Hundreds of coaches gather at Notre Dame to learn about concussions

NOTRE DAME, Ind. -- Hundreds of coaches, athletic directors and educators are gathering on the campus of the University of Notre Dame to attend a weekend conference on youth sports safety.

The three day conference is called, "Play like a Champion Today Champion Character in Sport Conference", (PLACT), and was thought up by F. Clark Power, Ph.D.,  the program's director, who is a Developmental Phycologist and a professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Notre Dame.

The conference is designed to teach coaches, parents, and youth sport administrators through research-based, child-centered educational practices that foster moral, social, and spiritual development. 

One of the keynote speakers is Dr. Mark McLaughlin, the medical director of Princeton's Brain and Spine Care. He will be speaking on his extensive concussion research. He said the best advice he can give parents to help prevent their child from getting a concussion is, "to pick the coaches carefully, if you make sure your child has a great coach, then we know then they are going to be concerned and observant."

Lindsay Truedale, a Chicago Athletic Director and coach at Holy Trinity High School said one of the reasons she signed up for the conference is to find out more information on the topic of concussions and to hear Dr. McLaughlin speak.