Archived Outdoors

WCU athletic training majors help young high school sports teams

out athleticWestern Carolina University’s athletic training major is giving hands-on experience to its students while helping area high school athletic departments, as part of the curriculum.

The program’s 42 students traveled to 12 schools in five counties for clinical experiences in athletic training for football, basketball, soccer and volleyball. 

The four-year program prepares students for state licensing and national certification and has a strong emphasis on experiential learning and service. As soon as they become sophomores, students accepted in the program begin clinical work at designated sites and learn first-hand what a professional career in the field is like.

Four days each week, Tuesdays through Fridays, for seven weeks the students teamed up and traveled in pairs to the schools, where they practiced under the tutelage of certified athletic trainers. They helped the athletic trainers address health concerns of the student-athletes during practices after school, stayed on for night games, and occasionally traveled with the teams to away games, devoting about 150 hours to the experience. In the spring of 2014, they will be assigned to different schools for an additional 200 hours of clinical experience.

In North Carolina, athletic trainers must pass a national exam to be certified and obtain a license. All 14 graduates of the WCU program in the past year passed the test on their first attempt, even though historically, at the national level, fewer than 60 percent do so.

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 828.227.3509.

Smokey Mountain News Logo
SUPPORT THE SMOKY MOUNTAIN NEWS AND
INDEPENDENT, AWARD-WINNING JOURNALISM
Go to top
Payment Information

/

At our inception 20 years ago, we chose to be different. Unlike other news organizations, we made the decision to provide in-depth, regional reporting free to anyone who wanted access to it. We don’t plan to change that model. Support from our readers will help us maintain and strengthen the editorial independence that is crucial to our mission to help make Western North Carolina a better place to call home. If you are able, please support The Smoky Mountain News.

The Smoky Mountain News is a wholly private corporation. Reader contributions support the journalistic mission of SMN to remain independent. Your support of SMN does not constitute a charitable donation. If you have a question about contributing to SMN, please contact us.