MIKE FERRARA- 2012

Dr. Michael Ferrara is Associate Dean of Research in the College of Education and Professor in Kinesiology at University of Georgia.  He received his doctorate degree from Penn State University, Masters degree from Michigan State University and undergraduate degree from Ithaca College.

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Mike has been very active in research and has published in leading sports medicine journals.  He is active in research and has published extensively in leading journals regarding sport-related concussion and exertional heat illness.  He has received grants to support his research, the most recent to study environmental factors and the risk of exertional heat illness in interscholastic football players in Georgia.  He has given numerous lectures around the world to include Japan, China, and Europe.  Ferrara has been active professionally at the state, regional, national and international levels most recently serving as President of the World Federation of Athletic Training and Therapy and he is on the Board of Certification.

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Mike has been involved in international sports as both a leader and clinician.  He was director of medical operations for the Atlanta Paralympic Games (1995-96) and director of medical services for the 1992 Barcelona Paralympic Games and United States Disabled Sports Team at the World Athletics Championships (1994).  He also was the athletic trainer for the 1990 World Games, 1987 Pan American Games, 1985 Olympic Festival, 1983 World University Games an the 1982 National Sports Festival.

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​Ferrara has been recognized for his leadership and scholarship throughout his three-decade career.  He was inducted into the NATA Hall of Fame, Class of 2009, and he was named a Fellow in the National Athletic Trainers’ Association in 2008 and in the National Academy of Kinesiology in 2003.  Recently, Ferrara was named a 2010 Fulbright Scholar to Ireland where he taught in the athletic training program and to research sport-related concussion at Dublin City University, Ireland.  Previously, Mike received the NATA Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer Award in 2003, the NATA Educational Council Sayers "Bud" Miller Distinguished Educator Award in 2001, and the 2006 SEATA Education Administration Award.

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​Mike and Linda have been married for 30 years and they have 2 children, Megan and Nick.

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TIM McLANE - 2012

Lloyd Timothy (Tim) McLane, MBA, ATC, LAT is currently the Manager of Athletic Training for the Georgia Health Sciences University Sports Medicine Center in Augusta, GA.  He oversees the outreach program including its marketing, contracting, and integration with the Sports Medicine Center Rehabilitation and Physicians Clinic where they educate residents, Sports Medicine Fellows, and other health care graduate students.  Born and raised the son of a Navy family, Tim spent most of his time in the Jacksonville, FL area.  He began his road to Athletic Training while a freshman at Case Western Reserve University but transferred back home to the University of Florida.  While there he helped establish the Student Injury Care Center to offer Athletic Training Services to the school’s intramural athletes.  After graduation he worked for The Physical Therapy Center in Gainesville and Lake City, FL.  He then took a position at the University of Pittsburgh where he was involved in research and consulting with some of the staff in Moscow for medical care of marathon competitors.  

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Tim then began the Sports Medicine Program at St. Vincent’s Medical Center back in Jacksonville.  Building an outreach program and the business side of Athletic Training became his passion.  While there, he was asked to be a part of the process to form legislation for the practice of Athletic Training in Florida.  Along with Ross Davis, he helped bring about the passage of a bill for just that.  During the time he was asked to begin his involvement with SEATA on the Governmental Affairs Committee.  This led Tim to his involvement on the NATA Governmental Affairs Committee and the Chair of the NATA Reimbursement Advisory Group.  Tim has also lectured at the annual SEATA meeting on the Business of Athletic Training to introduce the concept in a series of workshops.  He participated in assisting the host Committee at the 1996 NATA annual meeting in Orlando.  With the passage of the practice act in Florida, McLane was the Chair of the task force appointed by the state, and then became the First Chair of the Board of Athletic Trainers appointed by Governor Jeb Bush.  He has been involved with the 1996 Olympics as part of the ACOG organization.  Tim also has been involved with gymnastics at all levels in Florida, the Southeast, and a member of the USA Gymnastics Medical Staff since 1996 as well.  That involvement resulted in him  accompanying the World University Games staff to Thailand.

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Tim’s dedication and service to the profession have been recognized by his being inducted to the ATAF Hall of Fame in 2004, 2000 – NATA Athletic Trainer Service Award, 1996 – Recognition from ATAF for Legislative efforts and success, 1995 – ATAF Athletic Trainer of the Year, 1993 – ATAF Clinical/Industrial Athletic Trainer of the Year.

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CRANDALL WOODSON - 2013

Crandall Woodson served as the first student athletic trainer at Sturgis High School in 1973.  He was first exposed to sports medicine by legendary Hall of Fame Athletic Trainers Jim Goostree, Bubba Porche, Doc Harrington, and Jim Gallaspy at the Cramer Athletic Training Course at the University of Southern Mississippi in 1974.  He earned an athletic training scholarship at Mississippi State University in 1975 under Hall of Fame Athletic Trainer Doug May.  Crandall completed Emergency Medical Technician training in 1977 and then completed and was certified as one of the first paramedics in the State of Mississippi.  Crandall was certified in Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) in 1978 and later served as an ACLS Instructor at the University of Mississippi Medical Center.  He also served as Head Athletic Trainer for the prestigious B/C All Star Basketball Camps in Georgia, Indiana, and Maryland until 1985.  Upon earning his BS degree from Mississippi State, he completed Masters work at Murray State University under the direction of Tom Simmons in 1983.  Crandall was named as the first Assistant Athletic Trainer at Murray State.  In 1985, he was hired at Georgia Tech working under Hall of Fame Athletic Trainers Bill McDonald and Jay Shoop.  In 1992 he received the SEATA Backbone Award.  Crandall also served as an athletic trainer for the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta.

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In 2000, he entered the medical sales field and became Distributor for Breg and later Bledsoe products.  His athletic training background has helped drive his company to Distributor of the Year honors.  Crandall also served as the athletic trainer for the movie “Remember the Titans” and enjoyed a working relationship with Ryan Gosling and Denzel Washington.

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Crandall has served on the Honors & Awards Committee at SEATA since being selected by Tim Kerin in 1987 and succeeded Doug May as Chairman of the Committee in 1992.  He has also been active on the national level serving on the Hall of Fame subcommittee and Specialty Awards subcommittee.

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RAY CASTLE - 2014

Ray Castle, a native of St. Joseph, LA, received his Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology from LSU in 1990, and master and doctoral degrees from the University of Southern Mississippi (1993; 2000). He completed his education/training in athletic training at LSU and received his athletic training certification in 1991.  Dr. Castle is the Athletic Training Program Director and Associate Professor of Professional Practice in the School of Kinesiology at Louisiana State University, a position he has held since 2002.  He has been a BOC Certified Athletic Trainer since 1991, LSBME credentialed athletic trainer (LAT) since 1994, and is an American Red Cross Instructor since 2005.  Castle has an extensive background in education, clinical practice, and professional service.  In athletic training education, he led LSU's efforts in obtaining its first ever CAAHEP-accredited athletic training program in April 2004.  Dr. Castle's clinical practice background has included experiences at the clinic (Baton Rouge Physical Therapy; Lake Charles Memorial Sports Medicine), high school (Catholic High School in Baton Rouge), college (University of Southern Mississippi; University of Louisiana-Lafayette), and international (1996 Atlanta Olympic Games; USOC Sports Medicine Staff for 2003 Pan American Games; and 2004 US Women's Bobsled) levels.  Dr. Castle has been a highly active member of the athletic training profession, having made numerous presentations and authored publications at the local, state, national and international levels, as well as served on various organization committees at state, district, and national levels.  

 

Dr. Castle has served on a number of committees over the years for the LATA, including vice president.  On the district level, Castle served SEATA in various capacities including Co-Chair of the Southeast Athletic Trainers' Association Annual Athletic Training Student Symposium, as well as serving on the SEATA Corporate Partnership Committee and SEATA Athletic Training Educators Conference Planning Committee.  At the national level, he has served as chair of the NATA Educational Multimedia Committee, NATA Education Council Executive Committee, NATA Research and Education Foundation Board of Directors as the District IX Board Member, and as Commissioner on the Commission on Accreditation for Athletic Training Education (CAATE).  He is the recipient of several awards including SEATA Chuck Kimmel Award of Merit (2011), SEATA Education/Administration Award (2009), NATA Athletic Trainer Service Award (2007), SEATA District Award (2005), LATA Charlie Martin Ten-Year Service Award (2003) and Twenty-Year Service Award (2013), and the Athletic Trainers' Association of Florida (ATAF) College/University Athletic Trainer of the Year Award (2001).  Outside of the profession, Castle’s service includes the Capital Area Chapter of the American Heart Association and various departmental, college, and university-wide committees/councils.

 

He and his wife, Katherine, live in Baton Rouge with their son, William.

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LEROY MULLINS - 2014

Leroy Mullins retired from the Athletic Department of The University of Mississippi in January of 2004 after serving 29 years in positions of Athletic Trainer, Director of Insurance and Wellness, and Director of Sports Medicine. He served 50 plus years in the Athletic Training Field with stints at Southwest (MS) Community College, Eastern Kentucky University, Mississippi State University, The University of Tennessee and Ole Miss. Leroy, a native of Natchez, Miss., began his career at Southwest Community College, before spending the next three years at Eastern Kentucky while earning his BS degree. He left Eastern Kentucky in 1965 for Mississippi State, where he spent the next eight years, including one year as a graduate assistant while earning his Master’s degree, two years as Assistant Athletic Trainer and five years as Head Athletic Trainer. Leroy left Mississippi State for Tennessee where he served as Associate Head Athletic Trainer in1973 and 1974. In January of 1975 Leroy joined the staff at The University of Mississippi. A retired certified member of the National Athletic Trainers’ Association and a former member of the Professional Education Committee of the NATA, Leroy is a frequent lecturer on Athletic Injuries at seminars, meetings, and workshops held throughout the United States. He is also a member of the Southeast Athletic Trainers’ Association and Mississippi Athletic Trainers’ Association. He taught in the University’s Health Science Department on the main campus of Ole Miss and the University Medical Center in Jackson, MS. In 1993, Leroy was inducted into the Eastern Kentucky University Hall of Distinguished Alumni.

 

In 1994, he received the first Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer Award given by the National Athletic Trainers’ Association. In 1996 he received the Tim Kerin Award which is probably the most prestigious Award given by the National Athletic Trainers’ Association. In 2001, Leroy received the Contribution to Amateur Football Award from the Ole Miss Chapter of the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame, while also receiving the Award of Merit from the Southeast Athletic Trainers’ Association. In 2004 he was inducted into the Mississippi Athletic Trainers’ Hall of Fame after serving several positions in this association. In 2007 Leroy was inducted into the Southwest Community College Athletic Hall of Fame. He and his wife, Barbara are parents of two children, Tim and Renee.  Tim retired as Athletic Trainer at Ole Miss and he and his wife, Stephanie, are the parents of three sons.  Renee and her husband Will, reside in Columbus, MS and the parents of one son.  

 

Leroy’s hobbies include camping, watching NASCAR auto racing and spending time with his four grandsons, Jonathan, Micah, Hayden and Garrison.

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STEPHANIE LENNON - 2015

Stephanie A. Lennon, MS, ATC, LAT is currently working as the Head Athletic Trainer and health/physical education teacher at Oak Ridge High School in Orlando, where she has been employed for the past 26 years.  Stephanie is also an adjunct instructor for the Athletic Training Program at the University of Central Florida.  She received her Bachelor’s degree from the University of Florida and her Masters’ degree from Troy State University.  Though the high school setting is where most of Stephanie’s employment history lies, she has experience in the collegiate, clinical and professional settings, as well.

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Stephanie began her volunteerism for the profession with the BOC as a Host Athletic Trainer, Test Materials Coordinator and Test Site Administrator.  She was also part of the Certification Exam Writing Committee and became an Examiner Qualification Facilitator.

 

Stephanie was appointed as the SEATA Representative to the NATA Secondary School Committee on which she served for six years.  She was also a member of the NATA Inter-Association Task Force for Pre-Season Heat Acclimatization Guidelines for Secondary School Athletics.  Stephanie was appointed by Governor Jeb Bush to the Florida Board of Athletic Training in 2000, and served as the co-chair from 2004 until her election as ATAF President in 2006.  Stephanie began her involvement in ATAF as the Century Club Chair.  She also served on the Governmental Affairs Committee in the early years when the association was pursuing licensure.  Stephanie served as the High School Committee Chair for nine years and was a member of the Education Committee.  She served as the ATAF President from 2006-2012.  Stephanie was an Executive Board Member for SEATA and was assigned to several SEATA committees during her tenure. She currently serves on the SEATA Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer Award Committee and is the SEATA representative to the NATA’s Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer Award Committee.

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In addition, Stephanie has been a preceptor for student athletic trainers with Valdosta State University and the University of Central Florida.  She served on the Concussion Task Force for the state of Florida which was instrumental in drafting concussion legislation for high school and adolescent athletics.  Stephanie accomplished the distinction of National Board Teaching Certification in 2003.

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Stephanie has received several awards throughout her career including the NATA Service Award and Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer Award, ATAF High School Athletic Trainer of the Year Award, ATAF Athletic Trainer Award, and is an ATAF Hall of Fame Inductee.  She is also a University of Florida College of Health and Human Performance Hall of Fame Member.

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NICK PAPPAS - 2017

​Nick Pappas has enjoyed the experience of forty-six years in athletic training. Currently, in addition to his duties on the athletic training staff at Florida State University, he is an adjunct instructor in the athletic training curriculum.

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He has been active with state and national associations working to improve the athletic training profession. Nick was the first president of the Georgia Athletic Trainers Association after serving as chair of the Executive Committee, authoring the organization’s charter constitution and bylaws. Serving as Chair of Governmental Affairs and Strategic Planning for the Tennessee Athletic Trainers Society, he represented their professional interests in the Legislature, and had a major role in the revision of the state practice act. Nick made significant contributions in the reimbursement setting in Tennessee, crafting the strategy to lobby Blue Cross/Blue Shield, which resulted in the insurance giant changing its policy and procedures to recognize certified athletic trainers as allied healthcare providers in Tennessee. 

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During two terms as President of the Tennessee Athletic Trainers Society, he sat on the SEATA Executive Board, working on and chairing several committees which oversaw a major revision of the SEATA Constitution and By-Laws as well as the development of the SEATA Mission and Vision Statements. In September, 2005, he was elected to the Executive Board of the Athletic Trainers Association of Florida, serving as Panhandle Area representative. In addition, he served as SEATA Parliamentarian in 2006 -2007. Appointed in 2013 by the Governor to the Florida Board of Athletic Training and serving as its chair, Nick continues meet with state officials, legislators and others to educate, promote and to protect the athletic training profession. Recognized for his dedication and efforts numerous times, in January, 1992 he was named as the Clinical/Professional Athletic Trainer of the Year by TATS. In 1996, he was one of fifteen individuals chosen as the first recipients of the NATA’s Athletic Trainer Service Award. In March, 2000, SEATA bestowed the District Award for outstanding contributions and service with distinction to the profession. In January, 2006 Nick was inducted into the TATS Hall of Fame. He was honored as the 2007 recipient of the Presidents’ Award of Merit given by the TATS. Nick received the ATAF President’s Award in July, 2015 for his work on their legislative taskforce as chair and principal author of legislation that revised the Florida athletic training practice act. He was inducted into the NATA Hall of Fame in June, 2012. And, in 2016, he was the recipient of the NATA’s William T. Griffin Award for Outstanding Leadership in Legislative Advocacy.

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TOM SIMMONS - 2017
Tom Simmons began his athletic training career in 1957 as a student athletic trainer at the University of Detroit. In 1961 he became an assistant athletic trainer at the United State Military Academy at West Point. In 1962 he returned to the University of Detroit as an assistant athletic trainer and during that time was Assistant Athletic Trainer with the Detroit Lions. In 1963 he became Head Athletic Trainer at the University of Detroit and also worked with the Detroit Pistons of the NBA. In 1964 he accepted the head athletic trainer position at Murray State University and remained in that position until his retirement from the athletic training room in 1993. He taught for two more years until his retirement.

Tom was a charter member of the Southeast Athletic Trainer Association, the Kentucky Athletic Trainer’s Society and the Ohio Valley Conference Athletic Trainers Association.

In 1990 he was accorded the highest honor Murray State Athletics can bestow when he was inducted into the MSU Athletic Hall of Fame. In 1993, he was awarded the SEATA District Award and in 1997 he received the NATA Athletic Trainer Service Award. He was a member of the National Athletic Trainers’ Association since 1993.

In October 1994, Murray State dedicated the Tom Simmons Athletic Training Room to honor the man who brought athletic training to Murray State.

Tom was always an active teacher and proponent of athletic training and was instrumental, along with other athletic trainers in the state at that time, in the development and passage of Kentucky’s athletic training legislation in the early 1970’s. This leadership has been valued by athletic trainers from the local to the national level.

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MIKE WILKINSON - 2017
Mike was born in Hawaii but raised entirely in the South. He went to high school on the Mississippi coast and attended and graduated Tulane University in 1978 under HOF Athletic trainer Bubba Porche. He began his “certified” career in Texas as a High School athletic trainer the following year. While there, he received his Masters degree at Lamar University in Health Education. After seven years in the high school setting, he accepted the challenge to start a high school athletic trainer outreach program under Dr. David Drez in Lake Charles, LA. He was later promoted to Research Director for Dr. Drez’s educational residency and fellowship programs in his Clinic.

In 1989, he returned to Mississippi as Outreach Director at Mississippi Sports Medicine and Orthopaedic Center. He worked tirelessly in 1991 to help lobby the State AT Law which passed on the first attempt with only three “nay” votes out of both houses. He has served the MATA on the Executive Board for three terms in two different positions.  Additionally, he served on several State and SEATA Committees.

On the national level, he served on the NATA Foundation Board of Directors and on the NATA Political Action Committee Board of Directors, both for two terms each. While on the Foundation Board, District Nine led all districts in financial collections four out of six years and on the PAC Board, SEATA led all districts for every year of his four year representation.

After many years of volunteer service to the USOC, Mike was selected as part of the United States Medical team for the 2000 Summer Olympic Games. That followed his two week evaluation at the USOC Training Center. He was then selected for assignments for the Summer World University games in Fukuoka, Japan, Summer Goodwill Games in NYC, Pan American Games in Winnipeg, Canada and finally the Summer Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia.

He has been selected as the National Federation of High Schools (NFHS) National Distinguished Contributor Award (only one given annually), he was inducted into the MATA Hall of Fame and selected for the Mississippi Association of Coaches Hall of Fame. He has received the NATA Athletic Trainer Service Award, NATA Foundations’ Lifetime Contribution Award, SEATA R.T. Floyd District Award, SEATA Chuck Kimmel Award of Merit, and the SEATA Most Distinguished Athletic
Trainer Award.

Mike has been married for 38 years to his wife Barbara, and has three girls; Maury Hallman, Amy Larson and Megan Wilkinson.

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DONNA WESLEY - 2018

Donna Wesley, MS, LAT, ATC, is a native of Birmingham, AL; she is the only child of Don and Alice Wesley.  Her first experience with athletic training and sports medicine came as a high school athlete when she injured her knee.  Donna is a 1989 graduate of Briarwood Christian High School where she played volleyball and soccer and was manager/statistician for the basketball teams.

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After graduation, she enrolled at The University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa and started the Athletic Training Program.  During her time at The Capstone, she was able to work with volleyball, gymnastics, and had the honor and privilege to be one of the first female athletic training students to work with Alabama Football.  She was part of the student athletic training staff for the 1992 National Championship team.  Donna credits her educators and mentors during this time for preparing her and instilling the value of professional service; those mentors associated with The University of Alabama include NATA Hall of Famers William “Bill” McDonald, Kenneth Wright, Ron Courson, and R.T. Floyd, and ALATA Hall of Famers Sherry Kimbro and Henry “Sang” Lyda.

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After passing her Board of Certification Exam and graduating in May 1993, Donna joined the staff of The University of Mississippi as a Graduate Assistant Athletic Trainer and completed her Master of Science degree in Wellness in 1995.  During her time in Oxford, she worked with legendary Head Athletic Trainer Leroy Mullins and assistants Spence Fletcher, Lynette (Schwartz) Johnson and Jeff Moore. 

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Ms. Wesley has worked as an outreach Athletic Trainer for North Mississippi Medical Center since August 1996.  During her employment, she has provided athletic training services for several area schools and presently serves as the Head Athletic Trainer for Itawamba Community College where she also serves as an adjunct instructor.

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Donna’s professional service began serving as Secretary for the Mississippi Athletic Trainers’ Association (MATA) in 2000.  In 2004, she was elected MATA president, a role she served until 2012.  In 2009, she helped oversee the update to the Mississippi Athletic Training Practice Act.  She served as the first committee chair of the NATA’s State Association Advisory Committee; currently, Donna serves as SEATA Secretary, a role she has held since 2015.

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In June 2017, Donna was inducted into the MATA Hall of Fame.  She is the 2014 recipient of the SEATA Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer Award and the Chuck Kimmel Award of Merit, 2011 NATA Athletic Trainer Service Award, 2010 SEATA District Award, and the 2008 recipient of the Jack Davis Professional Achievement Award in Athletic Training from the University of Alabama, College of Human

Environmental Sciences.

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In her spare time she enjoys spending time with family and friends, fishing and cooking.

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