Over the past two years, the NIRSA Concussion Advisory Council has helped the Association reach a better understanding of its current state and needs as related to concussion education and management.
In addition to the work completed in the Advisory Council’s first year, the second year of work included:
- Presentations at multiple NIRSA conferences that provided recommendations and potential action steps for collegiate recreation departments to take around concussion management
- A series of articles including case studies that highlighted both how concussion management was structured on different campuses as well as provided introductions and resources for various concussion management topics
- An article in Athletic Business that includes contributions from council members Lexi Chaput and Wallace Eddy
- A survey of NIRSA members to find additional ways the group could serve the Association through further work
The Concussion Advisory Council was originally created in response to some potential changes insurance companies were going to make regarding how they covered and responded to head injuries that were sustained while participating in physical activities on a college campus. Many of those anticipated changes have either not occurred or have not had the anticipated level of impact. Additionally, the Council’s survey did not identify that additional resources from the Association were necessary at this time. This information, along with a summary of the group’s achievements over these past two years, was presented to the NIRSA Board of Directors at their July 23 meeting. The Board of Directors approved the recommendation to sunset the Concussion Advisory Council.
I am very thankful for the work and engagement provided by the Council members—I could not have asked for a better team in this work:
- Robin Bowman, Harvard Medical School
- Mike Dominguez, University of California – Davis
- Wallace Eddy, University of Maryland – College Park
- Jason Linsenmeyer, Oklahoma State University
- Larry Mellinger, Elon University
NIRSA will continue to monitor concussion-related concerns and will respond, as appropriate, should the need arise.
- For more information, please contact NIRSA Director of Advocacy & Strategic Partnerships Erin O’Sullivan.
Lexi Chaput currently the Senior Assistant Director of Sport Programs and Development at the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor; she serves as a member of the NIRSA History & Legacy Committee and Co-Chair of NIRSA's 75th Anniversary Celebration Committee. She can be reached at lexic@umich.edu.
