MAKING By Kerri Fleming Vautour ’07, Editorial Assistant
EvEry May, Springfield College undergraduate and graduate commencement ceremonies create hundreds of brand new alums — young people with something to live up to. For 125 years, Springfield College alumni have transformed lives and communities, invented sports, and changed the worlds of research science and exercise. They have devoted their lives to helping others. They have done amazing things. The more recent generations of graduates are holding their
own against these lofty expectations. In just a few years, they have made names for themselves in countless fields around the world. They are doctors, coaches, trainers, entrepreneurs, and public servants. What follows is just a small sampling of what some of our young alums — those who are in their 40s or younger — have already achieved.
Dr. Mark Kenton ’94, G’96
When Mark Kenton was an undergraduate at Springfield College, he thought he might want to be a doctor. Majoring in athletic training, he took up a concentration in emergency medical services and, after earning his master’s degree in exercise physiology, decided to go to medical school at Lake Erie College in Pennsylvania. “When I got to medical school, a lot of my classmates had
never touched a patient in their lives. For four years at Spring- field College, I dealt with athletes from an injury standpoint and patients from an EMS standpoint,” Kenton says. “I really enjoyed athletic training, and I felt that the hands-on approach would make me stronger (as a doctor).” While at Lake Erie College, Kenton completed his residency
at Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, and worked as a team physician at his alma mater. Today, he is an emergency medicine physician at Mercy Medical Center in Springfield. “When I have a patient come in to the emergency room,
I’m not treating a disease. I’m treating a patient and a family, as well,” Kenton says. Springfield College and the Humanics philosophy “gave me a foundation for how to incorporate all of that on a daily basis.”
Dr. Stacey Franz ’98, G’99
Mark Kenton has given back to his alma mater by serving as a mentor for students. One of his mentees, Stacey Franz, is already following in his footsteps.
10 Dr. Stacey Franz Late in her undergraduate career as a physical therapy
major, while working clinical rotations, Franz discovered her passion for the medical side of health care and decided to go into medicine. She went to the Philadelphia College of Osteo- pathic Medicine in Philadelphia, and now works at Shore Sports Medicine, a private prac- tice in New Jersey. “The philosophy of
Springfield College is spirit, mind, and body, and that parallels the osteopathic medicine philosophy. It was a seamless transition,” Franz says. While in medical school,
Franz won countless awards and honors; in
2008, she was awarded the Springfield College Young Alumna Award, something her mentor Kenton won in 2004. “That was so exciting,” she recalls. “I was so truly honored
to follow in his footsteps. I’m still kind of dumbfounded that I got it.”
Lars Segerdahl ’03
When Lars Segerdahl arrived at Springfield College as a sport management major, his career goal was simple: He wanted to do anything he could to work in sports. Two internships, including one with Greg Norman Productions, introduced Segerdahl to the world of professional golf. Today, he is a tournament director with Greg Norman Productions. “In my freshman and sophomore years, I never envisioned
being a tournament director. It’s been great,” says Segerdahl, who was a student trustee while on campus. “I’ve been fortu- nate to have been part of a growth trend in golf in the past 10 or so years.” While Segerdahl works year-round marketing the Profes-
sional Golfers’ Association brand, his main job is to plan and manage the Mayakoba Golf Classic, an annual tournament held in Mayokoba, Mexico, in February. Segerdahl credits Springfield College’s emphasis on real-
TRIANGLE 1 Vol . 82, No. 1
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