HARRISONBURG, Va. – EMU Director of Athletics Carrie Bert has announced the hiring of Morgan Baker to the role of Athletic Trainer, assisting Head Athletic Trainer Ian Smith.

"We are thrilled to have Morgan coming on board," Smith said. "She brings a wealth of knowledge and experience and has already made an immediate impact on the student-athletes and athletics staff."

Baker brings several years of athletic training experience to the table for the Royals. Most recently, Baker served as an athletic trainer at the Orlando Orthopaedic Center in Orlando, Fla., from July to December 2025.

Baker is also very familiar with Harrisonburg and the surrounding area. She is a 2021 alumna of nearby James Madison University. During her undergraduate years, Baker worked in JMU's athletic department as an athletic training student, helping out with the baseball, women's soccer, and women's volleyball teams. She also spent a semester as an athletic student at Stonewall Jackson High School in Shenandoah County. Baker later came back to Harrisonburg as a full-time Athletic Trainer at JMU from May 2023 to July 2025, serving as the primary athletic trainer for the cheerleading, softball, and men's tennis teams for the Dukes.

"I am excited to join the EMU athletic training staff and am looking forward to being back in the area and working with a great group of student-athletes, coaches, and staff," Baker said.

In addition to earning her Bachelor's of Science in Athletic Training at JMU in 2021, Baker also received a Master's of Science in Exercise and Sport Sciences – Mental Performance Concentration from Ithaca College in Ithaca, N.Y., in 2022.
Baker then stayed in New York for a few years, working in the athletic training offices at Ithaca College from August 2021 to May 2022 as a graduate assistant as well as an assistant athletic trainer at Binghamton University from August 2022 to April 2023.
Baker is a Board Certified Athletic Trainer as a well as a member of the National Athletic Trainers' Association, the Mid-Atlantic Athletic Trainers' Association, and the Virginia Athletic Trainers Association.  

Baker officially began her duties with EMU Athletics on January 5.