WSU Athletic Trainer, Student to Receive Honors at National Convention
OGDEN, Utah – Weber State University assistant athletic trainer Nancy Weir and Michelle Hansen Dawson, a student in the Master of Science in Athletic Training program, will be recognized during the National Athletic Trainers’ Association (NATA) convention June 17-20 in San Antonio.Weir will be presented an NATA service award, a national honor that recognizes local, state and district service, and Dawson will receive a scholarship.
Weir joined the staff of Weber State in 1983. She is the athletic trainer for the women’s volleyball team and has been named the trainer for the women’s softball team, which will begin competition next year. Weir also is an adjunct professor/clinical instructor in the undergraduate athletic training program in WSU’s Jerry and Vickie Moyes College of Education. She serves on the university’s Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drug Advisory Board and has organized the Great American Teach-In, a program that brings student-athletes into elementary schools, where they teach children about the effects of drugs and alcohol.Weir also provides leadership and service to her profession. She has served as secretary of the Utah Athletic Trainers’ Association and volunteered at events such as the Winter Olympics, the Utah Summer Games and high school basketball tournaments.
In her 26 years at Weber State, Weir has come to be known for her professionalism and dedication.
“Nancy has given her time, energy and heart selflessly as a certified athletic trainer for more than 25 years,” said Valerie Herzog, WSU’s athletic training program director. “She puts the health and welfare of her student-athletes, as well as the education of her students, above her own needs. For that, she has earned the respect and admiration of her peers, coaches, athletes and students.”
Tom Abdenour, a former WSU athletic trainer who is now with the NBA’s Golden State Warriors, said: “As people go, you can qualify Nancy as a giver and a consummate team player. She always goes above and beyond.”
Dawson is the first WSU student to receive an NATA scholarship. A master’s degree candidate, she aspires to be a certified athletic trainer at the high-school level and wants to work with athletes in every sport. “I fell in love with athletic training in high school,” said Dawson, who suffered season-ending injuries as a track and field athlete during both her junior and senior years of high school. “After my injuries, my athletic trainer asked if I’d like to assist in the training room. Because I couldn’t run, I thought I should at least help my teammates.”
That experience, coupled with a sports medicine course taken during her senior year of high school, was instrumental in Dawson’s decision to become an athletic trainer.
Dawson received her bachelor’s degree in physical education, with an emphasis in exercise science and a minor in psychology, from Utah State University in 2008. In the master’s degree program at WSU, she currently maintains a 4.0 grade point average, which, she said, takes “hard work, dedication and sacrifice.”
“I’m so grateful for this scholarship,” Dawson said. “I love athletic training. I’m excited that I’ll now have the opportunity to focus solely on my classes. It really is thrilling to see all my hard work pay off.”
Visit nata.org for more information abouttThe National Athletic Trainers' Association.
- Amy Hendricks, office of Media Relations
801-626-6346 • amyhendricks@weber.edu - Contact:
- Nancy Weir, assistant athletic trainer
801-626-6599 • nweir@weber.edu
Michelle Hansen Dawson, WSU master’s degree candidate
435-890-0703