Susan Smith

Susan has been an athletic trainer at Westfield high school since July of 1994. She obtained her Texas licensure in 1992 from the State Board of Health and her National Certification from the NATABOC in 1994.

Her Athletic training career began while she was still in high school at L.D. Bell High school in Hurst, Texas. Susan had always had an interest in medicine as well as sports. While in high school Susan played basketball and softball. She suffered a knee injury that required her to see the athletic trainer. That was the first time she had ever heard of an athletic trainer. Being a combination of two of her favorite interests, she decided to become a student athletic trainer under Herb Kensing and Susan Leeper.

Upon graduation she decided to attend Texas A&M University. Although she enjoyed being a student trainer, Susan had decided to pursue a degree in Biology/ Pre-Med and forgo athletic training. She randomly met a girl who was a student athletic trainer at A&M and there was a need for more student trainers. Susan went and met with the Head Women’s athletic trainer Julie Hipple and was soon working as a student trainer once again.

At Texas A&M, Susan worked mainly with women’s basketball and tennis. She was also a pioneer and was the first female student athletic trainer to work a Texas A&M football game.  Today the athletic training program at A&M is no longer segregated and all females students have the opportunity to work with the football team. Susan and her fellow student athletic trainers at Texas A&M started the Aggie Athletic Trainers Association which is still thriving today.

After graduating from Texas A&M, Susan decided to pursue a Masters degree at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo. While at Western, she worked at the Plainwell Hospital Outpatient physical therapy clinic and was the athletic trainer for Martin High School in Martin, Michigan. She was also an athletic trainer for a semi-pro football team, the Kalamazoo Tornadoes. She thoroughly enjoyed her time in Michigan, but does not miss the winters and snow.

Upon graduating, Susan returned to Texas to pursue a job as an athletic trainer. In July of 1994, she accepted a job at Westfield High School and has remained there since. While in Houston she became an active member in the Greater Houston Athletic Trainers’ Society and has been the scholarship and awards chair since 1999. For her dedicated service to GHATS, she received the Tom Wilson award in 2008.

Susan spent two weeks working at the Olympic training Center in Chula Vista, California. While there she worked with many track and field athletes preparing for their trip to the games in Greece. Having completed this internship, she now has the possibility of working the Olympic games in the future.

In her spare time, she enjoys playing golf and traveling.

Special Notes:

UIL Forms:

The UIL has updated the medical history form and steroid form to be used for the 2008-2009 athletic year.  These forms can be acquired either on the UIL web site, the Westfield Sports Medicine web site or the Spring ISD Athletics web site.  Make sure you have up to date forms for any physical after May 2008.