UAA Feature: UChicago Athletic Trainer Mary Wisniewski

March 24, 2021

When Mary Wisniewski interviewed for an assistant athletic trainer position with Washington University athletic director John Schael at the National Athletic Trainer Association convention in Baltimore, Maryland in June 1988, she never could have imagined where it would take her career. “A few weeks after interviewing with him, I received a call from Ms. Mary Jean Mulvaney, the AD at University of Chicago asking if I would consider interviewing for their head athletic trainer position. I am forever grateful to John for recommending me to UChicago.” The 2020-21 season marks her 33rd with the Maroons.

Being at UChicago

She has seen tremendous change in the profession over that time. “Initially, I split coverage of 20 sports and 375 student-athletes with one colleague. Sport practices were from 3:00-6:00 p.m. Monday through Friday and over by noon on Saturdays. I also taught seven classes over three quarters each year,” she recalled. “Now we have a staff of four athletic trainers and more than 550 student-athletes. Practices go from early morning into late evenings. Teams practice and compete seven days a week. Now I mentor the UC EMS (Emergency Medical Services) group and team teach the Emergency Medical Responder class a couple nights each quarter.”

Wisniewski, who noted that UChicago’s enrollment has doubled since she started working there in August 1988, has seen multiple developments in athletic training over the years, but she sees the greatest benefit when new techniques are combined with time-tested methods. “Back in college (University of Delaware, where she was a two-sport athlete in volleyball and basketball) as a student athletic trainer, I was taught to use my hands as a primary modality. Today, we use instruments in addition to our hands,” she commented. “There are more advanced modalities and techniques used today such as cupping (which involves placing cups on the skin to create suction), dry needling (inserting thin needles into the skin and muscle at trigger points), IASTM (instrument-assisted soft tissue mobilization), blood flow restriction, and postural restoration therapy to name a few. Research has resulted in the use of evidence-based practices and techniques handed down from generation to generation.”

Wisniewski on the UC football sideline in the early 1990s

“Mary Wisniewski is an incredibly committed, competent, and caring professional. I cannot begin to count the number of hours (probably adding up to days given her tenure) that she has spent in the emergency room taking care of our athletes or assuring that an injured athlete from a visiting team has been well cared for. She is always willing to go the extra mile to protect the health and safety of student-athletes,” said University of Chicago Interim Director of Athletics and Recreation Rosalie Resch, whose own career at the school has lasted half a century.

Being in the UAA

From the time she began at UC, the Maroons have been part of the University Athletic Association (UAA). Whereas the unusually extensive travel for an NCAA Division III conference would have been an adjustment for some, it was not for Wisniewski. “I worked at three NCAA Division I schools before coming to UChicago, so the travel was not much different from my last position at New Mexico State University. I was in charge of seven varsity sports in addition to volleyball and managed/mentored the student athletic trainers who were assigned to those sports,” she stated. “We either flew or took vans for competition, Other than Texas Tech in El Paso, all of our opponents were at least a 4+ hour drive away. I also coached varsity and JV volleyball, and track & field at Delaware. Travel was all along the east coast and as far west as Pittsburgh. As a student-athlete at Delaware, we had to drive cars from the university’s motor pool for overnight trips. School buses took us to closer competitions. I remember one weekend tournament as a student-athlete, we borrowed my family’s maxi van and I drove the team to a tournament at Brooklyn College.”

“When I had just started as an assistant athletic trainer at Brandeis and was traveling, I remembered meeting Mary and thinking how great it was that there was a woman head athletic trainer, which was very rare at the time, doing everything, including football,” recalled Lisa DeNicola, the head athletic trainer at Brandeis University. “I was always drawn to the Division III model, working with multiple teams and multiple student-athletes. To see her doing this at such a higher caliber was inspiring to me.”

UC athletic trainers and SFR’s in the Henry Crown Fieldhouse athletic training room circa 1998

“I cherish the many conversations I had with Mary during the early years of the UAA. She was a key contributor to the formation of the sports medicine group in the UAA before many NCAA Division I conferences had one,” relayed Babson College Director of Athletics Performance and Athletic Health Care Administrator Rick Burr, who worked with Wisniewski during his 17-year tenure in athletic training at Brandeis. “Mary has always been a pioneer for women in athletic training. I was extremely fortunate to be able to call her a colleague.”

“UAA tennis student-athletes will recognize Mary from the times that University of Chicago served as one of the host institutions. She was always dashing about filling coolers, refreshing towels, providing snacks, and addressing any medical need that students (or officials) had. Regardless of the team, she treated every athlete like a Maroon and I am forever grateful for her dedication,” Resch stated.

“No matter how many sports were going on simultaneously or how busy Mary was, she was never too busy to check on me and make sure I was comfortable, to provide me with anything I needed as the visiting athletic trainer,” DeNicola remarked. “I modeled how I do things at Brandeis after that. I want our visiting ATs to feel like it is their home away from home and not have to worry about anything. Mary has been a mentor to me as an athletic trainer and a role model as a woman AT. On top of that, she is the nicest, most humble, human being you will ever meet.”

As Things Change…Some Things Remain the Same

In addition to her athletic training duties at New Mexico State, she also served as an assistant volleyball coach. “It was an excellent opportunity to work with a high level of athletics from both perspectives. I had to learn quickly to change hats when I was coaching volleyball, but also covering the team as their athletic trainer. It was a lot less stressful when I was only covering the other sports as the AT,” she communicated. “Today, there are better facilities, equipment, uniforms, locker rooms, support staff who set up the gym, access to weight training facilities, and athletic training. What hasn’t changed is the dedication and love the coaches and student-athletes have for their sports.”

One major change that challenges her is the ever-changing online world. “As a seasoned trainer, it is challenging to stay current with social media. Generation Z student-athletes rely heavily on it. Professors say today that you have eight seconds to capture a student’s attention. I now use YouTube videos to demonstrate exercises in addition to showing athletes the anatomical models to explain what is wrong and needs to be corrected,” noted Wisniewski, whose favorite part of her profession has never changed. “Interacting with the student-athletes is the best part of being an AT. They keep you on your toes and young. It is particularly rewarding to work with someone who thought their career was over, to help them believe in themselves again and see them get back to competing and doing well.”

Advice for Young Athletic Trainers

“The most important advice I can give to young athletic trainers is to be a good listener. Be patient and try to establish a good rapport with your student-athletes and earn their trust,” she recommended. “For young women in the field, I encourage them to take pride in their abilities, network, and be a team player. Share your ideas and abilities with your colleagues.”

She believes it is important to dedicate oneself to their career, but also to pursue passions outside of work. For Wisniewski, that entails being the Camp Director for Daily Operations at the Varsity Day Camp founded by her parents Irv and Martha Wisniewski in 1950. The camp, located just northwest of Ann Arbor, Michigan, is owned and run by their children. “My parents wanted to provide a wholesome outdoor experience where children could just be kids to grow and play; to learn about, respect, and enjoy nature; to meet and make new friends; to learn social skills and how to treat everyone with respect; and to make good choices and have fun. My six siblings and I continue to keep our parents’ dream alive for children in and around Ann Arbor and Southeast Livingston County,” she explained.

The pandemic has kept the camp on hold for two years. “Because of COVID-19, our camp was on pause last summer and will be again this summer, but I am hopeful we will reopen in 2022. In the meantime, I will be out there cutting the grass, picking up tree branches, and doing general maintenance, repairing and painting the fence out front. We are planning and preparing for next summer to keep our family tradition going,” Wisniewski commented.