Sedillo Says Kids Keep Him on His Toes
By John Earp
Robert Sedillo is Jal High School’s new full-time athletic trainer. AtVantage is the name of the company he works for, which Jal Schools has contracted with for athletic trainer services. The company deals with schools in Hobbs High School and Junior High, University of the Southwest, New Mexico Military Institute, and is expanding throughout southeastern New Mexico and into Texas.
Sedillo graduated with his master’s degree from Texas Tech University Health Sciences this past May, but has been doing athletic training for five years now. When he was an athlete in high school he was “really big in track,” and even ran track and field in college in Kansas. His high school athletic trainer, Lisa Sandoval, at Roswell High School influenced him to become an athletic trainer. A hamstring injury led to him thinking he might not be able to come back, but his trainer got him both motivated and in training to where he was able to compete in track and field. He completed his bachelor’s in kinesiology in Kansas, which was a prerequisite to becoming an athletic trainer. His graduate-level training at TTU included in-depth study of anatomy, functional anatomy, primary care pharmacology, ultrasound, electric stimulation, dry needling, etc.
His favorite thing about being a trainer in general is that there is “something new every day, whether it’s an injury, treatment option, a kid coming to talk to you about anything and everything. It’s something new. You’re never just sitting in the office, going through the motions. You’ve always got football practice, football games, volleyball games, cheer practice. So many different dynamics. So many different scenarios.” Sedillo says being an athletic trainer “always keeps you on your toes.”
His favorite thing about working with the athletic programs at Jal is the student athletes. “I love working with the kids. They’re all very respectful. They’re very willing to do whatever it takes to stay on the field or stay on the court. They’re always working with me. I’m working with them. So far, the kids have really been keeping me on my toes. I’m grateful for that.”
Sedillo says there has been talk of getting him a new training room to better facilitate all the athletic training needs for Jal’s student athletes. He is a fan of the Dallas Cowboys and of Team USA for the Olympics, some of whom were athletes he worked with at Texas Tech. His best time in the 400-meter dash while in college was 47 seconds. Sedillo wants the people of Jal to know he is a healthcare professional whose goal is to provide the best care possible for the student-athletes of Jal School District.
