Pleasant Valley High School in Chico, CA recently upgraded their facilities by undergoing a $16 million dollar building project renovation. Sports Medicine Director Patrick Carras talks about his program's needs and challenges and discusses the products and features of what the Vikings purchased from The Athletic Edge.
Photo courtesy of Pleasant Valley High School |
A Focus on Real World Learning
Built in 1965, Pleasant Valley High School recognized the need to renovate their facilities to provide cutting edge, hands-on opportunities for their students. The school received a $16 million dollar makeover funded by voter-approved Measure E & K funds and career and technical education grants from the state. The result: brand-new academic programs and worksite-ready facilities designed to give students real-life job experiences right on campus.
New student opportunities now include a state-of-the-art culinary lab with a built-in restaurant for students and staff to run, as well as a medical pathway lab and sports medicine lab with hands-on training for sports medicine and medical students to experience real-life learning situations that translate into real world jobs.
Photo courtesy of Pleasant Valley High School |
The project included a new dining hall and kitchen facility, five new classrooms, four new labs, a new administration office and fenced entrance, a new quad area, interactive television and teaching stations in all classrooms, specialty student resource and staff offices, a new bus drop, a new parking lot, new exterior lighting, a campus-wide upgraded fire alarm system, voice and intercom systems, and an industry-leading energy efficient technology and applications.
Q & A with Patrick Carras | Sports Medicine Director at Pleasant Valley High School
Q: With any new construction project comes a challenge or two. What issues did you face while building a brand-new sports medicine space?
A: "The new lab/athletic training room is huge, so I wanted to be able to buy some substantial treatment tables and taping stations to fill the room. I needed to decide which types of treatment tables I wanted to purchase, and how many of each including taping stations, treatment cabinets, treatment tables, etc." In addition to filling the room with appropriate athletic training furniture, Carras needed a locking cabinet space for storage of sports medicine class supplies and athletic training supplies.
Q: What were your most important training room needs?
A: "We needed sizable athletic training room furniture to fill the space including treatment tables and taping stations. In addition, we we needed a lot of storage space and wanted a professional look for the new building. The new treatment tables and taping stations exceeded our expectations. They look professional, are very functional, and provide a ton of storage space. On top of that, my students and athletes were so impressed when they saw them."
Q: Which Athletic Edge products features are the most valuable to you and your team, and how have they made it easier for you?
A: "I especially love the full depth, pullout drawers inside the taping station cabinets. They are great for storage and allow me to get to the things in the very back of the cabinet vs. having fixed shelves inside.The full-depth pullout drawers in the CAB-180 treatment cabinets are also very handy. They provide more locking storage and allow easy access to any physical therapy equipment I may need while working with athletes. Finally, I love the ability to customize literally anything about the cabinets. From the logo design, to the colors, to the design of the cabinet, to waste bin cutouts, to locks - anything can be customized."
Photo courtesy of Pleasant Valley High School |
Q: What is your favorite Athletic Edge product and why?
A: "Hard to say! I love the Aluma Elite Portable Workstations because of their functionality and versatility. Being able to fold them up and roll them to the sidelines for games is easy and very convenient, too. The new treatment tables and taping stations are exceptional, though. They provide tons of locked storage, are functional, and look professional. My students and athletes love them and think they are so cool. I have also had many tours of my lab/athletic training room from district personnel, site administration, school board members, retirees, etc. and all of them are amazed at how nice the tables are!"
Q: What made Athletic Edge products stand out from others you considered?
A: "I have already ordered tables from AE in the past (Aluma Elite Portable Workstations). I used them as desks and treatment/training tables for sports medicine students, and treatment/training tables and sideline tables for athletics. I have also ordered rolling stools for those tables with our logo on them. I love the products and the customer service has been above exceptional – a huge shout out to Aly Neale!"
Q: What is the main reason why you would recommend The Athletic Edge to someone else?
A: "Exceptional customer service, numerous options for treatment tables, taping stations, the ability to customize the cabinets, the professional look of my lab/athletic training room, and how much our students/athletes, administration, and community love the products!"
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