Photo by: Andrew Pedersen
Bobcat Athletics Revamps Internal Structure to Aid Student-Athletes in All Areas
11/8/2019 9:15:00 AM | General, Student Services, Student-Athletes
Additional staff and revamped structure implemented to meet evolving needs
BOZEMAN, Montana – As public attention fell on the project to add a structure at Bobcat Stadium and renovate existing space within the Brick Breeden Fieldhouse this fall, the completion of a different kind of Bobcat Athletics structure also neared completion.
Since 2016, Montana State University's Department of Athletics has revamped its internal structure to, as Director of Athletics Leon Costello said, "Bring our focus more clearly onto our student-athletes. Specifically, we want to give our student-athletes the tools they need to succeed in academics, in competition, and in life. This process reflects the ever-changing landscape in college athletics and in the lives of these young people, and it also reflects the approach our University and Bobcat Athletics are taking to provide a holistic approach to student-athlete welfare."
The most significant change came in October, when MSU and Bozeman Health announced a partnership that houses physicians, physician assistants and physical therapy in the Bobcat Athletics Sports Medicine facility, and provides the school's athletic training staff support and resources in preventing and caring for student-athlete injuries. This enhancement caps a three-year period of reorganization and growth of areas within Bobcat Athletics that most directly affect Bobcat student-athletes. "This has been a vital process to our growth and success as a department," Costello said, "because it positively affects all of our student-athletes and takes our healthcare services to a whole new level."
MSU Athletics created a Fueling Station inside Brick Breeden Fieldhouse, with registered dietitian Brittney Patera on hand to both provide supplementary nutritional needs while structuring long-term dietary plans for varsity athletes, and a Director of Olympic Sports strength coach position to supervise and coordinate weight room activities for most Bobcat Athletics teams. The strength training staff now features four full-time, certified coaches. A plan also exists to add another full-time athletic trainer to support expanding healthcare needs.
"When you see the passion our student-athletes bring to practice and competition," Costello said, "you understand how important it is to provide them the resources and tools to improve. That's why we're all here. We entrust our coaches to lead this process, and these changes allow our coaches and staff the best opportunity to help our student-athletes reach their potential in a holistic way. We don't want to just point to a weight room and say, 'Good luck.' We want trained professionals to teach and lead our student-athletes how to improve physically, we want the best person available to help them nourish themselves and optimize their bodies for performance and for the years beyond competition, and we've created the best opportunity available to us to help prevent injuries and care for them when injuries occur."
Moving beyond the realm of physical care, Bobcat Athletics also created the position of Director of Student-Athlete Wellness to aid in mental performance areas such as goal-setting, visualization, positive self-talk, along with emotional wellness and referral for clinical consultation and services. Led by Aaron Grusonik PhD, a former Division I student-athlete at St. Mary's College of California, MSU's Student-Athlete Wellness Team works closely with coaches to performance while providing resources to navigate the college and competitive experience in a positive, productive manner.
Montana State Athletics' Academic Services staff has also added a learning specialist position to provide student-athletes individualized attention and assistance in study skills and strategizing for academic success. Under the direction of Associate Athletic Director Jamie Rizzuto, the Academic Services staff helps student-athletes succeed academically by creating comprehensive academic plans, coordinating tutorial sessions, and offering assistance in other areas as needed.
Seen through that lens, Costello says, the announcement of the Bobcat Athletics Center in the football stadium's north end zone and renovated space in Brick Breeden Fieldhouse vacated by the football staff for Academic Services is a natural extension of the direction he's led Bobcat Athletics since arriving in the summer of 2016. "Our primary objective, the reason we do what we do, is to create the best possible environment for out student-athletes and by extension our coaches to achieve their goals," he said. "There are a lot of different components to that process, but keeping student-athletes at the center of everything we do keeps things in clear focus."
Costello said the holistic approach to student-athlete success impacts individuals long after the conclusion of their athletic careers. "We want our student-athletes to leave here having won championships while achieving their individual goals," he said. "But most importantly we want these young adults ready to succeed at everything that comes their way after they leave. There's no better feeling than former Bobcats coming back to Montana State and telling us about the great things they're achieving, and how important a part their experiences here have been in those lives. That's what has led us through this point, and what will continue to move us forward."
#GoCatsGo
Since 2016, Montana State University's Department of Athletics has revamped its internal structure to, as Director of Athletics Leon Costello said, "Bring our focus more clearly onto our student-athletes. Specifically, we want to give our student-athletes the tools they need to succeed in academics, in competition, and in life. This process reflects the ever-changing landscape in college athletics and in the lives of these young people, and it also reflects the approach our University and Bobcat Athletics are taking to provide a holistic approach to student-athlete welfare."
The most significant change came in October, when MSU and Bozeman Health announced a partnership that houses physicians, physician assistants and physical therapy in the Bobcat Athletics Sports Medicine facility, and provides the school's athletic training staff support and resources in preventing and caring for student-athlete injuries. This enhancement caps a three-year period of reorganization and growth of areas within Bobcat Athletics that most directly affect Bobcat student-athletes. "This has been a vital process to our growth and success as a department," Costello said, "because it positively affects all of our student-athletes and takes our healthcare services to a whole new level."
MSU Athletics created a Fueling Station inside Brick Breeden Fieldhouse, with registered dietitian Brittney Patera on hand to both provide supplementary nutritional needs while structuring long-term dietary plans for varsity athletes, and a Director of Olympic Sports strength coach position to supervise and coordinate weight room activities for most Bobcat Athletics teams. The strength training staff now features four full-time, certified coaches. A plan also exists to add another full-time athletic trainer to support expanding healthcare needs.
"When you see the passion our student-athletes bring to practice and competition," Costello said, "you understand how important it is to provide them the resources and tools to improve. That's why we're all here. We entrust our coaches to lead this process, and these changes allow our coaches and staff the best opportunity to help our student-athletes reach their potential in a holistic way. We don't want to just point to a weight room and say, 'Good luck.' We want trained professionals to teach and lead our student-athletes how to improve physically, we want the best person available to help them nourish themselves and optimize their bodies for performance and for the years beyond competition, and we've created the best opportunity available to us to help prevent injuries and care for them when injuries occur."
Moving beyond the realm of physical care, Bobcat Athletics also created the position of Director of Student-Athlete Wellness to aid in mental performance areas such as goal-setting, visualization, positive self-talk, along with emotional wellness and referral for clinical consultation and services. Led by Aaron Grusonik PhD, a former Division I student-athlete at St. Mary's College of California, MSU's Student-Athlete Wellness Team works closely with coaches to performance while providing resources to navigate the college and competitive experience in a positive, productive manner.
Montana State Athletics' Academic Services staff has also added a learning specialist position to provide student-athletes individualized attention and assistance in study skills and strategizing for academic success. Under the direction of Associate Athletic Director Jamie Rizzuto, the Academic Services staff helps student-athletes succeed academically by creating comprehensive academic plans, coordinating tutorial sessions, and offering assistance in other areas as needed.
Seen through that lens, Costello says, the announcement of the Bobcat Athletics Center in the football stadium's north end zone and renovated space in Brick Breeden Fieldhouse vacated by the football staff for Academic Services is a natural extension of the direction he's led Bobcat Athletics since arriving in the summer of 2016. "Our primary objective, the reason we do what we do, is to create the best possible environment for out student-athletes and by extension our coaches to achieve their goals," he said. "There are a lot of different components to that process, but keeping student-athletes at the center of everything we do keeps things in clear focus."
Costello said the holistic approach to student-athlete success impacts individuals long after the conclusion of their athletic careers. "We want our student-athletes to leave here having won championships while achieving their individual goals," he said. "But most importantly we want these young adults ready to succeed at everything that comes their way after they leave. There's no better feeling than former Bobcats coming back to Montana State and telling us about the great things they're achieving, and how important a part their experiences here have been in those lives. That's what has led us through this point, and what will continue to move us forward."
#GoCatsGo
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