As the 2024-25 academic year gets underway, UW–Madison’s Master of Science in Athletic Training (MSAT) program is welcoming a new director for the first time in more than two decades.
Patrick Hills-Meyer is taking over the leadership role from Andy Winterstein, who retired this summer after spending 38 years on campus — including serving since 1998 as director of the program.
“I’m most proud of the success of our students and alumni over the years,” says Winterstein, a distinguished clinical professor at the time of his retirement. “Our program has shown a strong dedication to supporting first-generation college students from a range of diverse backgrounds, and we’ve equipped everyone to be culturally proficient care providers.”
When Winterstein took over the program more than a quarter-century ago, he notes how athletic training was “a loose collection of a few classes,” before evolving into a certificate and then a major option. At the degree level, it was initially offered as a BS in athletic training, and first became accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education (CAATE) during the 1999-2000 academic year.
Due to the evolving nature of health care, an increased emphasis on inter-professional practice, and changing national accreditation standards, the Athletic Training program successfully transitioned to the master’s degree level in the summer of 2021, with that first cohort graduating in the spring of 2023. Moving the program to the master’s degree level has allowed the 24-month MSAT program to focus more directly on professional content as students come in with an array of strong science prerequisites.
This move to the master’s degree level wasn’t unique to UW–Madison, as athletic training programs across the country made the transition following a decision from CAATE, the Board of Certification (BOC), and National Athletic Trainers Association.
“The shift to the master’s degree level took a lot of hard work from a number of committed people,” says Winterstein. “But we’re very proud of how we’ve built off our tradition of excellence and made our program even stronger. Today, our talented alumni work as health care providers in multiple AT settings, including high schools, clinics, the military, performing arts, intercollegiate and professional sports, higher education, research, and private industry.”
In addition to leading the MSAT program through a series of changes, Winterstein has remained active in the athletic training profession. He is the author or co-author of three textbooks, has published numerous papers on patient reported outcome measures and the efficacy of concussion education programming, is a founding member and president of the Association for Athletic Training Education (AATE), and has been recognized as an outstanding educator at the state, regional and national level.
He started his career at UW–Madison in 1986, serving as an assistant athletic trainer supporting Badgers sports teams. In 2018 he was inducted into the Wisconsin Athletic Trainers Association Hall of Fame.
When asked to reflect on some of the highlights of his time leading the Athletic Training program, Winterstein said: “To be honest, the very best thing I have accomplished is to have had a hand in hiring such wonderful colleagues who are dedicated to helping out students be the very best care providers they can be. Shari Clark, David Bell, and Pat Hills-Meyer are simply fantastic.”
He adds: “The program is in such good hands that I am excited for our current and future students.”
Hills-Meyer grew up on the East Side of Madison and notes that the city, university and Badgers athletics have always been a big part of his life.
“I bleed red and white,” he says.
He earned a BS in exercise science and athletic training from UW–Madison in 2002 and says that when he first took an athletic training class taught by Winterstein, he knew that was the profession he wanted to pursue. Hills-Meyer then headed to Western Michigan University, where he earned a master’s in athletic training in 2004. In 2020, he received his doctor of education in health professions from A.T. Still University, where his research focused on culturally competent health care practices.
Hills-Meyer has been with UW–Madison’s MSAT program the past two years as the clinical education coordinator. Prior to joining the MSAT team, he taught various classes in the Department of Kinesiology, including six years of teaching part-time in the undergraduate AT program and working as a clinical preceptor for students when he provided athletic training services to local high schools.
As Winterstein handed off the program director role, Hills-Meyer took the time to talk about his new position with the School of Education’s communications team. Following is an edited Q&A with Hills-Meyer, who is a clinical associate professor with the Department of Kinesiology, a licensed athletic trainer, and a certified strength and conditioning specialist:
Andy Winterstein led this program for a long time. What do you appreciate most about his leadership of the MSAT? Andy has vast clinical and pedagogical expertise, takes a student-centered approach to active learning, is an outstanding collaborative instructor, and he has a genuine care for everyone involved in the program.
What will you miss most about not having Andy around on a daily basis? I will miss my mentor for the last 26 years. Coming to work without him around will feel very strange. Throughout my professional career, I have had Andy to talk to, bounce ideas off, and learn from. Andy has an unmatched humor, personality, and ability to easily manage difficult and stressful situations.
What excites you most about the MSAT program? I look forward to seeing our students matriculate through our program and transition from novice clinicians to autonomous, patient-centered care providers. It is exciting to see the passion and curiosity in their eyes as they learn during their didactic courses and begin practicing their skills with our outstanding preceptors.
What are the strengths of UW–Madison’s MSAT program? The strengths are the outstanding students we recruit, the collaborative nature of the instructors who bring a wealth of knowledge and experience, our amazing preceptors who allow our students to practice clinical skills under their guidance, and the supportive community that wants our students to be successful clinicians.
Our program prepares students to be successful clinicians by providing them opportunities to practice hard clinical skills and gain background knowledge in soft skills that are sometimes overlooked in clinical practice. Our learners have a growth mindset, and with the collaboration of our preceptors, didactic classroom instruction is transformed into skilled clinical practice. Our students are outstanding, culturally responsible advocates for their patients and essential to the growing athletic trainers’ role in public health.
Do you have any immediate goals for the program in your first year as director? The primary goal is to ensure our students continue to receive the support they need to become successful clinicians. I will continue collaborating with our staff, faculty, preceptors, and stakeholders to ensure our program thrives for the next generation of students.
For more information visit the MSAT program’s website.