FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 3, 2016
MANSFIELD, Mass. - The Northeast-10 Conference will host its first-ever Health & Safety Summit on June 6 in Providence R.I., in conjunction with it's end of the year meetings. The one-day Summit will focus on enhancing student-athlete well-being on NE-10 member campuses.
The NCAA's chief medical officer, Brian Hainline, will serve as the featured speaker. In addition to providing an interactive keynote address, Dr. Hainline will spend additional time speaking and interacting with 30 student-athletes representing each of the 15 Northeast-10 institutions.
“The Northeast-10 Conference is committed to being student-athlete centric in its daily operational approach and placing the overall well-being of our student-athletes as a top priority is a focus on each campus,” said Northeast-10 Commissioner, Julie Ruppert.
“We are confident that this day-long emphasis on student-athlete welfare will provide valuable educational tools from respected professionals. We view it as a way for those in attendance to share and discuss ideas and best practices with colleagues across the conference that can then help improve the total well-being of our student-athletes. At the same time we are capitalizing on the tremendous opportunity afforded to us by Dr. Hainline’s presence and his commitment to discussing important health and safety issues occurring across all divisions but also specifically in Division II.”
Attendees will include member institutions’ Athletics Directors, certified athletic trainers, faculty athletics representatives, and other senior administrators, as well as the 30 student-athletes.
In addition to Dr. Hainline, the Summit will feature panels of guests who will present and educate on a wide range of topics including mental health, nutrition and student-athlete performance.
The Conference is also proud to include among the speakers a student-athlete and co-founder of Hope Happens Here, a student-led initiative at Saint Michael’s.
Justin McKenzie, a student-athlete on the Saint Michael's ice hockey team, began the campaign as a way to promote mental health awareness and wellness, specifically in student-athletes. McKenzie’s presence next week reinforces the outstanding commitment that Northeast-10 student-athletes have to their overall development as leaders, both on their campuses and within the Northeast-10.
Guest speakers that are scheduled to attend the Northeast-10 Conference's Health and Safety Summit include:
- Brian Hainline, M.D., NCAA Chief Medical Officer
- Kim Trudel, MA, MS, RD, LDN at Weymouth Club
- Leah Poloskey, Ph.D. - Clinical Faculty member in the Health Sciences Department at Merrimack
- Jim Howland, Ed.D, LICSW – Mental Health Clinician at Merrimack
- David Landers, Ph.D. - professor of Psychology and Faculty Athletics Representative at Saint Michael’s
- Justin McKenzie – rising senior and men’s ice hockey student-athlete at Saint Michael’s and co-founder of Hope Happens Here
ABOUT THE NORTHEAST-10
The Northeast-10 Conference is an association of 15 NCAA Division II colleges and universities located in New England and New York that is committed to supporting balanced academic and athletic opportunities for more than 6,500 student-athletes.
Each year, 4,500 of those student-athletes compete in conference championships in 24 sports, making the NE-10 the largest DII conference in the country in terms of sport sponsorship. Leading the way in the classroom, on the field and within the community, the Northeast-10 is proud of its comprehensive program and the experience it provides student-athletes.
Brian Hainline, M.D.,
Senior vice president; chief medical officer
Brian Hainline, M.D., is the first chief medical officer of the NCAA and oversees the SSI.
For more than 25 years, Brian has been actively involved in sports medicine. He co-authored Drugs and the Athlete, and played a pivotal role in the development of drug testing and education protocols worldwide. He has served on the New York State Athletic Commission, the United States Olympic Committee’s Sports Medicine Committee and was a founding member of the Executive Committee of the American Academy of Neurology Sports Neurology Section, where he serves as vice chair.
Brian been instrumental in the development of health and safety standards in tennis, both nationally and internationally. He was chief medical officer of the U.S. Open Tennis Championships for 16 years, and then served as chief medical officer of the United States Tennis Association before moving to the NCAA. He is chair of the International Tennis Federation Sport Science and Medicine Commission, and oversaw the rollout of international wheelchair tennis competition, for which he wrote the rules of eligibility for both para- and quad-tennis.
Brian is clinical professor of neurology at both the New York University School of Medicine and Indiana University School of Medicine, and an adjunct faculty member of the Department of Health Policy and Management at Indiana University School of Public Health.
