Faculty
James Rankin, Ph.D., ATC
James.Rankin@utoledo.edu - Associate Professor and Program Director
Dr. James Rankin is the Program Director for The University of
Toledo's CAATE-accredited undergraduate athletic training education program. He is in his twenty-fourth year at UT having started here
in 1984 and has been a Certified Athletic Trainer since 1975. He obtained his Bachelor's degree from The University of Michigan in 1972,
his Master's degree from Western Michigan University in 1974 and his Doctorate from Michigan State University in 1983 in exercise science
with a minor in anatomy. Dr. Rankin has seen the athletic training education program at UT grow from 7 athletic training students in the
Fall quarter 1984 when he and former head athletic trainer Dave Huffstetler arrived here to today's competitively admitted athletic
training student group of around 55 students. The first six years he was at UT, Dr. Rankin was also the athletic trainer for men's
basketball. Dr. Rankin was licensed by the State of Ohio in 1991. He is a member of the National Athletic Trainers Association, the Great
Lakes Athletic Trainers Association, the Ohio Athletic Trainers Association, the American College of Sports Medicine and the Midwest
Chapter of the American College of Sports Medicine.
Dr. Rankin is co-author (with Dr. Christopher Ingersoll (Ph.D. from UT, 1989)) of Athletic Training Management, now in a 3rd
edition from McGraw-Hill. He has presented many times locally, regionally, and nationally. Since Dr. Rankin became full-time in the
academic side of the UT athletic training education program, he has developed an ongoing program for Doctoral level graduate students
who desire to become athletic training faculty to be involved with teaching/administrating in an athletic training education program .
There have been fourteen Doctorate's completed (Christopher Ingersoll (University of Virginia), Brian Toy (University of Southern Maine),
Cynthia McKnight (Azuza Pacific University), Mitchell Cordova (University of North Carolina - Charlotte), Mark Merrick (Ohio State
University) Susan Norkus (Quinnipiac University), Erik Swartz (University of New Hampshire), Robert Sterner (Rowan University), Tina
Claiborne (Adrian College), Wendy Walkosky (Washington State University), Alison Snyder (Arizona School of Health Sciences), Heather
Gulgin (Grand Valley State University), Mark Timmons (former visiting assistant professor at University of Toledo) and W. Steven Tucker
(University of Central Arkansas). Three Doctoral students are currently in their graduate work.
Dr. Rankin is married to Barb. They have two daughters, (Joey Stringham-who completed a Masters degree in recreation at UT in 2001, and
is now living in Colorado with her husband, Lucas, and daughter Alice Elizabth, the apple of grandpa's eye born June 12, 2008; and Mary
Skulas-who graduated from UT in May 2004 with a major in Art History and is living in Toledo with her husband, Mark). He enjoys his
family, travel in the USA and Canada, photography, reading, theater, movies, Mexican and Cajun food, and tennis, in no particular order.
Phillip Gribble, Ph.D., ATC
Phillip.Gribble@utoledo.edu - Assistant Professor and Graduate Program Coordinator
Dr. Phillip Gribble is an assistant professor and serves as the
director of the graduate athletic training program and the Athletic Training Research Laboratory, as well as teaching classes in the
CAATE-accredited undergraduate Athletic Training Education Program at UT. He earned a Bachelor's Degrees and a Master's Degree from the
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, both in exercise science with emphasis in Athletic Training. While working on his Master's
Degree, he served as a GA in the undergraduate Athletic Training Education Program and worked as a Graduate Assistant Athletic Trainer in
the Department of Intercollegiate Athletics. After completing his degree, he was an Instructor at Appalachian State University teaching
within the Athletic Training curriculum. He also served as an Assistant Athletic Trainer with Appalachian State's intercollegiate
athletics with primary responsibility for wrestling. After two years at Appalachian State, he left to pursue a PhD at Pennsylvania State University. His PhD is in kinesiology with a specialization in Athletic Training. His research interests are in lower extremity functional testing and postural control following musculoskeletal injury and fatigue. He is also interested in the effects of sleep deprivation on athletic activity.
He has published in several Exercise Science related journals, including Journal of Athletic Training, Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Journal of EMG & Kinesiology, and Perceptual & Motor Skills; as well as presented at the NATA and ACSM annual meetings and the International Ankle Symposium.
Dr. Gribble was certified by the BOC in 1997 and licensed by the State of Ohio in 2003. He is a member of the National Athletic Trainers' Association, the Great Lakes Athletic Trainers' Association and the American College of Sports Medicine.
Dr. Gribble was a competitive volleyball player and serves as a volunteer assistant coach with the University of Toledo women's volleyball program. He and his wife Jammie, a pediatric physical therapist, have a son, Sawyer, born August 12, 2005 and a daughter, Caroline Alice, born July 14, 2008. They also enjoy outdoor activities (Phillip is a golfer), cooking and attending live music shows.
Brian Pietrosimone, Ph.D., ATC Kate Jackson, Ph.D., ATC
Kathryn is in her
third year as a Doctoral Graduate Assistant working
with the ATEP. She was born in the Chicago area and attended Dickinson College in Carlisle, PA, where she obtained her Bachelors
degree in American Studies with a focus on the American family. She received her Masters in Athletic Training from Indiana State
University in 1997. After completing her MS she worked for two years at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, NY. Given the opportunity to
return to the Chicago area, she worked at Trinity International University in Deerfield, IL, from 1999-2006 as an instructor and head
athletic trainer through a hospital outreach from Condell Medical Center. During her time at Trinity, Kathryn worked with football,
men's and women's soccer, men's and women's basketball, and baseball. She taught mainly lower extremity injury evaluation as well as
Care and Prevention of Injuries.
Naoko is in her
third year as a Doctoral Graduate Assistant working
with the ATEP. She was born and raised in Japan until she was 16, when she came to the US as an exchange student. She graduated from
Central Michigan University with the Bachelor of Science degree in Athletic Training in December, 2002. Naoko spent her last semester in
Clearwater, FL, at an internship with Health South and Clearwater High School.
Jimmy is in his second year as a Doctoral Graduate Assistant
working with the ATEP. He was born and raised in Tokushima, Japan. He graduated from Canisius College in Buffalo, NY, with the Bachelor
of Science degree in Athletic Training in May, 2004. After completing his Bachelor’s degree, Jimmy worked for one year at the United
States Military Academy in West Point, NY as an athletic training intern. His main responsibilities in USMA were Football and Men’s and
Women’s Tennis.
Brian Jones replaced David Huffstetler as Head Athletic Trainer
on January 1, 2009. He was hired in August 1997 as an assistant athletic trainer at The University of Toledo, promoted to associate
athletic trainer in 1998 and associate head athletic trainer in 2003. He supervises health care provided to the men's basketball and all
teams at UT except football. His duties also include clinical supervision of athletic training students and coordination of travel for
men's basketball.
Currently in her fourth year with the University of Toledo, Sara
McGriff is an assistant athletic trainer working directly with the Lady Rockets’ basketball team.
Corey is from Toledo, OH. He graduated from Eastern Michigan
University in 2003 with a BS in athletic training. He received his M.Ed. in Kinesiology from the University of Texas at Austin in 2005
where he worked with football and men's tennis. While at EMU he interned with Grand Rapids Rampage of the Arena Football League in 2002
and while he was at Texas he interned with the Austin Wranglers of the Arena Football League in 2005.
Kristy joined the athletic training staff in August 2007,
serving as an assistant athletic trainer primarily for the UT women’s softball team while supervising the women’s soccer team. For the
2008-2009 academic year Kristy is with the women's soccer team and also serving as Clinical Coordinator.
Jillian Brigle is a second year Graduate Assistant working with
the University of Toledo Baseball Team. She earned a Bachelor’s of Science in Kinesiology with a minor in Biology from the University of
Texas, in May 2008.
Mary Cuson is a second year Graduate Assistant working with the
University of Toledo Softball Team. She earned a Bachelor of Science with a major in athletic training from Purdue University, West
Lafayette, IN in May 2008.
Mary was certified by the BOC in August 2008 and licensed by the State of Ohio the same month.
She is from Mill Creek, IN.
Roger Kruse, M.D. – Medical Director for the ATEP and Head Team Physician, is Board Certified in Family Practice and a member of the
American College of Sports Medicine and the American Medical Society of Sports Medicine. He obtained his
undergraduate degree from Ohio State University and his medical training from the University of Cincinnati
College of Medicine. Dr. Kruse is also the Program Director of a Primary Care
Fellowship where three physicians train each year to become sports medicine specialists. Dr. Kruse has
extensive Olympic experience and has been involved in the 1994 Winter Olympic Games in Lillihammer, Norway,
the 1996 Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta, 1998 Winter Olympic Games in Nagano, Japan, and the 2002 Winter
Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, Utah. Dr. Kruse served as Head Physician for the United States Olympic
Team in Nagano, Japan in 1998.
