NATA Now

Each year, the NATA Executive Council for Education recognizes members who exemplify excellence in the field of athletic training education through the Sayers “Bud” Miller Distinguished Educator Award. Named in honor of the first chair of the NATA Professional Education Committee, the award recognizes those who have excelled in promoting athletic training education beyond the local level through service and publishing on athletic training issues.

By Dana Bates, PhD, LAT, ATC, and Jessica Moore, EdD, LAT, ATC

In 2019, the NATA Education Advancement Committee, under the NATA Executive Council for Education, created the Continuing Professional Development in Educational Scholarship Grant to help a researcher gain a new skill or collaborate with a partner in order to move their research agenda forward. The goal of the grant is to expand the number of individuals performing the educational research needed to move the profession forward.

Over the past several months, the NATA Board of Directors, along with at-large appointments from the NATA Ethnic Diversity Advisory Committee, has worked with a DEI consultant in association management to develop and align around organizational commitments. These guiding principles provide a foundation for enhanced infusion of diversity, equity, inclusion and access throughout our organization.

The first event of its kind, the 2021 NATA Secondary School Sessions – held virtually Wednesdays and Thursdays, April 21-May 13 – will provide attendees a unique educational experience designed to advance patient care and enhance policies in the secondary school setting.

The NATA Executive Council for Education began its search for a new chair in July 2020. Former NATA Professional Education Committee Chair Brian Vesci, DAT, ATC, was selected as the new ECE chair and will start his term in June 1.

Vesci has been involved with NATA education efforts for a number of years as a member of the PEC, including serving as PEC chair for the past three years. He said he was drawn to education and wanted to be the ECE chair because it would offer him a greater platform to service the profession and affect positive change.

The April NATA News features content related to athletic training education, including an article by the AT EducATionalist Cabinet about students’ perspective on education during the COVID-19 pandemic.

When the COVID-19 pandemic took hold in March 2020, Broadway went dark and theaters across the country closed, forcing performers and dance companies to figure out how to navigate the unknown circumstances ahead of them.

According to the old adage, “The show must go on,” and that’s just what Louisville Ballet has been able to do thanks to the efforts of its dance medicine team, including athletic trainer and KORT Physical Therapy Director of Sports Medicine Kevin Brown, MEd, ATC.

There is a lot happening at NATA! Stay up to date on what’s to come each month in advocacy, engagement and development in this NATA Now blog series. Check out what else is in store for April, and follow our communication channels throughout the month for more information!

Watch the accompanying video as NATA President Tory Lindley, MA, ATC, discusses NATA’s virtual conferences and other education-related opportunities taking place in April and year-round at NATA.

Advocacy

The March NATA News features an article about women in leadership and how to address barriers and challenges to becoming a leader. In honor of Women’s History Month this March, NATA would like to keep this conversation going through a monthlong blog series highlighting our female leaders. Each blog will feature a different NATA council or committee chair, who will share insights into their leadership journey and what they’ve learned along the way.