Ferris State Athletics Tabs Jess VanTroostenberghe As Assistant AD For Sports Medicine

Big Rapids, Mich. - Ferris State University recently tabbed Jess VanTroostenberghe as the Bulldogs' new Assistant Athletics Director for Sports Medicine.

VanTroostenberghe, who will also be the department's head athletic trainer, joined the department early this past summer and previously worked since 2014 as the head athletic trainer at Big Rapids High School. She will lead a team of four full-time trainers on the FSU staff.

"Jess has been a great addition to our team and will play a major role in providing first-class care for our student-athletes," FSU Athletics Director Steve Brockelbank said. "She has been well-respected in the community for her outstanding work at Big Rapids High School and we believe will make a big impact on the college level."

During her time at BRHS, VanTroostenberghe provided athletic training services and daily care for freshman, junior varsity and varsity teams across 17 different programs. She served as liaison with first-responders in the community and enforced all Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) policies regarding health and safety. Additionally, she provided treatment and designed rehab programs for injured student-athletes.

While with the Cardinals, VanTroostenberghe also supervised and educated student workers. She monitored the athletic training budget and worked with various sports medicine vendors for equipment and supply orders among her many other duties.

In addition to working at Big Rapids, VanTroostenberghe also served as a clinical athletic trainer for Evergreen Physical Therapy where she assisted with rehab programs and scheduling for patients. She also provided athletic training services to local schools as needed, including Chippewa Hills, Crossroads, Morley-Stanwood and Big Rapids Middle School.

VanTroostenberghe worked as the head athletic trainer for the Grand Rapids Gazelle men's and women's rugby teams from 2016-18 and was the head athletic trainer at the College of Lake County on the junior college level from 2009-13. During the same time, she also worked as an athletic trainer for several other organizations, including the Northwestern University men's club hockey team and the Loyola University women's club hockey team along with Cardinal Stritch University.

Previously, VanTroostenberghe was a student athletic trainer at Adrian College and served as a intern at the Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit along with being an athletic training student at the University of Findlay. She earned her bachelor's degree in exercise science (athletic training) from Adrian College in 2006 and a master's degree in athletic training at Findlay in 2009.