2023 Board of Directors Election results

 A message from Past President Jordan Anderson:

Now that the nomination window is closed for board positions; it is my pleasure to announce our newest board members! We are able to announce these in the absence of a vote this year because all positions are unopposed. While this situation is not ideal, I am excited for the returning and new board members that we have for this election cycle. With the changing of the annual business meeting to June, these members will assume their role in June and will be under the mentorship of the current board members for which they will succeed; beginning in November.

Please join me in welcoming and thanking our newest IATA board of director members. Volunteering to support our members is a very generous act and we thank them for making this commitment to all of us as IATA members. 

President-Elect Andy Renner, LAT, ATC

Resume/CV                    Brief Biography

Dear fellow IATA Members,
Thank you for the opportunity to serve you over the past six years. I truly have enjoyed every minute of being involved and it has been the best decision of my career. This fall marks my 20th as an AT. While challenges remain, there has never been a better time to be an athletic trainer. I said that to the students at the first-ever IATA Education Conference last February. I truly believe it. ATs are in more demand in more settings than ever. We know we need to meet this increased demand or stakeholders will look elsewhere for healthcare needs. As an organization, we need to assist our state's AT education programs in increasing enrollment. We cause use the IATA Education Conference to keep those students in Illinois and develop the next generation of AT leaders.

Updating our Practice Act in 2022 was a significant victory for our profession. Major credit goes out to our members for their efforts. You all made me proud of how united we are. We have continued to work on other bills and need to be more of a political player within the state. We are experts in athlete safety. We are experts in many areas of healthcare. Illinois ATs should be a trusted information source our lawmakers can look to for information on student-athlete and workplace safety.

While I have primarily worked in the secondary school setting and have pushed advocacy there, I also realize that we need to make similar efforts for other settings. If you are an AT, I want your voice heard and to help you advocate. We need to consider attending the conferences where we can access stakeholders similar to what we have done for the secondary school setting. I truly believe in Better Healthcare with Athletic Trainers.

Serving the membership is our top priority. This was a significant focus of our strategic plan completed in early 2020. We have checked a lot of boxes of that plan. It is time to revisit, update, and perhaps plan again on how best we can serve you. I am proud of what has been doe to provide both quality and affordable CEUs to our membership. Going to a hybrid format for the annual meeting and providing required licensure training have been improvements in our member benefits. We will continue to evolve these offerings. 

I hope you have seen my passion for all that goes into our jobs. While my passion for this profession has always been strong, collaborative leadership has become an equally important part of who I am. Connecting the right people and groups of people to complete a task has become a labor of love for me. I am a believer that when we work together, there isn't much we can't accomplish. I hope you will entrust me to be the next President of the IATA. 

Sincerely,

Andy Renner, LAT, ATC

Vice President Nicholas E. Grahovec, PhD, LAT, ATC, CSCS

Resume/CV               Brief Biography

I am running for the position of IATA Vice-President to continue to give back to a profession that has done so much for me. For the last five years, I have been the Education Committee Chair and have been able to assist with the IATA Annual Meeting and Clinical Symposium both in face-to-face and online modalities. My primary responsibility was to assist in procuring the educational content and program delivery. As Education Committee Chair, I was able to help implement a new app-based delivery model for the annual state meeting. With the current IATA membership in mind, this allowed the educational content to reach all state members. With the profession's future in mind, I helped coordinate the first annual IATA Educational Conference for all athletic training students in Illinois. Through my tenure, I have also been able to provide updates and guidance to the membership on educational changes directed toward athletic trainers. Most notably, the sexual harassment awareness and implicit bias training requirements for Illinois and the newly proposed changes to the continuing education requirements from the BOC.

My goal would be to continue collaborating with the other members of the IATA Board of Directors and IATA committees to continue providing great value during the Annual Meeting & Clinical Symposium. Helping provide the most excellent value to all members is my key initiative. This will continue to be through the Annual Meeting & Clinical Symposium, but also through other continuing education events, partnerships, and communication. Communication and involvement are critical to the success of any organization, and it would be my mission as Vice President to keep the lines of communication open with the membership. Hence, they continue to be excited about their involvement with their professional organization. 

Secretary Tim Mizdrak, LAT, ATC

Resume/CV               Brief Biography

Region 3 Representative Chuck Harrier, MSEd, LAT, ATC

Resume/CV             

Please accept this as my letter of interest in the Region 3 Representative position with the Illinois Athletic Trainers Association. I feel that my background and experience in the field of athletic training makes me an ideal candidate to hold this position. Athletic training has given both myself and my family a lifetime full of great experiences and I think it is a great time to give back to the field and organization that has backed me my whole life.

I think my experience speaks for itself. I have been a certified athletic trainer since 1993 with both experience at the collegiate and high school levels, with the last 27 years at the high school level in Illinois. During this time, I have also been the host athletic trainer for the IHSA state baseball tournament from 1996-2007 and an athletic trainer for the state wrestling tournament since 2004, with the last 10 years serving as the medical coordinator. I have been an athletic trainer at St. Charles East High School for the past 23 years and am a member of the IATA Secondary Schools Committee.
Thank you for considering me for this open position.

Sincerely,
Chuck Harrier

Region 4 Representative Sarah Turner, LAT, ATC

Resume/CV               Brief Biography

Please find this letter as my intent to run for the IATA Board of Directors position of Region 4 Representative for the 2023 Election.

I have served at the Region 4 Representative for the 2021-2023 cycle. In my second year, I felt more comfortable and have been able to reach out to more Athletic Trainers across the large Region 4 area. I feel I will continue to grow within this role in the next two years serving if re-elected to the IATA Board of Directors. I look forward to advocating for the Athletic Training profession in Region 4 as well as the state of Illinois.