Members of the Board,
My name is Mazie Green. I am the mother of Noah Green, a former soccer and football player for the Alleghany Mountaineers, who suffered two known traumatic brain injuries, including a skull fracture, as a goaltender for soccer. Noah fervently sought treatment for what is now known as CTE but could not be diagnosed until after death.
I am here this evening to request that the Alleghany Highlands Public Schools include information about CTE in their Athletic Pledge and concussion guidelines. Since former Pittsburgh Steeler Mike Webster’s diagnosis of CTE in 2002, student-athletes who never played collegiate or professional football have been diagnosed. Eric Pelly, son of Mike and Joan Pelly, was 18 and still attending high school when died in 2006. Paul Bright, Jr., son of Kimberly Archie, and Paul and Christy Bright, was 24 years old when he died in 2014. Zac Easter, son of Miles and Brenda Easter was 24 when he died in 2015. Zac left a journal and autobiography about his struggles with CTE before he died.
The NHSL Parent Guide to Concussions needs to be updated because page 5, states that “The cause of CTE has not been definitively established.” The National Institutes of Health, NFL, and Boston University School of Medicine have all formally acknowledged that there is a link between CTE and repeated traumatic brain injuries or TBIs.
I never noticed that an ambulance was not at the school for soccer games until Noah suffered his concussion and skull fracture, but I know they were always there for football and this is concerning. Soccer is not considered a collision sport, but collisions do happen and serious injuries can occur. When they do, it is of utmost importance that student-athletes receive immediate care and transportation.
In conclusion, I would like to recommend that student-athletes be given guidelines about what to do when a player is down. Most of the time, helping another player up is considered good sportsmanship but sometimes, if a player has a serious injury, it can cause more harm than good. The simplest thing to do is ask “Can I help you up?” If there is no response, I would advise that the injured athlete not be moved unless they are in serious danger.
I am leaving a copy of the following for you: (1) the January 27, 2009 press release from Boston University School of Medicine; (2) The NFL issues response to CTE research report dated January 26, 2017; (3) The National Institutes of Health formally acknowledges that CTE is caused in part by repeated TBI dated December 9, 2022; and (4) page 5 of the NHSL Parents Guide to Concussions.
I must thank our Lord God for allowing me to be here to speak to you. I must thank you, Members, of the Board, for listening and caring enough to address CTE and the safety of our student-athletes. Every day I pray for those who have been or will be affected by this devastating disease.
Mazie Green
Alleghany County
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