Kristen Couper Schellhase is the program director for the Athletic Training Program at the University of Central Florida. Previously, she was an associate athletic trainer at UCF working with the Softball and Track and Field Teams from 1999-2004. She has been an instructor with the program since 2000. She has a Doctor of Education in Curriculum and Instruction from UCF, a Master of Education in Athletic Training from the University of Virginia, and an undergraduate degree in exercise science/athletic training from The Pennsylvania State University.
Before coming to UCF, Schellhase was the assistant athletic trainer at Coastal Carolina University, working with 18 Division I sports teams. While there, she became a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS), certified by the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA), and she supervised the student athletic trainer internship program and student athletic trainers’ organization.
Schellhase teaches several courses in the program, including Foundational Behaviors of AT I and II, Prevention of Injury and Illness in AT, Therapeutic Interventions in AT I and II, and Administration in AT I and II. She is a Faculty Advisor for athletic training students, and the current advisor for the Gamma Iota chapter of Iota Tau Alpha (ITA), the National Academic Honor Society for the athletic training profession.
Schellhase has completed three 2-week volunteer medical rotations at the Colorado Springs and Chula Vista Olympic Training Centers, and served as the athletic trainer to the U-21 Women’s Basketball National Team, traveling to France and Moscow for the World Championships in 2007. She is a 2007 recipient of the NACADA Outstanding New Faculty Advisor Award. She also received the 2005 ATAF College and University Athletic Trainer of the Year Award and a 2012 NACADA Outstanding Advising Certificate of Merit Winner – Faculty Academic Advising Category. She was inducted into the ATAF Hall of Fame in 2022. She is the current President-Elect of ATAF (President in January 2027).
Schellhase stays active as an athletic trainer by volunteering with Orange County Public Schools’ high schools and with UCF Athletics.
Credentials
- EdD, Doctor of Education, Curriculum and Instruction, University of Central Florida
- LAT, Licensed Athletic Trainer
- ATC, Certified Athletic Trainer
Areas of Specialty
- AT Education / AT Administration
- Job Satisfaction
- AT Access / Employment Models
- Health Literacy / Readability
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