The board of directors of the National Athletic Trainers' Association, a not-for-profit organization representing 30,000 members of the athletic training profession, has selected Kenneth Knight of Brigham Young University as the chair of its Education Council, ending a six-month-long search.
"Ken is prepared to address the next phase of our educational program," says Chuck Kimmel, NATA president. "He recognizes the ongoing, important issues, such as the makeup of clinical experiences for students, and will address them during his term."
Knight's official duties will begin in June 2005. As the new chair, Knight will oversee the council, which is responsible for facilitating ongoing quality improvement in entry-level, graduate and continuing athletic training education.
He brings to his new post decades of experience in the classroom and on the field. He is a former editor of the quarterly scientific Journal of Athletic Training; a recipient of the National Athletic Trainers' Association Distinguished Educator Award; and the first recipient of the NATA Research and Education Foundation's Clancy Medal for Research. In 2001, he was inducted into the NATA Hall of Fame and in 2004 into the Utah Athletic Trainers' Hall of Fame.
Knight is a professor of exercise science and director of the Human Performance Research Center at BYU. He received his associate degree from Dixie College; two bachelor's degrees from Weber State; and a doctoral degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia.
"I love being an athletic trainer and truly believe health care across the board is better because of our work," Knight says. "Certified trainers lead in aggressive rehabilitation, and that's become the standard. We really make the world a better place."
