall of Fame

Article reposted from Albion Britons
Author: Albion Britons

Tom Lawrence, who served as head athletic trainer at Albion College from 1984-87, was inducted into the Michigan Athletic Trainers’ Society Hall of Fame in June.

Lawrence, who has served as the head athletic trainer at Kellogg Community College since 2010, was nominated for the award by his son Andy, the current head athletic trainer for the Britons.

“I got to introduce him (at the awards luncheon),” Andy said. “That was the coolest part. It wasn’t (an audience made up of) only his peers, but mine, as well.”

The younger Lawrence said that while he marvels at how his dad has managed to stay current on the technology, techniques and rehabilitation skills that have changed the profession since Tom earned his master’s degree from Western Michigan University in 1983, the way Tom has developed relationships will be his most enduring legacy.

“I can’t go anywhere without someone talking about how my dad worked with them,” Andy said. “The number of people he’s worked with and the positive comments I receive make me want to continue his legacy, especially when it comes to relationship building.”

Follow the Britons on Twitter: @gobrits

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Ball State alumni inducted into the IATA Hall of Fame

Article reposted from The Daily News
Author: Michelle Kaufman

Neal Hazen’s 31 year career as an athletic trainer has been shaped by a rule that led him to a statewide honor Sunday.

Hazen, a Ball State alumni and current head athletic trainer, was inducted into the Indiana Athletic Trainers Association (IATA) Hall of Fame on Nov 5. He graduated with a physical therapy degree in 1986, the last year Ball State offered the degree as an undergraduate program.

Hazen follows the golden rule when it comes to working with athletes and other trainers– treat others the way you want to be treated. In a field where treating people is the focus, Hazen says the rule has served him well.

“If you can keep that in mind and instill that in the new young professionals, it gets them off to such a good start,” Hazen said. “Because as much as you know, you start to realize there’s a lot more you don’t know. But if you treat people the right way, it goes a long way.”

Hazen worked in Fort Wayne right after graduation, but said the family atmosphere of Ball State brought him back.

“[The atmosphere] was here when I was here as a student and it was a big selling point to me and a big point of what I’ve tried to keep going and our staff has kept going as a team through all of our years here,” Hazen said.

He was involved in sports in high school and college but saw an opportunity to continue his involvement in sports through sports medicine. Hazen was the assistant athletic trainer from 1987 to 1996 before becoming head athletic trainer. Hazen said there have been a variety of personalities, students, faculty and staff throughout the years.

“I think just the culmination of everybody I’ve had the opportunity to work with … I’ve been blessed to have the opportunity to learn from so many people,” Hazen said. “Every day I think is a learning opportunity, and I always try to keep that in mind. If you take advantage of those opportunities, it’s amazing the things that you take away.”

Hazen said he wishes he did more patient care, but still works daily with Ball State’s 19 teams made up of over 400 student-athletes. He’s seen a monumental change in athletic training, as the medical and legal aspect is a lot bigger now, while patient care was a bigger focus in the past.

“We all evolve,” Hazen said. “None of us are the same person, the same athletic trainer today that we were a year ago or even a month ago for that matter … it’s just hard to imagine three decades of being blessed to be in this profession.”

Hazen was nominated for the award by assistant athletic trainer Troy Hershman, who said Ball State has the most alumni or people connected to the athletic training program in the IATA Hall of Fame. Hazen was working at Ball State when Hershman was a student. His earliest memory was meeting Hazen at a football practice

“Being the physical therapist, he was spending more time with patients,” Hershman said. “So if you really wanted to learn something, if you were smart, you hung out with Neal. You would learn stuff from Neal cause he would have more time for you [than some of the other trainers.]”

Hershman graduated from Ball State in 1992 and joined the staff in 2007. He saw the opportunity as a way to give back and also saw the family atmosphere in the program. Hershman said Hazen is highly respected in the program.

“We respect his decisions that he has to make … they’re not always easy decisions sometimes, but I think the mutual respect back to us as professionals and the mentorship he provides our younger staff is really what makes this whole deal really, really special,” Hershman said.

Senior athletic training major Fabian Munoz described Hazen as funny and someone who brings life into a room.

“The first time I ever met him, I was intimidated just by his title and immediately, it was like a breath of fresh air almost because of his personality and how nice he was,” Munoz said. “Working with him and being around him is awesome. He always has good insight and always is complementing and/or giving me tips and tricks on how to better myself as a student and clinician.”

Contact Michelle Kaufman with comments at mekaufman@bsu.edu.

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MSU-Northern’s Nichole Borst honored as NAIA athletic trainer of the year

Article reposted from Montana Sports.com
Author: Richie Melby

Montana State University-Northern’s Nichole Borst was named the 2017 NAIA athletic trainer of the year recently. The accolade came during the annual NAIA national awards day where 21 individuals were honored for their achievements on and off the playing fields.

Borst is the head athletic trainer for the Lights and Skylights, serving the MSU-Northern programs for more than a decade. She has been appointed to the Montana board of athletic trainers and is also a member of the NAIA athletic trainers association, as well as the national athletic trainers association.

Borst’s dedication to the university goes beyond the playing fields. She serves as an adjunct professor in physical education as well as health promotions and secondary health. Borst is also the student success advisor. She donates her time training local EMS workers and emergency room employees, while also education local high school and college coaching staffs.

This marks the second straight year a Frontier Conference athletic trainer has won the award. Lewis-Clark State College’s Tracy Collins was named the winner in 2016.

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Howze named NAIA-ATA Athletic Trainer of the Year

Article reposted from The Daily Citizen
Author: Hamilton Health Care System

The Athletic Trainers Association recently named Sherman Howze, athletic trainer for Hamilton Sports Medicine, the 2016 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA)-ATA Southern States Athletic Conference Athletic Trainer of the Year.

Howze is the athletic trainer for Dalton State College (DSC).

“Sherman is a big part of our success,” said Hunter Hageman, DSC assistant men’s basketball coach. “He relates well to the players.”

Sayvon Wilson, DSC athlete, said Howze is one of the best trainers he’s worked with. “He loves us all,” he said.

This award recognizes a National Athletic Trainers’ Association (NATA)-certified athletic trainer at an NAIA institution who has distinguished himself or herself as a model of the profession of athletic training in personal conduct and professional allied health service to athletes.

Erik Simpson, assistant athletic director at Dalton State, nominated Howze for the award.

“Sherman has lowered the cost of insurance, decreased our injury-rate percentage and called for more stringent drug testing at the NAIA level,” said Simpson.

According to Stephanie Rynas, Hamilton Sports Medicine manager, Howze is humble, hardworking and positive.

“Even having the long hours that being a college athletic trainer requires, Sherman still volunteers to help other staff members and is a true team player,” she said. “He cares about doing the best job he can and getting the best results.”