BUFFALO, NY – The Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education (CAATE) presented Peter M. Koehneke, of Buffalo, with its Bob and Lynn Caruthers Service Award. Koehneke received the award at the volunteer reception, held during the National Athletic Trainers’ Association (NATA) Clinical Symposium and Athletic Trainers Expos in Indianapolis. The award recognized Koehneke for his significant contributions to athletic training education and accreditation, and for leading not just by example but with “experience and thoughtful guidance.”
A certified athletic trainer, Koehneke is professor and chair of the Kinesiology Department at Canisius, where he directs the college’s athletic training curriculum. Under his leadership, the college has grown its athletic training major from a handful of students to more than 60. As a result of Koehneke’s efforts, Canisius also became one of the first small, private colleges whose athletic training program earned national accreditation.
Beyond Canisius, Koehneke’s professional leadership draws a national spotlight. He was a member of the NATA Professional Education Committee, the American Medical Associations’ Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs Joint Review Committee for Athletic Training (1990-2004), for which he served as vice chair for four years and chair for six years. During this time, Koehneke worked to ensure processes moved forward and that advances were made in professional education.
Koehneke also served as president and vice president of the board that administers the national certification exam and has been active with the U.S. Olympic Committee Sports Medicine Society. His list of professional recognitions is long and includes induction into the Hall of Fame of both the New York State and the National Athletic Trainers’ Associations.
Koehneke is a graduate of Indiana State University, where he earned a BS in physical and health education with an athletic training specialization, and an MS in adapted physical education and athletic training.
The Bob and Lynn Caruthers Service Award is presented to individuals who demonstrate the character and performance traits that Bob and Lynn Caruthers displayed in their respective careers of significant and distinguished service to professional and specialized accreditation.
Canisius is one of 28 Jesuit universities in the nation and the premier, private university in Western New York.
