Student Climbing Special Interest Group





Goal:
The goal of the Rock Climbing Special Interest group is to provide an environment for Physical Therapy Students to learn through mentorship, guidance, panels, and article reviews about the management of rock climbing injuries.
Who can apply:
Any physical therapy student entering their 2nd or 3rd year with a GPA of > 3.3
Meetings:
Meetings will be held monthly via zoom throughout the Fall and Spring semesters. There will be seven total meetings. Each meeting will consist of a research article review followed by a case based scenario that involves clinical reasoning to assess and treat rock climbing injuries.
Independent Project:
Throughout the year, you will be mentored in the process of writing an article on a topic of your choice related to rock climbing injuries.
Application Due Date:
Applications are now open for the 2026 cohort. Applications are due by September 15th and will be reviewed in the order they are received.
Faculty:
- Jared Vagy PT, DPT, OCS, CSCS – Director
- Kevin Cowell, PT, DPT, OCS – Officer
- Julien Descheneaux PHT. MSC – Officer
- Todd Bushman PT, DPT – Teaching Assistant
- Carly Post PT, DPT – Teaching Assistant
- Sam Lemminger PT, DPT – Junior Teaching Assistant
- Aaron Simon PT, DPT, CSCS – Junior Teaching Assistant
- Jacquelyn Brown PT, DPT, CSCS – Junior Teaching Assistant
- Jennifer Yarin PT, DPT – Junior Teaching Assistant
- Joseph Manoles SDPT – Junior Teaching Assistant
- Ben Moore SDPT – Junior Teaching Assistant
- Evan Schneider SDPT – Junior Teaching Assistant
Cost:
None. This is the faculty’s way to “give back” to students of physical therapy with our knowledge and expertise of managing rock climbing injuries.
Note:
To improve your likelihood of selection for the SIG, make sure to be detailed and descriptive with your answers to the question and prompts. Tell your story, highlight your interests, and share your passion!
| Name | University |
|---|---|
| David Rosman | Ithaca College |
| Dominique Hurst | Dalhousie University |
| Skye Krehbiel | Ithaca College |
| Robin Short | Dalhousie University |
| Caroline Johnson | Radford University |
| Eric Velazquez | Columbia University |
| Emma Yeager | Trine University |
| Kacey Yip | Army Baylor University |
| Emme Audley | University of Wisconsin–Madison |
| Stephon Flynn | The College of St. Scholastica |
| Alexsander Kelsey | Midwestern University |
| Mekhin Saetan | West Coast University |
| Yedidya Naiman | University of Colorado Anschutz |
| Will Higuchi | The George Washington University |
| Holly Geyer | Ithaca College |
| Bryce Rhone | University of Nebraska Medical Center |
| Kadisha Aburub | California State University Long Beach |
| Noah Kindler | Ithaca College |
| Juliann Vadney | Ithaca College |
| Ioana Felea | Transilvania University of Brașov |
| Anna Gras | Ithaca College |
| Tygr Burnett | University of Western Ontario Faculty of Health Science |
| Lydia Caggiano | University of Delaware |
| Liora Shenker | West Coast University |
| Samantha Hsia | Western University of Health Sciences |
| Amanda Brownstein | University of Utah |
| Sophie Provenzano | The University of British Columbia |
| Isabella Castro | University of Southern California |
| Derek New | University of Colorado Anschutz |
| Alan Lee | University of Southern California |
| Lyndsey Anderson | University of Colorado Anschutz |
| Felix Lafortune-Lemieux | University of British Columbia |
| Name | University |
|---|---|
| Emily Leonard | University of Florida |
| Joseph Meshach Ramirez | Rutgers University |
| Riley Hess | Massachusetts College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences |
| Trevor Wiltz | University of Utah |
| Katie Davenport | Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (PCOM) |
| Elliott Tan | University of Utah |
| Evelynn Simmons | University of Texas at El Paso |
| Tyler Hinkle | Murphy Deming College of Health Sciences – Mary Baldwin University |
| Collin Miller | Regis University |
| Emma Benson | Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) |
| Andrew Tollefson | The University of Utah |
| Shauna Nuss | Stony Brook University |
| Stephen Kiraly | University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) |
| Susana Mateos | California State University, Sacramento |
| Michael Larson | University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point |
| Cameron Johnston Meteer | California State University, Sacramento |
| Brian Patrick Hazelwood | Georgia State University |
| Ezra David | University of Utah |
| Sabrina Hung | University of Southern California (USC) |
| Brigitte Cacchione | Rutgers University |
| Taylor Salton | The University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) |
| Brian Hsiao | Stony Brook University |
| Meg Allen | LaGuardia Community College |
| Alex Walker | California State University, Sacramento |
| Connor Brown | University of Florida |
| Lancelot Guilbault | University of Montreal |
| Kenneth Lim | INTI International University |
| Grace VanSurksum | Doctor of Physical Therapy Program – Hanover College |
| Jake Rosengarten | Elon University |
| Dawson Freeze | The University of British Columbia |
| Zachary Mandell | The George Washington University |
| Kevin Pham | University of Florida |
| Andrew Miller | Elon University |
| Aaron De La Cruz | Azusa Pacific University |
| Sophie Willihnganz | University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee |
| Kieran Mahoney | Elon University |
| Justin Qu | Stony Brook University |
| Natalia Soss | The University of Toledo |
| Beauvois Mathilde | University of Franche-Comté |
| Marie-Eve Joanisse | University of Montreal |
| Sarah Kremer | Tufts University |
| Name | University |
|---|---|
| Alayna Callanan | University of Colorado |
| Gordon Chen | Auckland University of Technology |
| Anna Chleboun | Northern Arizona University |
| Marlene Jensen | University of Southern California |
| Jamie To | Azusa Pacific University |
| Austin Reynolds | University of Tennessee, Chattanooga |
| Alyson Self | Arcadia University |
| Olivia Simon | University of Michigan – Flint |
| Stalin Caicedo | Pontificia Universidad Catolica del Ecuador |
| Robin Martinez | University of Florida |
| Seigo Kuwano | University of Southern California |
| Tifanee Miller | University of Southern California |
| Lucy Kim | University of Nevada, Las Vegas |
| Sarah Dirk | Mount Saint Mary’s University Los Angeles |
| Leeor Shalom | University of Vermont |
| Grace Killeen | University of Colorado |
| Jonathan O’Connors | Saxion University (NL) |
| Reid Markus | Texas State University |
| Morgan Yont | University of Saskatchewan |
| Ellen Young | University of Utah |
| Emma-Leigh Lamonde | University of Rhode Island |
| Kristin Perkoski | University of St. Augustine |
| Guadalupe Medina | University of Southern California |
| Lauren Aghajanian | Azusa Pacific University |
| Michael Tran | University of Colorado |
| Danit Hoxha | Rocky Mountain University of Health Professions |
| Bradley Nichols | Oregon State University, Cascades |
| Preston Ellington | Western Carolina University |
| Brittany Hegstad | University of Iowa |
| Juan “Charlie” Lancor | Florida Gulf Coast University |
| Brittany Grant | Eastern Washington University |
| Simone Tentori | Università Bicocca di Milano, ITALY |
| Amber Wagner-Haston | Northern Arizona University |
| Michael Marano | Arcadia University |
| Leanne Urbanek | Lincoln Memorial University |
| Mckenzie Kehr | University of Southern California |
| Savannah Seifferth | Arcadia University |
| Rachel Klaus | Arcadia University |
| Tomas Snur | Mount Saint Mary’s University Los Angeles |
| Madison Mirabitur | University of Michigan – Flint |
| Daniel White | University of Colorado – Anschutz Medical Campus |
| Emma St Pierre | University at Buffalo |
| Grace West | University of East London |
| Name | University |
|---|---|
| Alexa Allen | Western Carolina University |
| Alexa Frischmann | Trine University |
| Amanda Witt | Western Carolina University |
| Andy Rivas | Western Carolina University |
| Benjamin Thomas Moore | Idaho State University |
| Colin Ramsey | Western Carolina University |
| Connor Hayward | University of Rhode Island |
| Daniel James | South College – Knoxville |
| Danny Paredes | University of Southern California |
| Emily Fuller | Regis University |
| Evan Schneider | Arcadia University |
| Fernando Cordova Lopez | Instituto Profesional en Terapias y Humanidades |
| Gregory Rinn |
University of North Carolina
|
| Hudák Bence | University of Debrecen |
| Jacquelyn Brown | Saint Joseph’s University |
| Joseph Manoles | Oregon State University |
| Kaitlyn Detlefsen | Eastern Washington University |
| Kevin Slowik | Grand Valley State University |
| Kyle Hertel | Regis University |
| Liana Aguirre-Echevarria | University of Colorado |
| Mari Maisla | University of Tartu |
| Megan Hutchinson | Western Carolina University |
| Nim Sze Angela Lee | University of Birmingham |
| Paige Harrell | University of Colorado |
| Samantha Christine Lemminger | Concordia St. Paul |
| Samantha Iannucci |
University of North Carolina
|
| Sammy Laslie | Bellarmine University |
| Sayra Sapien | Loma Linda University |
| Sebastian Brothers | University of Colorado |
| Shavonne Renfro | Boston University |
| Taylor Barry | Western Carolina University |
| Teresa Shultz | University of Colorado |
| Timothy Worley | University of Texas at El Paso |
| Tristan Smith-klooster | McGill University |
| Witt, Amanda | Eastern Washington University |
| Name | University |
|---|---|
| A.J. White-Graff | CSULB |
| Adrienne Rossi | Mount Saint Mary’s University |
| Andrew Bosselman | University of Montana |
| Andrew McClure | Northern Arizona Univ. |
| Beth Scott | University of Oklahoma |
| Billy Shiou | University of Southern California |
| Brandon Whitmore | Texas Woman’s University — Dallas |
| Caitlyn Wilkerson | University of Central Florida |
| Carly Post | University of Southern California |
| Cera Chiu | Singapore Institute of Technology |
| David Cook | University of Canberra |
| Emily Herbster | Eastern Washington University |
| Erin Finestone | UCSF/SFSU |
| Hiroya Son | University of Southern California |
| Jennifer Yarin | Boston University |
| Joshua Jones | University of Colorado |
| Kaile Sauro | University of Montana |
| Katrina Wong | Chapman University |
| Kevin Nguyen | Chapman University |
| Krista Kleinhammer | Fresno State University |
| Nanna Brandt | Gothenburg University |
| Shawna Troupe | Eastern Washington University |
| Sophie John | MGH IHP |
| Stacey Castaldo | CSU Long Beach |
| Tyler Steele | Western Carolina University |
| Whitley North | Wayne State University |
| Xavier Cardinal | Army-Baylor |
| Zachary Valavanis | Carroll University |
| Name | University |
|---|---|
| Andrea Gutierrez Arango | University of Southern California |
| Annie Leavitt | University of Colorado |
| Christin Donahoe | University of Evansville |
| Claire Lorbiecki | Regis University |
| Drake Griggs | Carroll University |
| Honoka (Wendy) Shiga | University of Southern California |
| James Lobb | Western University |
| Johnathon Crawley | Regis University |
| Jose Soltero | University of Vermont |
| Josh Foster | California State University Sacramento |
| Kimmi Wiley | Carroll University |
| Marc Webber | Kean University |
| Mike Hwang | University of Southern California |
| Nicole (Reyes) Sarles | University of Puget Sound |
| Rachel Meyers | Duke University |
| Shawnee Wood | Regis University |
| Todd Bushman | Eastern Washington University |
| Victoria Lu | University of Southern California |
| Whitby, Emily | Army-Baylor |
| Zeno Lee | MGH Institute of Health Professions |
| Name | University |
|---|---|
| Gail Skoropad | University of Southern California |
| Jennifer Sauers | University of Massachusetts Boston |
| Chris David | Loyola Marymount University |
| Derrick Nguyen | University of Southern California |
| Veronica Yee | Mount Saint Mary’s University |
| Kirsten Hee | Mount Saint Mary’s University |
| Kurt Vo | Mount Saint Mary’s University |
| Eric Hwang | Mount Saint Mary’s University |
| Josh Hill | Texas Southern University |
| Nicholas Hedges | Logan University |
| Aaron Simon | University of Nevada, Las Vegas |
| Graham Gage | University of Southern California |
| Kelly Kika | Azusa Pacific University |
| Name | University |
|---|---|
| Bo Heris | University of Southern California |
| Brian O’Meara | University of Southern California |
| Chelsea Fan | University of Southern California |
| Graham Gage | University of Southern California |
| Kevin Reichel | University of Southern California |
| Scott Dickenson | University of Southern California |













































“The Climbing SIG has been an incredible privilege to be a part of. I have loved the opportunity to discuss relevant research, work through case studies, and receive mentorship from experts who treat climbers. Above all, my passion for this niche really came alive with the help of this group. I realized that incorporating climbing into physical therapy practice is well within reach if you’re willing to go for it!”
“The Climbing SIG was a great way to meet other students with similar interests and to get a glimpse of the intricacies of treating rock climbers. The faculty brought in some great clinical cases to challenge us and help to deepen the knowledge we have been learning in school while applying it to scenarios that are personally more relevant to me as a student and a developing clinician.”
“This group was amazing for hearing perspectives from a wide range of PT students and PT faculty. The discussion was great as it tested my understanding of the upper and lower extremity during movement. Lastly, the group provided great insights into lesser known conditions that present in a climbing population and how to assess for them.”
“The SIG gave me the knowledge and confidence to treat climbers and higher level athletes in a more specific fashion. Through this SIG I was able to form connections with peers and mentors as well as improve my movement analysis and intervention thought process. This experience was invaluable:”
“It was not only a great place to discuss climbing specific cases but it was also a really great setting to receive guidance and practice with finding evidence based research on the topic of our choice (specific to climbing injuries). Although it may seem like a lot of extra work (added on top of your school and personal life), this SIG is very structured with dates pre-planned which made it extremely easy for me to fit into my busy schedule. I highly recommend this SIG, especially if you are a SPT interested in working in the sport/orthopedic population or if you are a climber yourself!”
“Whether you are a climber or not, this is a great way to expand your overall PT knowledge and improve your clinical reasoning skills. Getting input from not only the extremely knowledgeable staff, but students from other programs as well, serves to expand your frame of thinking beyond what only learning from your DPT program provides.”
“The SIG is an amazing learning opportunity that teaches you evaluation and intervention approaches and considerations for climbers. It also connects you with a network of PT’s who are passionate about climbing and addressing the sport’s specific movement and training.”
“The Climbing SIG has been an amazing experience! The knowledge gained throughout the SIG is invaluable. It provides access to an awesome community of likeminded individuals. Once, completed this experience gives you the tools needed to help manage climbing specific injuries in order to keep people in the gyms and at the crag.”
“This was a great experience to learn from some of the PTs that are leaders in this niche of PT. It was wonderful to get to connect with other PTs/students with similar interests in the practice and be a part of this growing specialty.”
“The Climbing SIG is an incredible opportunity to practice working through rock climbing related patient cases, get involved with a great community of physical therapists and have the opportunity to write an article that gets published online. This group got me excited about the possibilities as a physical therapist and taught me so much!”