Safety First

Nicolas Santos, MS ’13, ATC, is safeguarding high school players’ futures.

When Nick Santos was a young athlete, he suffered his share of injuries. As he sought professional help, he learned about athletic training. “I had no idea that it was a field of study,” he says.

In college, he got excited about the possibility of helping young athletes like himself, and while at Seton Hall University, completed his Master of Science in Athletic Training degree.

Today, he teaches sports medicine at Yuma High School in Yuma, Arizona, as part of the school’s Career & Technical Education program, and relishes sharing his knowledge. The school district comprises 87 percent minority students, with one of the largest migrant student populations in the nation. Thanks in part to engaging teachers like Santos, it also has one of the state’s lowest dropout rates, just 1.43 percent. “I have students who

have shown an absolute interest in the field,” he says. Santos’ dedication to athletic training led him to receive the 2019 SHMS Many Are One Alumni Service Award.

Students and parents alike have learned that Santos can be counted on. Last January, when a student fainted, Santos quickly dashed to grab an AED (automated external defibrillator) and CPR mask. “[The student] was unconscious, so we monitor the pulse and give rescue breaths,” Santos says. “I did that for a few minutes, until EMS made it there.” At the end of the school day, Santos switches hats to become an athletic trainer for the school, proud home of The Criminals. (The school