John Heck is a board of certification certified and state licensed athletic trainer who has been practicing at Connecticut College since 2002. He oversees the sports medicine team which consists of certified athletic trainers, team physicians, massage therapists, sports medicine assistant student workers, and various other healthcare professionals who are consulted as needed in their area of expertise to support approximately 500 student-athletes who compete in 28 varsity sports at the institution.
Prior to coming to Connecticut College, Heck gained hands-on experience in athletic training at East Stroudsburg and Penn State. At East Stroudsburg, he most notably worked with the football, volleyball and swimming programs while also serving as a clinical preceptor for the undergraduate athletic training education program at the institution during the 2001-02 academic year. Heck also served as an athletic trainer for Penn State intramural sports and sports camps in 2001. Furthermore, Heck coordinated medical coverage for the 1984 Boys’ Region Select One Team which competed in international tournaments as part of the United States Soccer Olympic Development Program (ODP).
Heck, who has also been a basic life support instructor for the American Heart Association since 1998, also gained professional experience in emergency services in Hawley, Pennsylvania. He spent more than eight years as a crew chief, emergency medical technician and firefighter for the Hemlock Farms Fire and Rescue Company as well as more than four years as an emergency dispatcher for the Hemlock Farms Department of Public Safety between 1994 and 2002.
A native of Hemlock Farms, Pennsylvania, Heck graduated with a bachelor’s degree from the professional athletic training education program at Penn State and earned a master’s in health and physical education from East Stroudsburg. He also holds additional certifications as a certified strength and conditioning specialist, basic life support instructor, and Graston technique provider.
