Flames prepare for return to campus

The Department of Intercollegiate Athletics has continued to prepare for the return of student-athletes, coaches and staff members over the next two months.

The first teams expected to be back on campus are the men’s and women’s basketball teams, which are allowed summer access per NCAA rules, as well as the teams that compete in their championship seasons in the fall: volleyball, men’s and women’s soccer and men’s and women’s cross country.

Earlier this month, the Flames Athletic Center re-opened on a limited basis for UIC staff using a single entry point. Anyone who enters the facility will undergo a basic health and temperature screening. Using an infrared thermometer, temperatures are recorded and logged by an athletic training staff member that has been properly outfitted in personal protective equipment. Those who pass the screening are admitted and issued a daily color-coded wristband for access to the facility.

In order to help with the transition back to campus, Athletics is holding a virtual meeting with each individual team, over Zoom, between June 18 and June 30. These hour-long sessions bring together student-athletes, parents, coaches, administrators and medical personnel to review protocols that have already been put in place and what they can expect to see once back at UIC. The meetings are typically led by Associate Athletics Director Mike Gilmartin. Gilmartin has been affiliated with the University for more than 20 years and during much of that time he served as the head athletic trainer. In addition to his work aiding the Flames, Gilmartin also chairs the Return to Play committee Other prominent voices on the calls include Director of Athletics Michael Lipitz, Head Team Physician Dr. Mark Hutchinson and current head athletic trainer Bryan Yonka.