SEATA HALL OF FAME
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JAMES L. "JAY" SHOOP - 2008
James L. “Jay” Shoop, a 38-year veteran of the sports medicine profession, returned to Georgia Tech in 2002 as Director of Sports Medicine after a year as the Head Athletic Trainer for the Detroit Lions. Jay oversees all areas of the sports medicine program for the Yellow Jackets' 17 varsity sports. He previously served as Tech's Director of Sports Medicine and Head Athletic Trainer from 1987-1999. He first went to Georgia Tech in 1987 after a two-year stint as Head Athletic Trainer for the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He also served two years (1983-84) as Head Athletic Trainer of the Michigan Panthers of the USFL, and seven seasons as an Assistant Athletic Trainer for the Atlanta Falcons with NATA and SEATA Hall of Fame member Jerry Rhea.
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A native of Wise, VA, Jay earned a B.S. degree from East Tennessee State University in 1970 and a master's degree in 1976 from Furman, where he was Head Athletic Trainer for six years (1970-76). Jay served as the Chief Athletic Trainer for the Olympic Village for the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games, and also as the Head Athletic Trainer for the 1994 Goodwill Games in St. Petersburg, Russia.
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Jay has served as the SEATA Annual Clinical Symposium Program Chair from 1979 to 1981 and has presented on a variety of topics over several years. He has served several years as the District IX representative to the NATA History and Archives Committee and as chair of the SEATA History and Archives Committee. From 1995 to 1996, he served on the Ethics Committee and on the Reimbursement Committee from 1990 to 2000. He also served several years as President of the Atlantic Coast Conference Sports Medicine Society. An avid collector of historical sports memorabilia, he authored the official History of the Southeast Athletic Trainers Association in 1988. Most recently Jay served as the Co-Host of the 2006 NATA Annual Meeting in Atlanta, GA.
Jay earned the NATA 25 Year Award in 1992, and was the 1998 recipient of the SEATA Award of Merit. In 2002, he was inducted into the East Tennessee State University Athletic Hall of Fame and received the NATA Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer Award in 2004. The Georgia Athletic Trainers’ Association inducted Jay into their Hall of Fame in 2007.
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Jay is married to the former Anne Brockman of Greenville, S.C., and the couple has a daughter, Farrah, and a son, Lynn, a daughter-in-law, Meredith, one grandson, Logan, and one granddaughter, Summer Faye.
JERRY LYNN ROBERTSON - 2008
Jerry Lynn Robertson began his athletic training career as a student athletic trainer at East Tennessee State University in 1960. Upon completing his B.S. in Physical Education in 1964, he worked one year as a Graduate Assistant Athletic Trainer at Mississippi State University while earning an M.Ed. in Administration. In 1965, he returned to ETSU as the Head Athletic Trainer and continued until 2003. During this time, he developed and implemented one of the first undergraduate Athletic Training Education Programs in SEATA and served as both an Instructor and as the Curriculum Director since the inception of program. He also developed and implemented the ETSU Graduate Assistant High School Outreach Athletic Training Program. Since 2003, Jerry has been the Director of the Watauga Orthopaedics Sports Medicine Foundation in Johnson City, TN.
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Jerry joined SEATA and the NATA in 1965 and was certified in 1970. He has been extremely active in service both to his local community and to the profession. This service includes numerous presentations to several local coaches and civic clubs as well as the Tennessee State HPER Convention and several universities throughout the south including the University of Georgia, Clemson University, and the University of Florida. He has also served as a faculty member and speaker at numerous Cramer Sports Medicine Camps and hosted several Sports Medicine Camps at East Tennessee. He has been a member of the Mountain Empire Sports Medicine Society since 1993. From 1986 through 1994, he presented on several topics at the SEATA Annual Clinical Symposium and the SEATA Annual Athletic Training Student Symposium.
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Jerry was elected President of SEATA in 1988, and served in this role until moving up to District Director in 1991, where he served on the NATA Board of Directors until 1994. He has worked as the NATA Liaison for public relations, secondary schools, and scholarship awards. Previous to this, he served on the NATA National Membership Committee from 1965 to 1970. He has also been an editorial advisor to the NATA News. His involvement on the state level has included membership on the Committee for State Licensure and the State high School Committee for Athletic Trainers.
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Jerry has been recognized for his leadership and service at all levels. At ETSU the Jerry Robertson Scholarship Award was established in his honor in 1981, and he was inducted into the East Tennessee State University Pirate Club Hall of Fame in 1983. He received the East Tennessee State University Distinguished Faculty Award in 1995, and in 2002, the Jerry Robertson BucSports Athletic Medicine Center was named in his honor. He was honored by the Tennessee Athletic Trainers’ Society with the Gene Smith/Mickey O’Brien College Athletic Trainer of the Year Award in 1990, and was inducted into the TATS Hall of Fame in 1995. In 1994, he received the Fellowship of Christian Athletes Julian Crocker Influence Award. He earned the NATA 25 Year Award in 1990 and SEATA provided him with its highest award, the Award of Merit in 1994. Jerry was recognized with the NATA Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer Award in 1997.
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JAMES H. "JIM" MACKIE - 2008
James H. “Jim” Mackie graduated from the University of Florida with a degree in Physical Education in 1974 and received a Masters degree in Education with an emphasis in School Health from Eastern Kentucky University in 1975. He was certified as an Athletic Trainer from the National Athletic Trainers Association in 1975, and licensed by the State of Florida in 1995.
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His work experience includes: Assistant Athletic Trainer at the University of Florida (1975-1988); Braintree Hospital Outpatient & Sports Medicine and Brockton High School (1988 – 1992); Riverside Hospital & Baptist \ St. Vincent’s Health System (1992-1999); and HealthSouth Rehabilitation and Sports Medicine (2000- 2002). He returned to St. Vincent’s Rehab & Sports Medicine in the fall of 2002, where he currently serves as an Athletic Trainer. He served as a volunteer ATC at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, as well as coordinated medical services for numerous events such as the GATE River Run, The Jacksonville Marathon, the PGA-MS 150 Bike Tour, Hoop It Up, and others.
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Jim has been recognized with the following awards: the Backbone Award from the Southeastern Athletic Trainers Association (SEATA) in 1985, the Athletic Training Service Award from the National Athletic Trainers Association (NATA) in 1997, the Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer Award from NATA in 2004, and the District Award from SEATA in 2006. He helped to organize the Athletic Trainers Association of Florida, where he served as President for 6 years and Vice-President for 2 years. He was inducted into the Athletic Trainers Association of Florida Hall of Fame in 1999. Currently, Jim serves as Treasurer for the National Athletic Trainers Association District 9 / Southeast Athletic Trainers Association. He previously served for 5 years as Secretary for SEATA, and has served on the Placement Committee and the Public Relations Committee for District 9 of the NATA.
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He and his wife, Debbie, serve in Jacksonville as local Program Directors for HOPE worldwide, an international charity that changes lives by harnessing the compassion and commitment of dedicated staff and volunteers to deliver sustainable, high-impact, community-based services to the poor and needy. He has served as a volunteer with the National Multiple Sclerosis Society and the 2005 Super Bowl Host Committee as well. Jim also served 2 years on the Board of Directors for the Jacksonville Church of Christ in 2005-2006. He was appointed by former Florida Governor Jeb Bush to the Board of Athletic Training for the state of Florida in 2006, and continues in that capacity today. Jim currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Jacksonville Sports Medicine Program and chairs its Public Relations Committee. He has presented topics for numerous schools, clinics, and other organizations on injury prevention, care, & rehabilitation. Jim and Debbie have 2 children and 5 grandchildren.
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CHUCK KIMMEL - 2008
Born in Hopkinsville, Ky., Chuck Kimmel grew up in Frankfort, KY where he graduated from Franklin County High School in 1972. He served as a student athletic trainer for the University of Kentucky football team for three seasons and for the Wildcats' 1976 NIT basketball championship club his senior season in 1976. He then moved to East Tennessee State University where he earned his master's degree and later became a full-time Assistant Athletic Trainer before being only the second athletic trainer hired by Austin Peay State University in 1981. He quickly built one of the most respected athletic training programs in the region. For years, Cramer Products, the industry leader in sports medicine supplies, chose Austin Peay as host to the annual Student Athletic Training Workshops. In 1990, Chuck was appointed APSU's assistant athletics director.
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At the same time, Chuck was becoming one of the leaders in his profession. Chuck served as Exhibits Chairman for SEATA from 1981 to 1992, and also served as President of the Tennessee Athletic Trainers' Society (TATS) from 1989-93. In 1992, he was elected Secretary/Treasurer by SEATA and served in that position to 1997 when he began a three year term as SEATA President. In 2000, he began the first of two terms as the District IX Director. He was elected NATA Secretary/Treasurer in 2001, and chaired NATA’s Finance and Investment Committees. He was also Board liaison to the College/University Athletic Trainers’, College/University Student Athletic Trainers’ and Convention committees. He served as Co-Chair of the Host Committee for the 2000 NATA Convention in Nashville. Chuck began his first term as NATA President in 2004, and will complete his second term in June 2008.
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In 1988, Chuck was recognized with the District Award from SEATA. TATS selected him as the Eugene Smith/Mickey O’Brien College Athletic Trainer of the Year in 1991. The NATA provided Chuck with the Athletic Training Service Award in 1997, the 25 Year Award in 1999, and named him NATA Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer in 2002. In January 2002, Chuck was inducted into the TATS Hall of Fame, and in 2005, received the President’s Award of Merit from TATS. In 2005, he received the SEATA Award of Merit and was inducted into the Austin Peay State University Athletic Hall of Fame in 2006.
Chuck retired from Austin Peay in 2007, and accepted the position of Injury Clinic Director and Instructor for Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina. He and his wife, Patty, have three grown children, Chad, Meredith and Adam.
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MARYBETH HORODYSKI - 2008
MaryBeth Horodyski, EdD, ATC has a long history of service to the athletic training profession. Beginning as a regional representative for NYATA, MaryBeth has been active in the NATA for 27 years, with 16 of those years in both SEATA and ATAF. She has served on the SEATA Executive Board for 11 years, and has represented SEATA as President of District IX since 2006. Her extensive leadership in SEATA includes serving as co-chair for the Research and Education Committee (3 years), SEATA Secretary/Treasurer (5 years), and SEATA Treasurer (4 years). Nationally, MaryBeth has served 7 years on the NATA Graduate Education Committee, the Secretary/Treasurer Committee (9 years), and served on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Athletic Training. She has also served as Florida’s Research and Education Foundation State Representative (6 years), and was selected as Public Relations Chair for the NATA Research and Education Foundation.
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Both her peers and the public have recognized MaryBeth for her contributions. She is a recipient of the SEATA Award of Merit (2006) and the SEATA District IX Award (2002). She has been awarded the NATA Service Award (2000), the ATAF College/Professional Athletic Trainer of the Year Award (1997), the Bronze Gator Award for community service from the Gainesville Sports Organizing Committee (1997), and the Superior Civilian Service Award, and Medal from the US Government (1992). In 2004 she was honored with the NATA Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer Award and was inducted into the ATAF Hall of Fame.
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She graduated from Lock Haven University (PA) in 1982 with a B.S. in HPERD and Athletic Training. She completed her master’s degree in exercise physiology at Iowa State University while working as an athletic trainer for the Athletic Department. MaryBeth then served at the US Military Academy, West Point, NY for eight years, first as Assistant Athletic Trainer and later as Head Athletic Trainer in the Department of Physical Education. While at West Point, she earned an Ed.D. in applied human physiology at Columbia University.
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In 1992, MaryBeth joined the University of Florida faculty in the Department of Exercise and Sport Sciences, where she served as Director of the Graduate Athletic Training Program and was the Director of the Athletic Training/Sports Medicine Outreach Program, which serviced 12 high schools, a community college, a community/industrial setting, and 2 campus locations. MaryBeth’s strong interest in research led her to collaborations with faculty from the Department of Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation, which resulted in a joint appointment in that Department in 1997. In August 2002, she accepted the position of Director of Research for the Department of Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation and a joint appointment with the Department of Physical Therapy. In addition to facilitating research for all the faculty in her Department, she supervises research for orthopaedic residents, and continues her own research. Recently funded studies have compared techniques for moving a spine-injured athlete and ways to prevent heat illness in football players performing in a warm environment. MaryBeth has coauthored or edited three books and has published 57 papers in peer-reviewed publications. She was an author on approximately 120 abstracts presented at professional conferences and has delivered 20 additional speeches or seminars at the national and international level. Dr. Horodyski is a frequent speaker for the SEATA Athletic Training Student Symposium (15 years, 25 presentations), NATA symposiums, and numerous other professional organizations.
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MaryBeth has served as an athletic trainer in settings as diverse as high school, college (Divisions I and III), and the military. As a supervisor, she has mentored over 130 certified athletic trainers in these arenas and in industrial settings. For over 20 years, MaryBeth has served her local communities in roles such as Medical Coordinator for the Florida High School State Track Meet (4 years), Florida High School State Football Championships (3 years), Florida Sunshine State Games (2 years), and the Florida Special Olympics (1 year).
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MaryBeth and her husband, Bob, reside in Gainesville, FL with their three children: Nicole (age 20), Bobby (age 17,) and Jonathan (age 10).
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FRANK GRIMALDI, JR. - 2008
Frank Grimaldi, Jr. is a board certified orthopedic surgical physician assistant for Jewett Orthopaedic Clinic in the Orlando, FL area transitioning to the Jacksonville Orthopaedic Institute in another month. Prior to his current career as a PA-C, Frank worked as an athletic trainer since 1975. He began first as a student athletic trainer, then as a graduate assistant at Northern Illinois University, where he graduated in 1978 with a B.S in Education, and an M.S. in Education in 1979 . He then was an athletic trainer at United Township High School in East Moline, IL from 1979 to 1983, the University of Maryland from 1983 to 1989, the University of Miami from 1989 to 1993, and Miami Sunset Senior High School in Miami, FL from 1993 to 2002. He has since earned an A.S. Degree as a Physician Assistant from Miami-Dade College in 2004 in Miami, FL. He also received a Masters in Medical Science from Nova Southeastern University in 2004 in Ft. Lauderdale.
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Frank has served and continues to serve on a number of state, district, and national committees and boards for the athletic training profession, including President of SEATA from 2000 to 2003, President of Athletic Trainers Association of Florida (ATAF) from 1997 to 2001, and Board of Directors for the Quad Cities Athletic Trainers Association from 1982 to 1983.
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Frank has won a number of athletic training awards, including induction into the ATAF Hall of Fame in 2004, the SEATA Award of Merit in 2003, the NATA Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer Award in 2000, ATAF Athletic Trainer of the Year in 1998, NATA Athletic Trainer Service Award in 1996, and ATAF High School Athletic Trainer of the Year in 1994. As a physician assistant, Frank was awarded the Distinguished Service Award from the Miami-Dade College Physician Assistant Program in 2004 as well as the Director’s Leadership Award from Miami-Dade College Physician Assistant Program in 2004.
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Frank has worked at a number of international athletic events, including the Greek International Baseball Team for the “B” Pool International Baseball Championships in Nagykanizsa, Hungry in 2002 where he served as Head Athletic Trainer, Medical staff for the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, GA, and athletic trainer for the 1990 Lacrosse World Cup in Perth, Australia for the USA team. He also served as a professional legal consultant for several medical cases involving athletes who died from sports-related heat illnesses.
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Frank’s prior speaking engagements include CORA Continuing Education Program 2006, ATAF Annual Symposium in 2002 and 2006, SEATA Athletic Training Student Symposium in 2001 and 2002, NATA National Convention in Los Angeles, CA in 2001, high school athletic trainers clinics from 1981 to 1983 and 1992 to 1994, Career Days for high school and grade school students from 1983 thru 1993 and Coaching Clinics 1979 thru 1982.
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Frank has been married to Mary Kay for the past 24 years; they live in Winter Park, Florida.
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DAVID T. GREEN - 2008
David T. Green, 54, is in his 23rd season at the helm of the Tennessee Tech University athletic training program and soon will celebrate his 32nd year in the profession. Beginning his tenure at Tech as a one-man operation, he has been the driving force behind growing the University's sports medicine program and expanding the scope and quality of services available to student-athletes.
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David was a student athletic trainer at Middle Tennessee State prior to earning a Bachelor's Degree in Health, Physical Education and Recreation in 1975. He then worked as a Graduate Assistant Athletic Trainer at Eastern Kentucky University before receiving his M.A. in Health Education in 1977. After spending the next three years at Paul G. Blazer High School in Ashland, KY he returned to EKU as Assistant Athletic Trainer from 1980 to 1985 before beginning his tenure at Tennessee Tech.
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In 1987, he was responsible for creating and naming the Dr. William C. Francis Training Complex in recognition of Dr. Francis’ 30 years as team physician.
In addition to serving on several Tennessee Athletic Trainers' Society committees, David served as the TATS Vice-President from 1994 to 1998 and President from 1998 to 2002, which lead to his service on the SEATA Executive Board during the same years. He served on the NATA Board of Certification as a Member representing SEATA from 1981 to 1987, and was President of the Ohio Valley Conference Athletic Trainers’ Association in 1983, 1989, and 1991. David has served as the SEATA Exhibits Chair and on the SEATA Site Selection since 1993. During the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, David was a volunteer, working in the main Athletic Training room at the Olympic Village. He was co-host to 10,000 in attendance at the NATA Annual Meeting and Clinical Symposium in Nashville in 2000. Currently, he serves on the Special Awards Subcommittee of the NATA Honors and Awards Committee.
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In 1994, David was named the Eugene Smith/Mickey O’Brien College Athletic Trainer of the Year by TATS. In 1996, he received a NATA Athletic Training Service Award and earned the NATA 25 Year Award in 1997. In 2003, David was inducted into the Tennessee Athletic Trainers' Society's (TATS) Hall of Fame and was named NATA Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer. In 2006, he received the TATS President’s Award of Merit.
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David and his wife, Brenda, have two daughters, Danielle (21) and Kaycee (17).
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BOB GOODWIN - 2008
Robert “Bob” Goodwin, a 1963 graduate of Gulfport High School in Gulfport, MS, began his career in 1967 as a teacher/athletic trainer at Baker High School in Baker, LA after graduating from the University of Southern Mississippi in the same year. In 1971, he moved to the same position at Central High School in Baton Rouge where he continued until 1974. He then became the Athletic Trainer at Southeastern Louisiana University in 1974 where he remained until retiring in 2006. Bob now works at Zelden Physical Therapy in Covington, LA.
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Bob has been very active in the profession including working on the athletic training staffs of the Special Olympics World Games at LSU in 1983, the New Orleans Saints Training Camp in 1985, the Atlanta Falcons Training Camp from 1986 until 1997, co-hosting the 1992 Olympic Trails in New Orleans and co-hosting the 1993 NCAA Track and Field Championships in New Orleans. He has also served as the host Athletic Trainer and Co-Chairman of the Medical Committee for the Louisiana Special Olympic Games from 1976 to 1989, as well as the Louisiana Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness from 1995 to 1998. Seeing the need for athletic training education, Bob was instrumental in the implementation of an accredited Athletic Training Education Program at SELU and subsequently served as a part time Instructor and Clinical Supervisor for six years.
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Bob was a charter member of the Louisiana Athletic Trainers’ Association and has served in numerous roles including Director of Professional Education, Vice President, and President. He was also a charter member of the Louisiana Sports Medicine Society, which later recognized him with the Jim Finks Award for Outstanding Contributions to Sports Medicine in 1999. He has attended 28 consecutive Louisiana Athletic Trainers’ Association Annual Meetings and has also served on their Hall of Fame Committee for 26 years and the Program Committee for 10 years. He has served on several SEATA committees including the Site Selection Committee, College & University Athletic Trainers Committee, the History & Archives Committee and the Hall of Fame Committee. He has provided numerous presentations to the Louisiana Athletic Trainers’ Association in addition to hosting the 25th Annual Summer Symposium. He has also presented several times at the SEATA Annual Clinical Symposium and the Annual Athletic Training Student Symposium. From 1982 until 1998 he was a regular faculty member of the University of Southern Mississippi’s Student Athletic Trainers Workshop.
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His contributions have been recognized through induction into the Louisiana Athletic Trainers Hall of Fame in 1992 and the Southeastern Louisiana University Athletic Hall of Fame in 2006. SELU also recognized him with the Outstanding Non Classified Employee for Service in 1999. SEATA awarded him the District Award in 1999 and the College/University Athletic Trainer Award in 2005. He received the NATA 25 Year Award in 1995.
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CHRIS A. GILLESPIE - 2008
Chris A. Gillespie is in his 26th year at Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama. He is the Director of Athletic Training Education and an Assistant Professor of Exercise Science & Sports Medicine. He served as Head Athletic Trainer from 1982-1999 and Assistant Athletic Director for Sports Medicine from 2000-2003. Gillespie has been the Director of the Athletic Training Education Program since its inception in 1985. In 1988, Samford’s program became the first of its kind in Alabama and in a Southeastern private institution.
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Gillespie earned his Bachelor of Science in Education degree from Mississippi College in 1980. He earned his Master’s Degree in Education from Northeast Louisiana in 1981.
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Gillespie was President of the SEATA from 2003-2006. He served as President of the Alabama Athletic Trainers’ Association and on the SEATA Executive Committee from 2001-2003. From 1995-2002, he was a member of the NATA College and University Athletic Trainers’ Committee and Chairman of the SEATA CUATC. In 2006 he was appointed to the Inter-Associational Task Force on Sickle Cell Trait in Athletes. He served on the SEATA Awards Committee from 1993-1998. In the mid-1980’s, he was a co-founder of the SEATA Student Symposium. Gillespie served on the Alabama Board of Athletic Trainers from 1993-2003 and was Vice-Chairman from 1995-2003.
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Gillespie has received numerous honors including the SEATA District Award, the NATA Athletic Training Service Award, the SEATA Education/Administration Award, and the 2006 NATA Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer Award. He was inducted into the Alabama Athletic Trainers’ Hall of Fame in 2002.
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In addition to his professional responsibilities, Gillespie is the Founder and Executive Director of TEAM 413, a ministry for runners. Founded in 2003, TEAM 413 travels to marathons across the country sharing their faith. Chris has run over 40 marathons and half-marathons with TEAM 413. In addition, he has given presentations on running injuries to thousands of runners at marathon seminars across the United States.
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The 49-year-old native of Pontotoc, Mississippi has two daughters, Morgan, 23, Ashley, 21 and two step-children, Gerrit, 10 and Hanna, 8. He and his wife, Kiki, make their home in Calera, AL.
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R.T. FLOYD - 2008
R.T. Floyd is in his thirty-fourth year of providing athletic training services for The University of West Alabama. He currently serves as Director of Athletic Training and Sports Medicine for the UWA Athletic Training & Sports Medicine Center, Program Director for the CAATE accredited athletic training education program, and as Chair and Professor in the Department of Physical Education and Athletic Training. Previously, he served on the Blue-Gray All-Star Football Classic athletic training staff for 27 years.
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A native of Montgomery, AL, R.T. is a 1974 graduate of Lowndes Academy, where he served as athletic trainer for all sports for four years. He received a B.S. in Physical Education from UWA in 1980 and a M.A.T. in Physical Education in 1982. In 1995, he completed an Ed.D. in Human Performance Studies at the University of Alabama.
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In addition to his NATA membership, R.T. is a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist and a Certified Personal Trainer in the National Strength and Conditioning Association. He is also a Certified Athletic Equipment Manager in the Athletic Equipment Managers’ Association, a member of the American College of Sports Medicine, the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine, the American Osteopathic Academy of Sports Medicine, the American Sports Medicine Fellowship Society, the Sports Physical Therapy Section, and the American Alliance for Health, and Physical Education, Recreation and Dance. Additionally, he is licensed as an Emergency Medical Technician in Alabama.
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R.T. has maintained an active career in the profession, attending every NATA convention since 1975 and every SEATA Clinical Symposium since the first was held in 1976, as well as numerous other professional meetings annually. He was elected District IX Director in the spring of 2004, and again in 2006. Through his work on the NATA Board of Directors, he has served as liaison to four committees and two task forces. He served two years as the NATA District IX Chair on the NATA Research and Education Foundation Board before being elected to his current position as the Member Development Chair on the Board. He served as the District IX representative to the NATA Educational Multimedia Committee from 1988 to 2002. He served as the Convention Site Selection Chair for District IX from 1986 to 2004 and has directed the annual SEATA Competencies in Athletic Training Student Symposium since 1997. He has also served as a NATA BOC examiner for well over a decade and as a Joint Review Committee on Educational Programs in Athletic Training site visitor several times. Currently, he serves as the SEATA webmaster and editor of the SEATA Newsletter and SEATA eBlast News. He has made over a hundred professional presentations at the local, state, regional and national level. He is the author of the textbook Manual of Structural Kinesiology and has also had several articles and videos published related to the practical aspects of athletic training.
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R.T. was presented the Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer Award by the NATA in 2003 and received the NATA Athletic Trainer Service Award in 1996. He received the District Award from SEATA in 1990 and the SEATA Award of Merit in 2001. In 1996, he was presented the Alumni Achievement Award by the University of West Alabama National Alumni Association in recognition for career and civic achievements. In 1997, the UWA Faculty and Board of Trustees recognized R.T. for outstanding achievement in scholarship, teaching, and leadership by presenting him with a Loraine McIlwain Bell Trustee Professorship. In 2001, he was inducted into the Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi and the UWA Athletic Hall of Fame. He was inducted into the Alabama Athletic Trainers Association Hall of Fame in May 2004. In 2005 he was inducted into the Iota Tau Alpha Athletic Training Honor Society and he received the NATA Sayers "Bud" Miller Distinguished Educator Award in 2007.
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R.T. is married to the former Lisa Neville of Butler. They have four children, Robert Thomas, 23, Jeanna, 22, Rebecca, 20, and Kate, 9.
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JOHN H. ANDERSON - 2008
John H. Anderson began his career as Head Athletic Trainer at Auburn High School in 1966 after completing his B.S. at Auburn University in 1963 where he lettered in track and field and cross country. He subsequently completed an M.S. at Auburn University in 1967 before moving on to Troy University as the Head Athletic Trainer in 1967 where he remained until 1979. While at Troy he completed an M.Ed. in 1969. From 1979 through 1989 he served as the Head Athletic Trainer at Louisiana State University before returning to Troy in 1989 where he continues today as the Program Director for Athletic Training Education. In this role he has received the Ingall’s Award for Excellence in Classroom Teaching from Troy.
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John has been member of the NATA since 1966 and became certified in 1970. His credentials also include licensure as an EMT in both Alabama and Louisiana. John has worked numerous international events including the 1976 Olympics in Mexico, the 1970 World Games, the 1983-1985 Olympic Sports Festivals, the 1987 Pan American Games, the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, and the 1983 World International Special Olympics. He also served as the Head Athletic Trainer for the Blue-Gray Football Classic 1971-1979 and has been the Head Athletic Trainer for the Alabama All-Star Football Classic from 1990 to present.
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He has contributed through several service clubs including the Troy Exchange Club and the Troy Lions Club where he served as president in 1978. He chaired the Alabama Athletic Trainers’ Association Hall of Fame Committee from 1990 to 1998. He has served as the District IX representative to the NATA Memorials Resolutions Committee since 1999, and in 2000, he began serving as the Alabama representative to the SEATA History and Archives Committee which he has chaired since 2004.
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John received the SEATA District Award in 2001 and the Education/Administration Award in 2007. In 1990, he received the NATA 25 Year Award followed by the NATA Athletic Trainer Service Award in 1997. He was also named NATA Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer in 2006. In 2005, John founded the Iota Tau Alpha Honor Society – an honor society for Athletic Training Education Majors which currently has 25 chapters and 500 members.
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