TCNJ

6 The College of New Jersey Magazine PRAIRIE IN GOOD HANDS Hamilton Physical Therapy has become a professional home for TCNJ alumni — and a starting point for students entering the field. PATIENTS AT HAMILTON PHYSICAL THERAPY SERVICES in Mercer County are likely to overhear some Lions lore — from championship games to favorite professors to nights at the Rat — when they go in for their appointments. That's thanks to the easy rapport among therapists Fred York '83, Mark Laurinaitis '97, and Scott Giallella '99, who turned their TCNJ academic and athletic experi- ences into careers at the practice. Over the years, those TCNJ ties have extended to a new generation of students. For the past two decades, Hamilton PT has welcomed interns from the college, giving them clinical experience. Some have even stayed on after graduation — including two recent TCNJ alumni hired as part- time rehabilitation aides. YORK, LAURINAITIS, AND GIALLELLA each came to physical therapy from different paths, but sports influenced all three. York broke his ankle while playing college baseball at TCNJ and went to PT as part of his healing process — an experience that inspired his pursuit of the profession. A biology major at TCNJ, York continued on to earn a certification in PT from Hahnemann University before joining Hamilton PT in 1986. Childhood sports injuries had sparked Laurinaitis' interest in the field early on. He studied exercise science in the corporate fitness track as a Lion and then completed physical therapy school at Old Dominion University in 2000. A standout athlete, he's even in the TCNJ history books for one of soccer's most dramatic moments: In 1996, he helped the Lions win 2–1 in the NCA A Division III championship game, scoring both goals — including the winner, with six seconds remaining in the fourth overtime. When Laurinaitis names the championship as his favorite college memory, it's Giallella who supplies the detail about the two goals. The pair met at TCNJ, and no one in this group gets to understate a good story. Giallella, who once considered studying art, transferred to TCNJ as a corporate fitness major with the goal of becoming a physical therapist. He played baseball and closed his college career with a senior-season trip to the regionals before earning a master's degree in PT from Widener University. He and Laurinaitis gained early clinical experience at Hopewell Physical Therapy before their careers converged again in the early 2000s at Hamilton PT. No one in this group gets to understate a good story.

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