Health & Safety Summit & Mental Health Workshop to Focus on Student-Athlete Well-Being
BOSTON – Health and safety, both physical and mental, matter in the America East and will be the core focus of discussion May 27-29 as the conference’s fifth annual Health & Safety Summit and first Mental Health Coaches’ Workshop take place. The events, both which will take place virtually this year, highlight America East's continued commitment to student-athlete well-being.
For the first time, the Health & Safety Summit will bring together both sports medicine and sports performance staffs from all nine America East institutions. Attendees will observe presentations from distinguished speakers in the fields of sports medicine, athletic training, and nutrition, including John Parsons, the managing director of the NCAA Sport Science Institute. Attendees will also engage in group discussion via breakout sessions aimed to share best practices and promote conversation.
The Mental Health Workshop will be tailored toward the educational needs of coaches for the first time. Over 200 America East coaches are registered to attend the day-long workshop, which will dive deep into topical areas of student-athlete mental health, including management of eating disorders, understanding psychological science of performance, and the use of substances. The workshop will be headlined by a presentation from Jessica Mohler, Clinical and Sport Psychologist from the United States Naval Academy and the current Chair of the NCAA’s Competitive Safeguards Committee.
“While we’d rather be holding this event in person, we still expect this year’s Health & Safety Summit and Mental Health Workshop to provide important resources and result in impactful conversations for our membership,” said America East Commissioner, Amy Huchthausen. “The importance of student-athlete well-being and mental health only intensify as time goes by and we are fortunate and proud to be at the forefront of these issues among Division I conferences.”
Full Schedule & Speaker Information
America East has proven to be a leader in emphasizing mental health, wellness and safety since holding its first Health & Safety Summit in 2016.
In 2018, America East and its Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) took the next step towards destigmatizing mental health through the establishment of its #BetterTo9ether campaign. The initiative focuses on creating more mentally healthy environments for student-athletes across all nine America East campuses through education, outreach, events and more.
In 2019, America East became first non-autonomy conference to adopt an NCAA proposal that mandates each institution make mental health services and resources available to its student-athletes through the department of athletics and/or the institution's health services or counseling services department.
#BetterTo9ether and Health & Safety are two of the many America East initiatives under the conference’s #3Pillars “leadership” umbrella aimed at making a difference for conference stakeholders, on league campuses and within their communities. Other initiatives include #SpreadRespect, the America East Alumni Network and the #3Pillars Academy, which focuses on providing professional development opportunities to America East constituents through its digital series and in-person programming.
About America East: The America East provides its member schools and their athletic programs a platform upon which student-athletes can achieve both collegiate and life success through the promotion and nurturing of athletic excellence, academic achievement and leadership, on and off the field.
– #3Pillars – Building the Complete Student-Athlete –