Celebrating Women in Sport and Physical Activity - Profiles
Doug 'Doc' Woods - 2016 Honoree
Doug 'Doc' Woods arrived in Allendale in 1976 to interview at Grand Valley for a job as athletic trainer and to develop an athletic training academic program.
What he found 40 years ago was a young college with an emerging intercollegiate athletic program that included more women's varsity sports than his previous institution.
"I learned pretty quickly that the women's teams were just as intense and competitive as the men's teams," Woods said.
A champion for women working as athletic trainers then and now, Woods helped women gain access to what was then a field dominated by men. He said Grand Valley was ahead of the curve in the 1970s due to progressive leaders like President Emeritus Arend D. Lubbers and former athletic director George MacDonald.
"Grand Valley was the first college in Michigan to have women athletic trainers work with the football team," Woods said.
The athletic training program Woods established was accredited in 1978 by the National Athletic Trainers' Association. Students continue to excel in the program and consistently have a licensure pass rate of 100 percent, well above the national average.
Woods served as head athletic trainer for 22 years. In 2008 he was inducted into the Michigan Athletic Trainers' Society Hall of Fame for his dedication and passion for the field.
In 1991, he began coaching the Laker softball team while still maintaining a teaching position within the Movement Science department. Woods retired from coaching in 2014 after 24 years. His compiled a career record of 888-395-3 and took teams to the College World Series twice. He was named GLIAC Coach of the Year seven times and the coaching staff was recognized regionally three times.
To recognize Woods as a mentor, coach and faculty member, students created an endowed scholarship to honor him and his wife, Linda, who retired from Grand Valley as a reference services librarian. The Doug and Linda Woods Excellence in Athletic Training Scholarship is awarded to students within the program based on their academic standing.
Woods continues to teach athletic training courses and serves as the program's clinical site supervisor.
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