This year North Creek has offered a brand new class. Sports Medicine with Mike McLaughlin. With McLaughlin hitting his third year at North Creek this January he has decided to take on the role of two sport medicine classes alongside his job as an athletic trainer.
“I thought it would be interesting to work with some of the athletes both inside and outside of the classroom,” McLaughlin said. McLaughlin is the athletic trainer here at North Creek and almost every night he is at a sporting event in case an athlete is ever injured and needs assistance. However, he doesn’t only spend hours after the school day with athletes he now is spending hours during the school day as well.
“I feel like it’s a very good community at this high school,” McLaughlin said. McLaughlin has spent his career at different schools being an athletic trainer since 2017, even spending time in New Jersey as an athletic trainer, before he found his current job as athletic trainer here at North Creek.
McLaughlin spent his time in college taking prerequisites for being a physical therapist but got his bachelors in athletic training. “I fell in love with the profession and decided not to apply to PT school,” McLaughlin said.
Now that he has taken on the role of a sports medicine class his days have become busier. “It can definitely be a lot, a lot of late nights, and with teaching it makes longer days,” McLaughlin said. Although there are late nights for McLaughlin there are benefits to being an athletic trainer and teaching classes. “I love the relationships that I get to form and build with all the athletes,” McLaughlin said.
Mike McLaughlin has many different things to do now that he teaches sports medicine classes. He must grade tests and quizzes and prepare for lectures that he gives to his classes. After all that he must be ready to attend a sporting event right after the school day. McLaughlin has a lot of important tasks to do as an athletic trainer with each task being important. However there is one that is the most important. “Building trust with the athletes and being dedicated,” said McLaughlin.