Sports Medicine Club Co-President Jonah Edley ’26 climbs into the truck, his heart racing as it rolls onto the soccer field. He watches the trainers surround a student who has just taken a hard fall, moving quickly to assess the injury. Edley feels a surge of emotions, concern for the athlete’s well-being, a spark of excitement at being part of the action and determination to do whatever he can to help get the player back on the field safely. He watches each careful movement, from wrapping a sprained ankle to applying ice. Edley realizes the complexity and urgency of every decision, and he is motivated by the tangible impact that his support, no matter how small, can make in the athlete’s recovery and return to the game.

The Sports Medicine Club was founded in the 2023-24 school year and has been continuing to foster learning opportunities to eager students. This club has options for students to participate in clinics and workshops to fuel more hands on learning. Each month, members of this club are required to obtain set observational hours, which could be spent shadowing the Athletic Trainers during practices or games.

With the responsibility of overseeing numerous sports in a single season, athletic trainer Catherine Ogulnick finds the Sports Medicine Club students to be an integral part of supporting both the trainers and the athletes. She acknowledges how the students assist not only by observing, but also by learning how to set up hydration stations, support injured athletes and participate in rehab exercises. Ogulnick believes that their presence allows the athletic trainers to focus on

critical tasks while giving the students hands on experience in injury evaluation, treatment and prevention.

“For the Sports Medicine Club, we have observation hours that the students do,” Ogulnick said. “They essentially come in and they shadow us, and we encourage them to come in during busy times like lunch or after school, or during games. We basically explain everything we’re doing to the injured athletes so that they can develop an understanding of what goes into the job and what knowledge is required.”

Athletic Trainer Joshua Rivera finds that the sports medicine students’ responsibilities extend beyond treating just student-athletes to encompass the care of anyone who gets injured on campus. He acknowledges the many tasks people might not realize the trainers handle, such as being on call for emergencies, managing ongoing rehab sessions, documenting injuries and ensuring that all students are cleared to safely participate in physical activity.

“We’re responsible during the school year for any injuries that take place on campus,” Rivera said. “And it’s not just athletics, sometimes people think that we only treat athletes, but it’s anybody, from elementary kids who get hurt during PE to maintenance workers or a teacher, any injury that happens, most of the time they come to us, so we’re always on standby for that.”

While working under trainers Rivera and Ogulnick, Edley finds that being part of the clubs means more than just assisting during practices and games, but it’s more about directly helping athletes through every stage of their recovery process. Edley recognizes his appreciation of being able to experience firsthand how much effort goes into getting athletes safely back onto the field.

“It’s changed the way I view sports,” Edley said. “Seeing the amount of injuries that can happen in any sport and seeing how athletes feel when they can’t play is a really hard thing for the athlete and for us. So helping the trainers get them back on the field is a really amazing experience.”