SignalsAZ.com Prescott News Podcast - Flagstaff Schools Expand Student Athlete Healthcare

Episode Date: September 1, 2026

Send us a text and chime in!The Flagstaff Unified School District (FUSD) is expanding its partnership with Flagstaff Bone & Joint to provide additional athletic healthcare resources and sports medicine support for student-athletes at Flagstaff High School. The FUSD Governing Board approved a two-year Memorandum of Understanding with Flagstaff Bone & Joint that establishes athletic training and team physician services focused on improving student-athlete safety through injury prevention, evaluation, emergency care, treatment recommendations, rehabilitation oversight, and return-to-play decisions. The agreement runs from Aug. 1, 2026, through July 31, 2028. As part of the agreement, FUSD will hire, supervise, and evaluate an Assistant Athletic Trainer at Flagstaff...   For the written story, read here >> https://www.signalsaz.com/articles/flagstaff-schools-expand-student-athlete-healthcare/ Check out the CAST11.com Website at: https://CAST11.com Follow the CAST11 Podcast Network on Facebook at: https://Facebook.com/CAST11AZFollow Cast11 Instagram at: https://www.instagram.com/cast11_podcast_network

Text-to-speech audio articles made possible on the Cast11.com podcast network by Fane Signature Group. The Flagstaff Unified School District, FUSD, is expanding its partnership with Flagstaff Bone and Joint to provide additional athletic healthcare resources and sports medicine support for student athletes at Flagstaff High School. The Fust governing board approved a two-year memorandum of understanding with Flagstaff Bone and Joint that establishes athletic training and team physician services focused on improving student athlete safety through injury prevention, evaluation, emergency care, treatment recommendations, rehabilitation oversight, and return to play decisions. The agreement runs from August 1, 2026, through July 31, 2028. As part of the agreement, Fust will hire, supervise, and evaluate an assistant athletic trainer

at Flagstaff High School, while Flagstaff Bone and Joint will fund the salary and benefits for the position. The additional trainer will work alongside the head athletic trainer to provide injury prevention, clinical evaluation, immediate care, rehabilitation, practice and event coverage, and other sports medicine services for student athletes. The position will also support students in Flagstaff High School's career and technical education sports medicine program through hands-on mentorship and instruction. We're really excited about this partnership. We have record numbers this year for students trying out for athletics, and our programs run from early in the morning until well into the evening, said Flagstaff High School principal Libby Miller. The need

is absolutely there, and this additional support will greatly help with injury prevention and care for our student athletes. We're very grateful to Flagstaff Bone & Joint for stepping up to help fulfill that need. Flagstaff Bone and Joint is a locally owned, physician-run orthopedic practice serving Northern Arizona with a longstanding commitment to supporting local schools, families, and student athletes. The partnership also establishes a team physician model to strengthen coordination among athletic trainers, physicians, families, coaches, and school staff. Services include support for athletic physicals, concussion management, rehabilitation planning, medical communication, and return to play decisions, while preserving family's ability to choose

their health care providers. Having spent years coaching at the high school level, I've seen firsthand how important athletic trainers and strong medical support are to high school programs, said Nick Walton of Flagstaff Bone and Joint. Coaches, athletic trainers, parents, and physicians all play an important role in helping young athletes succeed, and partnerships like this bring those resources together. I'm proud to see Flagstaff Bone and Join invest in our local schools and student athletes and help provide the support these programs need. Flagstaff Bone and Join has a long-standing relationship with Coconino High School, and the new agreement initially focuses expanded services at Flagstaff High School while providing opportunities to

explore similar support at other fussed athletic programs in the future. We're proud to partner with Flagstaff Unified School District, Flagstaff High School and Coconino High School to support the health and well-being of our student athletes, said Dr. Nathan Swain of Flagstaff Bone and Joint. These athletes are an important part of our community, and we want to make sure they have access to the resources and support they need to stay healthy, recover from injuries, and continue doing the activities they love. As a locally owned, physician-run practice, giving back to the community that has trusted us with the care of their families is incredibly important to us. The partnership builds on Flagstaff Bone and Joint's ongoing support of local student athletes, including its annual low-cost athletic

physicals. This year, Flagstaff Bone and Joint provided physicals to 386 athletes during the event, with proceeds return to participating schools and athletic organizations. Supporting high school athletics is about much more than treating injuries. It's about helping young athletes stay healthy, active and confident throughout their athletic season, said Dr. Todd Ludwig of Flagstaff, Bone and Joint. This partnership allows us to work alongside the schools and their athletic programs to provide additional resources and support where they are needed most, whether athletes are competing on the field, on the court or on the mat. We're excited to be part of a partnership that puts the health and success of our student athletes first. Through the expanded partnership,

Fust and Flagstaff Bone and join aim to provide student athletes with greater access to coordinated sports medicine resources while supporting injury prevention, safe athletic participation, and healthy returns to play. Read more stories from the Mountain Cities on Signalsaz.com. Subscribe and be the F-1 RST2-No.