For National Athletic Training Month 2019, we decided to switch it up and incorporate Women’s History Month, which also takes place in March. To celebrate, we highlighted groundbreaking women in athletic training who have made an impact on the profession and paved the way for many others. Check out the ladies below for a look into the history of women in athletic training!
Dorothy “Dot” Cohen
In 1966, Dorothy “Dot” Cohen became the FIRST female member of the National Athletic Trainers Association (NATA). She graduated from Indiana University & was officially granted membership by the NATA before Title IX passed. She helped pave the way for many more female members to join and made a huge impact on the opportunities available to women in athletic training to this day.
Sherry Bagagian
In 1972, Sherry Bagagian, was the first female to sit for the BOC exam. Paving the way for many more women become certified athletic trainers!
Gail Weldon
In 1976, trail-blazer Gail Weldon became the first board-certified female athletic trainer to be hired by the United States Olympic Committee and worked the 1979 Pan American Games. Within her first decade as an associate of the US Olympics, she went on to be the director of atheltic training and physical therapy services and the Medical Director for the games. She was also the first female AT to be inducted into the NATA Hall of Fame in 1995!
Michelle Leget
In 1997, Michelle Leget was the first female to be hired as an Assistant Athletic Trainer in the NBA. This made her the first female AT to establish an athletic training career in a male-dominated professional sport.
Julie Max
Fifty years after the formation of the NATA, Julie Max became the FIRST female President of the organization! Julie has made a huge impact on the profession by mentoring and standing up for her ATs and students, showcasing the effect that advocacy can make.
Marsha Grant-Ford
Marsha Grant-Ford was the first black female to become certified as an athletic trainer, paving the way for many more to come!
Ariko Iso
In 2002, Ariko Iso became the first full-time female athletic trainer in the NFL, hired by the Pittsburgh Steelers!
Sue Falsone
Sue Falsone was hired by the Los Angeles Dodgers and in 2011 became the first female head athletic trainer in the major American professional sports leagues.
Kathy Dieringer
Kathy Dieringer is a trailblazer in athletic training who has helped break down barriers and is one of the first female private business owners in the AT profession. She is an out of the box thinker who constantly challenges the status quo!
René Revis Shingles
In 2018, the NATA inducted the first African American woman, René Revis Shingles, into the prestigious Hall of Fame at the 69th Clinical Symposia & AT Expo in New Orleans.
Thank you for following along all month as we shed light on some of the incredible women who have helped push the profession forward and paved the way for many more to come!
