Inductees

College athletics departments are full of unsung heroes. From team managers and equipment room personnel to communications professionals and administrative assistants. But perhaps no individual is more essential – or more often overlooked and underappreciated – than the athletic trainer.

Truman State’s Michelle Boyd knows that all too well. For 28 years, Boyd has served the Bulldogs on the athletic training staff, including the last 20 as Head Athletic Trainer. Often up before the sun rises and home after it sets, Boyd and her staff are responsible for the health, well-being, and rehabilitation of Truman State’s 400-plus student-athletes.

A teacher and athletics administrator, Boyd’s dedication to her craft, her university and her student-athletes are some of the many reasons why the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame proudly inducted her into the Class of 2022.

“I’ve been a part of many different teams,” Boyd said. “It is an honor to join such an impressive group of athletes and athletic personnel. I am truly honored.”

As one might imagine, Boyd is well-regarded by her peers. A member of the Board of Directors for the Mid-America Athletic Trainers Association and past president of the Missouri Athletic Trainers Association, Boyd was honored in 2016 as the NCAA Division II Athletic Trainer of the Year by the National Athletic Trainers Association and was inducted into the Missouri Athletic Trainers Association Hall of Fame.

Perhaps no field in college athletics has changed more over the last 30 years than athletic training. The days of a trainer giving a rub down, taping ankles and simply passing out aspirin to cure every ill are long gone.

“The knowledge and skills athletic trainers need to do the job has changed dramatically since I entered the field,” Boyd said. “Taping, wrapping, and injury assessment have always been a mainstay of the profession, but now the athletic trainer’s role is to manage the total healthcare of the athlete. Most athletic trainers are now expected to develop policies that reduce injuries, coordinate drug testing, protect mental health, and keep everyone safe from lightning. In recent years, athletic trainers have also become experts in concussion care.”

Boyd’s day typically begins with team practice at 6 a.m. and doesn’t end until all afternoon and evening practices are complete, and all student-athletes have received the post-practice treatment they need. But really, no day in the life of a certified athletic trainer is “typical”.

“What I enjoy about the profession is there are no average days,” she said. “Every day is different. I love the variety and challenge that each day brings. After practices and conditioning, I head off to teach class at 7:30 a.m., and spend the rest of the morning in meetings or catching up on paperwork. Afternoons are packed with rehabilitation and athletic practices. With approximately 400 student-athletes, there is always someone practicing or competing.”

In addition to her Head Athletic Trainer duties and serving as the athletic department’s Senior Woman Administrator, Boyd somehow finds time to teach. She’s been a faculty member at Truman State for nearly 30 years.

“One of the classes I teach is cadaver anatomy,” she said. “Many of the students in this class plan to be medical professionals, and it is very rewarding to show them the wonders of the human body. I also teach courses in our Master of Athletic Training program. I get to teach a topic in the morning and then see the students apply that knowledge in the afternoon, at practice. I have 5-6 students who are doing clinical rotations under my supervision, and I relish watching them get excited about doing when they just learned.”

It’s easy to imagine that over the course of 28 years, Boyd has a lot of great memories. And while everyone in college athletics remembers the big victories, the championship seasons and the heartbreaking losses, it’s the connection with her student-athletes that matters most to Boyd.

“The part of my job that I love the most is seeing athletes return to their sport after being injured,” she said. “I am sad when they are hurt, I struggle with them as they go through rehabilitation, and I am so thrilled when I see them back at their sport being successful. Those days are what make the job worthwhile.

“In most health professions, you know the patient is better when they stop coming to see you. I have that very special privilege of celebrating with them when they kick a field goal, make a basket, race a best time, and get back into the game.”