BERKELEY ACCEPTED INTO USCAA

Berkeley College was approved for membership in the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) today by the USCAA Board of Directors.

"This is yet another important step in the evolution of our athletic programs at Berkeley College," said Brian Maher, Athletic Director of Berkeley College. "As a member of the USCAA, our athletic programs will now compete at both the regional and national level and will have the opportunity to participate in national championships while also recognizing our student-athletes for both their athletic and their academic achievement."

The USCAA is a national organization that exists to provide quality athletic competition on a regional and national level while promoting integrity, leadership, scholarship, and values of life. The association conducts national championships, recognizes All-Americans and scholar athletes, and promotes USCAA member schools.

"Membership in the USCAA offers our New Jersey programs the potential for postseason competition, something that up until now only our New York programs enjoyed as members of the Hudson Valley Conference," said Maher. "In addition, membership in the USCAA continues to validate the credibility of our competitive programs and serves as an additional recruiting tool for our coaching staff when speaking with prospective student-athletes."

Berkeley College will compete as a USCAA institution immediately.

"In preparation for this, we had already started scheduling USCAA member institutions for the last two seasons and this season a good portion of our programs schedules will feature USCAA member institutions," noted Maher.

DR. STARK TO SERVE AS NEW YORK TEAM PHYSICIAN

Berkeley College is pleased to announce that Dr. Clifford Stark has agreed to serve as team physician for Berkeley's New York athletic programs.

Dr. Stark is the Medical Director of Sports Medicine at Chelsea in Manhattan and is a board certified physician with dual certification in both sports medicine and primary care. He is currently a member of the teaching faculty at NYU Langone Medical Center, having been on faculty at Columbia University/New York Presbyterian Hospital as the Director of Sports Medicine and Orthopedics for the family medicine residency for 6 years.

Dr. Stark currently serves as a team physician for various national organizations including USA Gymnastics, and has treated many world-class athletes at facilities across the nation, including the US Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. Dr. Stark himself was a competitive tennis player and teaching professional around the nation for more than 10 years, so he also has first-hand experience of athletic participation at all levels.

Dr. Stark is one of only a select few physicians in the nation (and merely a handful in NY) specifically trained in primary care sports medicine, along with further specialization in state-of-the-art diagnosis and nonsurgical treatments for musculoskeletal injuries, such as diagnostic ultrasound, ultrasound-guided injections, prolotherapy, PRP (platelet rich plasma) injections, and osteopathic manipulation.

Dr. Stark recently authored the book, Living With Sports Injuries, published in 2010.