This is another in a continuing series of articles profiling Ithaca College staff and faculty
By Mary Lash
"I've
almost been a lifer here," Kent Scriber says, looking back on his
career at Ithaca College. A 1972 graduate of the physical therapy program,
Scriber joined the faculty soon after earning his degree and is now director
of the program in athletic training, supervisor of athletic training, and
associate professor of exercise and sport sciences.
In his undergraduate days Scriber played baseball for Ithaca and studied with such legendary faculty as athletic trainers Bob Grant and Chuck Kerr. Because it was the Vietnam era, Scriber held off on career planning because he expected to be drafted as soon as he graduated. At the eleventh hour, however, he was exempted from the draft. Soon after, during a Lakers game at Seton Hall, Kerr happened to ask him whether another physical therapy student, an acquaintence of Scriber's, would be interested in a job as his assistant. The other student wasn't, but Scriber was. "It worked out," he said.
Scriber went on to earn his certification in athletic training, his master's in health education, and his doctorate in exercise physiology. Among other awards, Scriber has received the Eastern Athletic Trainers Association's top honor, the Cramer Award, and the National Athletic Trainers Association's Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer Award. He was inducted into the Ithaca College Sports Hall of Fame in 1990 and received a Dana Teaching Fellowship in 1995.
In explaining his profession to the uninitiated, Scriber describes the role of the athletic trainer in the prevention, care, and management of injuries. It is work that begins with initial physicals for athletes and continues through training, first aid for injuries on the field, and follow-up care. First accredited in 1975, Ithaca's program in athletic training/exercise science was "one of the fairly early ones." Scriber jokes about the image of the old-school trainer, cigarette hanging out of his mouth, towel around his neck, offering massages and doing the laundry as well. Having watched athletic training "come a long way" over the last 25 years, Scriber points to the growing level of professionalism in his field. "It's been really rewarding for me to be involved with that and hopefully to have contributed in some way," he said.
In addition to his responsibilities as program director, Scriber oversees the service function of the athletic training staff, while head trainer Michael Matheny manages day-to-day operations. Scriber also teaches courses in athletic training and therapeutic exercise and a capstone seminar for seniors. Beyond the basic knowledge and competencies that the program offers students, Scriber strives to instill in them values of professionalism, hard work, commitment, dedication, and loyalty-the kinds of things, he adds with a smile, that he writes in letters of recommendation. During his frequent travels he finds it very satisfying to meet alumni and hear praise for the program's graduates, whether in professional settings or graduate schools. "One of the things that make me feel the best is people, like a head trainer at the Giants, coming over and saying, 'Your people are doing a great job.' And that happens quite a lot."
Scriber met his wife, Jocelyn (Jody) Cash '72 when they were fellow PT students, and she is currently director of clinical services at the Special Children's Center. He has been very actively involved in the athletic development of his son, Todd, now a freshman in the PT program, and daughter, Brynn, 16. In his free time, Scriber collects baseball memorabilia and plays golf. Such time is scarce, though; Scriber is busy with many professional activities in addition to his work at the College, having served as chief athletic trainer at this summer's Paralympic Games in Atlanta and as athletic trainer at the Epson Ivy Bowl in Japan, the World University Games, the Empire State Games, the AAU Junior Olympics, and the NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships, to name a few.