Jane Huh
Daily Egyptian
The Faculty Senate approved the abolition of athletic training as a minor Tuesday at the Student Center, a move that came at the request of the National Athletic Training Association (NATA) to eliminate the program.
Yet this decision does not mean much to students at SIUC, because there are no students currently pursuing athletic training minors.
About a year ago, NATA contacted Peter Carroll, acting chairman for the Department of Physical Education, asking to drop athletic training as a minor.
Carroll said the minor does not hold much value in the job market, especially because students who minor in athletic training are required to complete about 61 fewer credit hours and 400 fewer hours in clinical experience compared to athletic training majors.
"The minor is going through an evolution. It is no longer viable; there's nothing they can do with it," Carroll said.
At the time NATA forwarded the recommendation, there were three students who minor in athletic training. Two of them are now majoring in athletic training, and the other student declined to major in it.
Susan Tulis, an Undergraduate Education Policy Committee member, said the University is not taking away the program because of the insufficient enrollment but because the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs required all schools offering minors in athletic training to drop the program.
Carroll said the latest change in the department does not affect students majoring in athletic training. In fact, he said there are more than enough students majoring in athletic training, and the department is high-ranked in the athletic training accreditation process.
Reporter Jane Huh can be reached at jhuh@dailyegyptian.com
Published on 11/17/05; 12:24:44 PM
