THE TRAILBLAZERS: HPU'S PHYSICAL THERAPY STUDENTS.

• Position: EXTRAORDINARY EDUCATION

They're a class of 60, students from 19 states, selected from more than 1,000 applications.

They came to HPU to earn a doctorate in physical therapy, help ailing people heal and make the lives of the world's aging population better.

They are the trailblazers, the inaugural class of HPU's Department of Physical Therapy. They're future physical therapists, better known as PTs, who will see their jobs grow by 34 percent in eight years--almost five times the national average.

When they graduate in 2020, they'll find employment. But they'll also find fulfillment. They'll know they helped craft a curriculum in a jewel of a new building and helped HPU emerge as a go-to institution in health care education.

Inside Congdon Hall, home to the Congdon School of Health Sciences and Fred Wilson School of Pharmacy, PT students will take 40 courses, participate in research and hone their skills using technology and equipment not found at any other PT school nationwide.

They do love their place. But really, they love what they learn.

THE ALLURE OF RESOURCES AND RESEARCH

Last fall at a conference in Minnesota, Coty Rajek listened to HPU's Dr. Kevin Ford give details about his study into why so many females in middle and high school injure their knees playing soccer.

The National Institutes of Health funded Ford's study, and the $528,107 grant represents the largest NIH grant HPU has received in its 93-year history.

As Ford spoke, Rajek listened. But he also watched. Ford's video showed soccer players getting tested inside a biomechanics lab near HPU's campus that looked as large as a football field.

Rajek, in his words, "nerded out." He was a senior at a South Dakota university majoring in exercise science, and at his school, he used a biomechanics lab no bigger than a racquetball court.

Rajek couldn't believe it and checked it out. It was true. He got interested in HPU's new PT program and called Ford. Rajek applied, was accepted, left his home in Merrill, Wisconsin, and drove 16 hours east.

He was amazed then. He's still amazed now.

"You'll be working in the lab and realize where you are, and it dawns on you about what you have around you," he says. "You can't wait to take part in it."

HPU's NIH study is just the beginning. HPU's PT faculty are doing research for Adidas as well as helping professional athletes from the NFL, NASCAR, PGA, UFC and WNBA improve the mechanics of how their bodies move.

Meanwhile, faculty members see patients every week and have...