KEARNEY – Scott Unruh has spent much of his career shaping the future of athletic training in Nebraska.
From leading the University of Nebraska at Kearney’s athletic training education program through national accreditation to mentoring countless students and expanding services in rural communities, his influence can be seen across the state.
Now, those contributions are being formally recognized.
Unruh is the inaugural recipient of the Nebraska State Athletic Trainers’ Association (NSATA) Pillar of Athletic Training Award, an honor celebrating a lifetime of dedication to athletic training, sports medicine and athlete health in Nebraska. The award will be presented Friday during the NSATA summer conference in Columbus.
“To be recognized for the very work you have done in the state by your peers is extremely humbling,” Unruh said.
The Pillar of Athletic Training Award is presented to an individual who has served as a cornerstone of the profession through exceptional service, advocacy, mentorship and community outreach.
In announcing this year’s honor, the NSATA described Unruh as a professional whose career reflects “the very meaning of this award.”
“Through his outstanding work at the University of Nebraska at Kearney and throughout the surrounding communities, he has positively impacted generations of student-athletes, patients, students and colleagues,” the association stated. “His commitment to high-quality care, professional excellence and service has strengthened athletic training across central Nebraska and beyond.”
The organization also praised Unruh’s leadership, integrity and dedication to mentoring others, noting that his efforts have left “a lasting mark on the profession.”
After completing his doctorate at the University of Arkansas, where he was a member of the athletic training staff, Unruh worked at Barry University in Florida and the University of Tulsa. He arrived at UNK in 1999 as director of the athletic training education program. Since then, he has played a central role in the program’s growth and evolution.
One of his most significant accomplishments was guiding the program through the accreditation process during a period of major change within the profession. At the time, national accreditation became a requirement for students seeking certification as athletic trainers.
The UNK program earned its initial accreditation in 2002 and later expanded to include a Bachelor of Science in athletic training. As professional standards continued to evolve, Unruh led the development of a Master of Athletic Training degree, which was approved in 2017 and became the first new graduate program established at UNK since the school joined the University of Nebraska System in 1991.
Today, UNK offers a Master of Athletic Training graduate professional program, along with accelerated pathways that allow students to earn both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in as little as five years. The university recently added a 4+1 option, joining its existing 3+2 pathway and traditional two-year master’s program. Accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education, the program prepares graduates for careers with high schools, colleges and universities, sports teams, hospitals and clinics across the country and around the world.
Launched in the 1960s, UNK has one of the longest-running sports medicine programs in the state. Unruh credits predecessors such as Paul Bishop and Kathy English for establishing a “solid foundation” that paved the way for future progress.
Beyond the classroom, Unruh has worked to advance athletic training throughout Nebraska. He partnered with emergency medical services personnel on training related to athletic injury care and helped conduct studies examining emergency action planning in schools and rural communities. He also worked with UNK graduates to establish athletic training services in communities across the state, including North Platte, Lexington, Ogallala, Ravenna, Albion, McCook, Anselmo and Merna.
Another point of pride is the Injury and Rehabilitation Clinic, which opened in 2018 on the UNK campus through a collaboration involving Unruh and fellow faculty members. The clinic provides free musculoskeletal evaluations and care for students, faculty and staff while also giving athletic training students hands-on experience in a clinical setting.
“The experience enables the students to work with their injury evaluation skills, therapeutic decision-making and application in a controlled environment,” Unruh said. “It helps bridge the gap between classroom or lab training and the actual varied clinical settings that students are exposed to.”
Now serving as assistant to the senior vice chancellor for academic affairs and director of assessment and accreditation, Unruh continues to teach and supervise students in the clinic while remaining connected to the profession he has helped shape for more than three decades.
Among all the milestones reached during his career, Unruh considers the achievements of his students to be the most important measure of his work.
“As an educator, I’m most proud of the success of our graduates from the UNK athletic training program,” he said. “Our graduates are some of the best in the business. They have demonstrated remarkable accomplishments.”
Those graduates serve communities across Nebraska while also working in collegiate athletics, professional sports and healthcare settings throughout the United States and beyond – a legacy Unruh believes is far more meaningful than any individual honor.