Thomas Sheehan Award

The Thomas J. Sheehan Award is named after a man whose character, commitment and excellence in the field of athletic training was unsurpassed. Sheehan was the Head Athletic
Trainer at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) for 27 years. As a result of his dedication and integrity he became the first non-athlete to be inducted to the colleges’ Athletic Hall of Fame
(1976). An extremely hard worker, Tom was one of the founders of the Eastern Athletic Trainer’s Association. He served as the EATA's first president from 1949-1951 and 1953. In
1972, he was given the Cramer Award for Distinguished Service by the EATA. Tom Sheehan was one of the men responsible for laying the ground work for the formation of the National
Athletic Trainer’s Association. The contributions made by Thomas Sheehan are ones we are all grateful for. The profession would not be where it is today if it were not for his efforts. It is for these reasons that the New York State Athletic Trainers’ Association honors the memory of Mr. Thomas J. Sheehan with the Sheehan Award.
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This award is presented by the New York State Athletic Trainer’s Association to the athletic trainer whose character, commitment and achievements in the athletic training profession
clearly exemplify the traits of Thomas J. Sheehan, Sr. Tom was the long-time Head Athletic Trainer at RPI and is one of the founding fathers of the Athletic training Profession and
NYSATA. Any certified member of NYSATA can nominate a NYSATA member by submitting information about the nominee’s qualifications and achievements in the field of athletic training
to a website form between Sept 1 and Nov 1. The nominee is required to have 5 years of experience practicing as a full-time athletic trainer in NYS.