Only days after the Athletic Training (AT) program was named the Athletic Trainers of Massachusetts’ “ATC (Athletic Training Certified) of the Year,” admissions were suspended by a Faculty Senate vote last Wednesday, Nov. 19. That such an amazing program at Northeastern could be so undervalued by students and faculty is unfortunate. What is more disappointing is the lack of understanding shown by our fellow classmates, who have yet to realize the impact of this vote.

We may be a small group of students, but we devote countless hours to various clinical and co-op sites in the Boston area and across the country. We treat patients and athletes in middle schools, high schools, colleges, hospitals, outpatient clinics and anywhere else our services can be used in the health-care setting. Through these rotations, students learn firsthand what it means to be a well rounded healthcare provider. What better way is there to combine education and community service into the experiential education on which Northeastern prides itself? To think of the many places where our absence will be missed, where funds are tight and enthusiastic help is hard to find, deeply saddens me.

AT is a young profession; we are still struggling to gain respect at this university and with the public. Similar to Physical Therapists, athletic trainers treat orthopedic injuries like sprains, strains and fractures/dislocations. But this is where our similarity ends. ATs undergo years of specialized training in general medical conditions, emergency care, injury prevention and are qualified to make return-to-play decisions based on clinical judgment.

The arena for research is huge. But as a small undergraduate program in a large university, we have been left to fend for ourselves. Last year, senior AT students began a new capstone project involving case studies and population surveys conducted on campus. I have no doubt that future classes will take advantage of this opportunity when given more time to gain research funding. Too little, too late, I suppose.

To conclude that this process was justly executed is just as misguided. This motion came before the Senate last April, and was met with great opposition and discussion. The motion was tabled due to lack of information and was reintroduced Wednesday with a new rationale. Money was not the issue with the program last April, and justification for suspension included “strategic planning for the future,” not lack of research funding. But now that the economy is fresh on everyone’s mind, it may seem logical to some to say that the AT program is not pulling its weight. Even with all of these “reasons,” we still managed to pack the Faculty Senate meeting with a majority of the students in the program as well as Northeastern athletes, who came to show their support. To them, and all of our patients, we are more than just an extra expense; we are valued members of the sports medicine team.

So now what are we to do? What is Northeastern saying about our program by suspending admissions? Certainly it reflects poorly on it, no matter what the administration says. Will my diploma have value when I graduate and begin my job search? And how does this fit into Northeastern’s strategic plan? Does anyone actually know what this plan looks like? It scares me to think of what is next on the agenda, when students are not allowed to be involved in the administration of their own school.

– Michelle Lewis is a middler athletic training major and co-president of the Athletic Training Club.