USM's Athletic Training Education Program Awarded National Accreditation
The University of Southern Maine's undergraduate program in athletic training is becoming more popular as athletes and others involved in physical activities look for professional guidance on how to prevent, treat and rehabilitate injuries.
And the program, which opened its doors in 1997, has just become the first in Maine to be granted a full, five-year accreditation by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP). "This recognition was won very quickly," said USM President Richard Pattenaude. "It's unusual for programs to receive initial accreditation in just five years from program conception."
"We are especially pleased because the five-year CAAHEP accreditation certainly makes our graduates even more attractive to employers in what is becoming a very solid job market," said Professor Brian Toy, director of USM's Athletic Training Education program and Department of Sports Medicine.
USM students graduating with a major in athletic training, which is offered through the Department of Sports Medicine, are eligible to take the National Athletic Trainers' Association's Board of Certification examination. The association represents 22,000 athletic trainers across the country. Successful completion of this examination enables the Certified Athletic Trainer (ATC) to meet athletic training state licensing requirements throughout the country, including licensing requirements for Maine.
The USM program features the Athletic Training Laboratory, a newly renovated 1,500 square foot facility, that along with an 800-square-foot athletic training room, gives students clinical opportunities treating athletic injuries using state-of-the-art equipment. There currently are 24 students enrolled in the program.
"Athletic trainers are becoming more in demand," said Jay Myers, one of USM's clinical instructors of athletic training, "as not only athletes but others involved in regular physical activities look for clinical help in preventing and treating injuries." Last year, Myers served as an athletic trainer at Lake Placid, N.Y., working with Olympic athletes as they prepared for the 2002 Winter Games.
The Department of Sports Medicine, which is part of USM's College of Nursing and Health Professions, offers a Bachelor of Science degree in Sports Medicine with majors in Athletic Training, Health Fitness, and Exercise Physiology. The department is headquartered on the Gorham campus in the Costello Sports Complex, which is considered one of the finest indoor sports facilities in northern New England. In addition to the academic facilities associated with the Department of Sports Medicine, the complex includes the Hill Gymnasium, a new fitness center, a field house with a six-lane, 200-meter track, and an ice arena that has the only Olympic-sized rink in Maine.
For more information, call 780-5782 or visit www.usm.maine.edu/sportsmed/atm.html
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