Many fall season sports like football, soccer, tennis, and cross country have begun and so has sports med.
While the school’s general focus is mostly on the athletes, sports med volunteers and Mrs. Ennis, athletic trainer and sports med teacher, help to keep things running smoothly behind the scenes. They provide water, mend any injuries, and help all the school’s athletes to perform at their best.
New sports med students have to earn hours by volunteering to help sports teams under the more experienced students. Their time during sports med 1 helps them to learn the skills that they will need when they move up to sports med 2 and 3.
“[Working under more experienced sports med students is] not that bad right now because we’re still learning and it’s a good way to learn. All the mentors are really nice, really supportive and help to educate us even more” says Laura Hill, sophomore.
Sports med 1 volunteers mostly observe rather than participate in any hands-on work. They have a checklist of skills that they must learn from a mentor (a sports med 2 or 3 student) and have them sign-off that they have learned that particular skill.
“I took [sports med] because a lot of people were taking it and I thought it would be fun. I also took it because it could be a possible career and I don’t know what I want to do yet,” says Kasey Quesenberry, sophomore.
Sports med 1 volunteers have only been in school two weeks, but they have already learned many valuable skills that they will continue to use if they continue on the career path of athletic trainer.
“We have [already] learned about CPR, how to save a choking victim, clean mannequins, remove gloves and rescue breathing skills,” says Hill.
While working hard to help Leesville athletes, many sports med students seem to enjoy their job.
“I have really enjoyed learning the lifesaving skills because, in a bad situation, I know what to do and how to help people,” says Rachel Langley, sophomore.
The sports med 1 students are enjoying their first taste of working as an athletic trainer and will possibly continue to pursue a sports medicine career in the future.
