Being an athletic trainer has become such an integral part of my life, allowing me to pursue my purpose in life through helping the athletic population. Completing my undergraduate and graduate degrees in athletic training have allowed me to gain immense knowledge and didactic skills that have formed me into the clinician and patient advocate that I am today.

However, I reached a point where I was left feeling unfulfilled, and needed something to help me find my true passions as an athletic trainer. I’ve always known I wanted to teach future athletic trainers, but was unsure in which capacity.

Did I want to be a professor in an athletic training program? Did I want to be a clinical preceptor? Did I want to be both? After coming across ATSU’s Doctor of Athletic Training (DAT) program, I decided this path would undoubtedly provide me with the breadth of knowledge I would need to make these decisions. In the DAT, I have self-defined a track to fit my professional passions, including coursework in leadership, education, orthopaedics, and rehabilitation.

Throughout the DAT program, I have been able to gain a greater and more appreciable level of understanding from various points of view, which has opened my eyes to many aspects of my educational and clinical journey. However, it was at the Winter Institute that I truly regained my spark for athletic training.

As I’ve been completing the DAT, I struggled with where I could see myself going after graduation. Thanks to the Winter Institute, my spark was once again found and I feel more motivated than ever to fully utilize all of my skill sets and educational background to improve the AT profession as a whole. Being surrounded by so many amazing fellow athletic trainers, both students and faculty, provides such a strong energy that is absolutely needed in athletic training as a healthcare profession.