Metro's Athletic Training Education Program (ATEP) has received its accreditation, making it the only accredited athletic training program in the Denver metropolitan area. The accreditation, by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs, makes it possible for program graduates to sit for the National Athletic Trainers' Association certification examination, a credential necessary to practice in the field.

Unlike personal trainers who help clients with fitness training programs, athletic trainers are allied health professionals who work to prevent, evaluate, treat and rehabilitate injuries. The field is growing, Program Director Genia Lemonedes explains, with certified athletic trainers finding employment in high schools, colleges, professional sports organizations, physical therapy clinics and industrial settings. Metro currently has 21 ATEP students; an additional 12 to 15 are expected this fall. Metro's program is the fifth program accredited in Colorado.

"It was a very long process," Lemonedes said of earning accreditation. "We had our site visit in December and were told (by evaluators) we were one of the best programs they had seen."