Distinguished Alumnus
Former Associate Director of Athletics for Sports Medicine at the University of San Diego
SDSU Athletic Training alumna and Athletic Training Program preceptor, Carolyn Greer, was the Associate Director of Athletics for the University of San Diego’s Sports Medicine and Head Athletic Trainer. At SDSU, Carolyn was a member of the women’s gymnastics team. After breaking a sternum during her junior year, she began to visit the Aztec’s athletic training room where Dr. Robert Moore, the founder of SDSU’s Athletic Training Program, caught her attention. She earned both a B.A. and M.A. from SDSU.
Her career began as the head athletic trainer at USD in 1978, where she became the first female head athletic trainer at the NCAA Division I level. She also was involved as an athletic trainer at the 1984 Summer Olympic Games for Artistic Gymnastics, the NBA Summer Professional Basketball League, San Diego Friars Professional Team Tennis, and SDSU. Her primary focus included prevention of injury and evaluation of injuries; management, treatment, and rehabilitation of athletic injuries; and education and counseling of athletes. During her career, she taught athletic training courses at USD and SDSU.
Her immense passion and dedication to her craft helped many students launch amazing careers in athletic training. She won the Robert J. Moore Distinguished Alumnus Award in 2007 and was honored as the National Athletic Trainers’ Association’s Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer. In 2009, Carolyn was inducted into the Far West Athletic Trainers’ Association Hall of Fame. In 2011, she was honored with the San Diego Sports Medicine Foundation Community Service Champion Award.
