This is the 77th article in Bears Doing Big Things, a weekly column celebrating the stories of notable M-A alumni.
Alex Tinajero ‘04 is an Army veteran and high school athletic trainer dedicated to helping students perform at their best and heal from injuries through on-site training.
Growing up in Redwood City, Tinajero attended Garfield Community School. He later moved to East Palo Alto where he was a part of the 49ers Academy program before attending M-A. “Growing up in the Bay during the ‘90s was very different than it is today. It was a lot smaller and felt more like a close-knit community,” he said.
“I liked M-A because of how much spirit it had. It was different from other high schools in the Bay. Almost everyone would go to sports games and rallies which made it extra fun,” Tinajero said.
After M-A, Tinajero attended De Anza College for one year but shifted gears in 2005 when he joined the military as a paratrooper. Tinajero was stationed all around the world during his eight years enlisted. “I learned a lot of discipline in the Army, which has heavily transferred to my profession now,” he said.
Following his military career, Tinajero continued his education at Ohlone College. He then transferred to Point Loma Nazarene College in San Diego where he earned his bachelor’s degree in athletic training and master’s in kinesiology and sports performance. At Point Loma, Tinajero also served as a student athletic trainer where he learned from the college’s head trainers and gained experience in on-site training.
He became interested in sports medicine after tearing his meniscus in the military. “I saw a sports medicine clinician as well as a physical therapist to gain my strength back. It made me realize how important sports medicine is to many different professions,” Tinajero said.
“I wanted to help people in the same way I recovered. It was my way to give back and help others recover from their injuries,” he continued.
Tinajero remained in San Diego and worked at various high schools as an athletic trainer. He then relocated to become an athletic trainer at Seattle Pacific University.
After that, Tinajero worked in North Carolina as an athletic trainer for military personnel. “It was such a special opportunity giving back to the military and going from being in it to helping them,” he said.
Tinajero also worked at Boeing as an industrial athletic trainer. “It was a different environment and nothing I’ve ever done before,” he said. “I gave employees at Boeing a broad education on sports medicine and worked on more first aid training with their company.”
Currently, Tinajero works as the head athletic trainer at Newport High School through Proliance Orthopedics. He works as an on-site trainer for athletes in all sports. He is trained to diagnose injuries and help with physical therapy as well as rehabilitation work. “My favorite part of working in high schools is creating relationships with different students and seeing them evolve throughout the years,” he said.
“It’s one of the most rewarding things to see athletes get back to their sport and celebrate the progress they have made,” he added. “It’s the greatest feeling watching them doing the sport they love again.”
Tinajero’s advice to current students: “Take your education seriously because it does go a long way. While you don’t need college to be successful, it’s important to consider all your options because everyone is capable of success.”
For those aspiring to be an athletic trainer: “Go speak with and hang out with your high school athletic trainer to get a sense of what you like and don’t like. It’s a really unique profession, but you have resources right at your fingertips.”
