Meet Hannah Goodwin: 2017 Recipient of the Jack Cramer Scholarship

Hannah graduated this past May from Mortimer Jordan High School, and is now attending the University of Southern Mississippi. She is excited about one day helping athletes perform their best, working as an athletic trainer at a high school.

Scholarship applicants submit an essay, and here is an excerpt from Hannah’s:

I did not choose athletic training as much athletic training chose me. I was born with Aortic Valve Stenosis. I had enjoyed a normal childhood with sports activities like everyone else. I was in sixth grade when I was told by my cardiologist that soccer and cheer would no longer be an option for me. I was devastated to never touch the soccer field again or learn a cheerleading routine. My world with sports was over, or so I thought. It just so happened that the “try outs” for athletic training were going on at my middle school and my mom thought that would be a great idea. I would still be involved with sports but in a new and different way and that is how athletic training became a part of my life. I did not realize at the time, that this would become my passion and career choice.

Education is the most important aspect of this career, but hands on experience is where you truly learn to be an athletic trainer. This is the best way to experience and learn any craft in life. There is nothing like being on the field when an injury has occurred and you are the first on the scene, your adrenaline is going and you know you are there to help. I personally have and will thrive in these situations. To take an athlete from injury, to rehabilitation, to recovery and hold that in my hands is what being an athletic trainer is all about. I hope to learn as much as possible and grow as a person and as an athletic trainer with all this knowledge and make a difference in the lives of athletes. I know the choice I have made and the sacrifices that will come with this responsibility and I know this is what I was always meant to do.

In the application, Hannah was asked to describe her vision for her future athletic training program. Here is an excerpt from her response:

If my future in athletic training concludes at the high school level, I hope to have a program like the one I have experienced for the last six years. I believe that I have belonged to one of the best high school programs out there. I have had my Emergency Medical Responder certification since I was a freshman and renewed every year. I am required to complete an application, have and maintain a 3.5 GPA, score 90 or above on medical terminology exam and work 30 plus hours a week. I feel a sense of accomplishment from the program I have been involved in especially when my brother, who is playing baseball at a D1 program, says he misses his high school athletic trainers. That is when you know you have been involved in a great program that impacted an athlete’s life. I hope to one day run that kind of program and make a difference in a young person’s life.

Christopher King, ATC, is head athletic trainer at Mortimer Jordan High School. In his letter recommending Hannah for the scholarship, Chris writes, “The dependability to always be on time, to show up early, and to finish the job before going home is a mark of a strong future. But Hannah goes a step further by preparing for the things that are not seen and for those things that might come up. She is always ready when she is on the job and will make an outstanding athletic trainer.”

Everyone at Cramer is so proud of all that you have already accomplished, Hannah! Best of luck as you continue on your journey to a career in athletic training.