UpDate - Vol. 11, No. 30, Page 3
May 7, 1992
Student-to-student conversations concerning careers

     It was Career Day at Mt. Pleasant High School. Gathered at a
buffet breakfast, prepared and served by students, were approximately
35 people representing a variety of careers-including accounting, art,
architecture, law, nursing, the armed services, the funeral industry,
carpentry, fire fighting, law enforcement and veterinary science.
     Among the group were three representatives from the College of
Physical Education, Athletics and Recreation-Pat Grim, assistant to
the dean who has been doing career workshops for approximately 20;
Rebecca Hansel, staff assistant in charge of advisement; and student
Darryl Conway.
     The three were there to tell classes of interested students about
the college and the opportunities it offers.
     "When you say physical education, students and parents alike tend
to think 'gym class.' Although becoming a physical educator is an
option, there are many other career opportunities and degree programs
for students in the college, such as recreation and parks
administration and fitness management. Our degrees are
science-oriented and can lead to such fields as physical therapy,"
Grim said.
     Hansel spoke about the support systems of the college. "We have
about 500 students," she said, "so we are large enough to have good
programs and small enough to know our students."
     Conway, who is majoring in athletic training, spoke
student-to-student to the high schoolers.  He has developed his own
slide show with photographs of the University and shots of athletic
trainers in action .
     "Our courses are not easy," he said. "I am taking anatomy now,
which involves working with a cadaver. Seeing actual muscles and how
they work is important for a trainer.
     "The goal of an athletic trainer is to prevent injuries before
they happen. We stress flexibility for athletes and prescribe workouts
for strengthening and conditioning, and tape athletes who wish it
before an event or game. If someone is hurt, we can do splinting, and
taping and work out treatment and rehabilitation exercises."
     A junior from Beltsville, Md., where he played football, baseball
and was a swimmer, Conway has some impressive credentials.
     During the summers, he is a student trainer for the New York Jets
on Long Island, N.Y., and during Winter Session he was selected for a
National Football League (NFL) Senior Bowl internship in Mobile, Ala.,
for the All-Star game.
     He is completing his coursework in three years, with a better
than 3.7 average, and has acquired more than his 800 required hours of
hands-on practical experience.
     He has received several student honors from the college,
including the Naylor Award for the outstanding minority student in the
college, the George and Margaret Collins Seitz award for an
outstanding freshman or sophomore, and the Robert A. Layton Award for
upper-classmen, honoring a former student killed in Vietnam. A Dean's
Scholar and member of Omicron Delta Kappa leadership society, Conway
was named an African-American Student of Promise. He also has received
a National Athletic Trainers Undergraduate Scholarship.
     Conway has attended the Delaware Fire School and serves as
coordinator for the student ambulance corps. He is currently taking an
emergency medical course at the Delaware Medical Center.
     His goal is to work for the NFL as a full-time trainer or attend
graduate school.
     -Sue Swyers Moncure