TBB Meets New TBT (The Blake Trainer): Ms. Tiffany Perry

The heart and soul of every high school is the students, especially the ones who make an impact, and this is certainly true for the student-athletes at Blake. Day and night, these athletes long for something to make sports and managing injuries easier. Just having fun on the field, track, facility, or court. That’s why MCPS has hired full-time certified athletic trainers for each of their 25 high schools. They offer a scope of services to better attend to the athletes at each school.

Blake’s new athletic trainer is Ms. Tiffany Perry, a dedicated and knowledgeable woman who brings passion and pride to her position.

Ms. Tiffany arrives daily to Blake shortly before school lets out so she can work on some paperwork alone in her element, an insight into the dedicated task her work entails. Just before practices begin, she gets water ready for our teams, checks in on sports, and waits for those in need to come to her office with an open-door policy.  Ms. Tiffany is welcoming and likes to be available in the athletic training room. “In case anyone wants to come in and talk about injuries or if they would like to get taped before their practice begins,” she says. She also mentions that she conducts evaluations for injuries and gives athletes tips to recover, including giving them home exercise programs that they can use if injured.

When asked how her experience so far as Blake’s athletic trainer compares to her past experiences as an athletic trainer, she revealed that it is the first time she is working directly for a school district. In the past, she worked as an athletic trainer for hospital systems that had a contract with the school districts and had morning responsibilities with them. Then she would come to the school in the afternoons. Now, hired by the school district, her only focus is helping out the student-athletes at Blake. 

She’s very optimistic about this new working method, saying, “I appreciate the change. I feel like I have more balance in my schedule. I don’t feel like I’m being pulled in two different directions at the same time, especially when events come up on the weekends.”   In the past, she would be expected to help out with other sporting events or distance races that the hospital system was involved in. She also noted that “now [her] main focus is the athletes at Blake and then if necessary, [she gets] asked to help with other activities within the county such as the cheer competition that was last weekend.” But Ms. Tiffany doesn’t mind because she is still involved with Blake’s athletes and enjoys seeing them perform. This is a genuine remark on how much she enjoys the Bengals.

When asked if she had a favorite sport, she showed how much thinking you have to do as an athletic trainer. She points out that when it comes to Blake, she doesn’t have a favorite sport. Because the student-athletes have been kind and the coaches all listen to her advice regarding caring for the athletes. So, she enjoys helping out with all the sports at Blake. However, she gives an insight as to why she likes football the most. “I tend to like football because the biggest reason there’s only one game a week,” she jokes, “But also, you know, there’s a lot happening during the games. There are quick plays, and it keeps me on my toes just to watch out for injuries and to help people during the game.” 

Going into why she wanted to become an athletic trainer, Ms. Tiffany says she played a little softball in high school but could have been better. However, she really enjoyed being in the marching band. But then came the time to decide if she wanted to go to college and what she wanted to study. She knew she wanted to help people and didn’t want to be stuck behind a desk. Ms. Tiffany had some thinking to do. But then she had an epiphany, she states “I wasn’t sure what exactly that would look like. And then funny enough I saw the football movie Any Given Sunday with Jamie Foxx and I was definitely touched by the young doctor who advocated for the football player who kept getting head injuries and concussions.” After the movie, she did some research and found out what athletic training was. From that, she shadowed the athletic trainer at her high school during her senior year. She really enjoyed her time as his assistant. She says, “It was very eye-opening and enlightening. It was great! He let me help him in the athletic training room with treatments, and I’d hang out with him at practices.” She claims “I was sold then!” 

Ms. Tiffany says it feels awesome to help Blake’s student-athletes. She mentions that since Blake didn’t have an athletic trainer last year, managing injuries and daily tasks was difficult without one. She states that now it puts her in the “spotlight.” In the sense that everyone is grateful that she is here. She mentions lightheartedly, “I’m just doing the simple things that are in my job description, but everyone appreciates my help.”

She says that as an athletic trainer, something she will never forget is helping student-athletes outside of their sport. Talking to the athletes about their life, what they like to do outside of high school, or if there is anything they want to discuss like if they’re having some communication issues with their coaches or some trouble happening at home.  

And finally, Ms. Tiffany would like Blake’s students to know that she is here to help in any way possible. She states “Even if [you] are not the starter for the team who always needs to get in, I am still here to help [you]…So if that’s a question about their bodies, or a question about nutrition, or again, if it’s about a conversation that has nothing to do with sports. I am an adult with life experiences, and I would like to share this with [you all].”  She was very appreciative about having the chance to be interviewed and liked the opportunity to explain what it is that she does, but also to encourage other young people to get involved with her science.