Lara Carlson organizes UNE’s first Wicked Good Sports Medicine Symposium

Assistant Professor in the Applied Exercise Science Program Lara Carlson, DPE., F.A.C.S.M., C.S.C.S., recently served as program director for the Wicked Good Sports Medicine Symposium, hosted by the University of New England.  The symposium featured a panel of six internationally renowned speakers in the field of sports medicine.

The event, held in the newly opened Alfond Forum of the Biddeford Campus on September 14, 2012, was a tremendous success, drawing a crowd of over 400 people who attended or gathered at the Harold Alfond Center for Health Sciences to watch the live streamed version of the presentations.

Students from Westfield State College in Westfield, Massachusetts, and Johnson State College in Johnson, Vermont, traveled to the symposium, as well as military personnel from the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and the United States Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine in Natick, Massachusetts.

The success of the symposium was noted by speaker J. Timothy Lightfoot Ph.D., RCEP, CES, FACSM, of Texas A&M University in a congratulatory comment to Carlson: “The symposium was well organized, the speakers were fantastic and you had an engaged audience.  These are all characteristics of a great event.  From a speaker standpoint, I was impressed with the logistics and how you got the community involved in the event.  I'm sure that through your outreach, this event further heightened the awareness of UNE in your region.  I was honored to be a part of it!”

Carlson, too, was pleased with the symposium.  She states, "I was impressed by how many professionals, faculty and students traveled from several hours away from other states to attend this event. I think that reflects the quality of speakers we had present. It was also exciting to host the first annual "Wicked Good Sports Medicine Symposium" in the newly completed Alfond Forum. Several attendees remarked about how beautiful the venue was and that you could still smell the fresh paint!"

In addition to Lightfoot, the panel of speakers included Daniel Lieberman, Ph.D., Harvard University; Samuel Headley, Ph.D., RCEP, CSCS, FACSM, Springfield College; Stella Lucia Volpe, Ph.D., RD, LDN, FACSM, Drexel University; Samuel N. Cheuvront, Ph.D., RD, FACSM, United States Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine; and David Epstein, M.A., M.S., Sports Illustrated.

The event was made possible by the sponsorship of various local businesses, including: AV Technik, The Breakwater Inn & Spa, CareFusion, Goodall Hospital, iworx, King’s Port Inn, The M.O.G. Medically Oriented Gym, The Nonantum Resort, ParvoMedics, PartyPlus, Quest Fitness, Saco Bay Physical Therapy, Shipyard Brewing Co., and Wun-Jo.

About the University of New England

The University of New England is Maine’s largest independent university, with two beautiful coastal campuses in Maine, a one-of-a-kind study abroad campus in Tangier, Morocco, and an array of flexible, accredited online degrees. In an uncommonly welcoming and supportive community, we offer hands-on learning, empowering students to make a positive impact in a world full of challenges. The state’s top provider of health professionals, we are home to Maine’s only medical college, Maine’s only dental college, a variety of other interprofessionally aligned health care degree programs, as well as nationally recognized programs for marine science degrees, natural and social sciences degrees, arts and humanities degrees, and business degrees.