On Friday, April 8th we welcomed over twenty of our preceptors to campus to celebrate their contribution and dedication to our program and students. It is due to these great relationships and connections we have with our clinical sites that our students can learn and experience the profession of athletic training. The ceremony included great conversation and networking, a delicious brunch, and our annual awards.
Our first award is the preceptor of the year award. This award students provide nominations and the faculty meet to determine the final recipient. It is challenging to select just one each year from the great nominations, but this year was Greg Byrd.
Greg is a 2008 graduate of the USF athletic training program and currently serves as an Assistant Director of Athletic Medicine, Director Men’s Basketball. He has been with USF Athletics over eleven years serving in a variety of roles and with various teams. Greg’s primary sport responsibility is the Men’s Basketball program with supervisory responsibility over Baseball and Men’s Soccer. Prior to his current role, he spent time as the Athletic Trainer for the Track and Field, Cross Country, and Men’s Soccer programs. During this time, he has provided care for teams accomplishing two of the highest Big East Conference finishes in USF T&F/XC history with a second place and third place finish respectively for the men & women’s outdoor teams. Byrd has also provided care for USF’s two USA Olympic trial qualifiers & numerous NCAA championship qualifiers.
Outside of his Athletic Training responsibilities, Greg is responsible for the education and development of the Resident Assistant Athletic Trainers. He also is the Director of the USF Sports Medicine Camp & Championships Medical Coverage
Our second award of the day is for Clinical Site of the Year. This year the award went to a site that has always been supportive of our program and students, and it was Saint Leo University in Dade City, Florida. The Saint Leo University Sports Medicine Staff are dedicated to providing the best possible health care for all Saint Leo student athletes. They are under the direction of various USF Health providers.
To learn more visit: https://saintleolions.com/sports/2017/7/13/information-training-index.aspx
The athletic trainers from Saint Leo University include Barb Wilson, Jeff Williams, Jessica Myers, Susan Cross, Kayla Sadlik, and Kevin Rojas.
The end of the brunch concluded with gifts from the program for all attendees, and great conversations amongst preceptors, students, and faculty. We cannot stress enough how important preceptors are to our program. If you are interested in becoming a preceptor or site for our program contact Mathdany Clark, mnoel@usf.edu.