Will Carthens

Will Carthens grew up in what he describes as “not the safest place” and knew he wanted to find a totally different environment in which to attend college to pursue a career in physical therapy. The Newark, New Jersey, athlete found exactly what he was looking for at Western Connecticut State University — in more ways than one.

“WestConn is completely different from what I call home,” Carthens said. “Danbury, Connecticut, is not a big city like Newark. It’s very scenic and calm, and you can see nature at its finest. Driving through Connecticut is so nice and allows you to see how beautiful the state really is. You need to see it for yourself.”

Carthens said he survived his urban childhood under the watchful eye of his parents and grandmother, who advised him to keep a positive outlook and stay off the wrong path. He sadly saw first-hand how that path ended for some of his childhood friends, and was determined to rise above his geography to make something of himself and make his family proud.

Once at WestConn, Carthens played on the Wolves football team as a defensive tackle, and tried to figure out how he could become a physical therapist one day. His adviser at the time, Dr. Julie Perelli, asked him about his goals and suggested that athletic training might be a step in the direction he desired. He changed his major from Allied Health to Health Promotion and Exercise Sciences (HPX), and began a 150-hour internship with WestConn’s Athletics Department as a trainer.

Carthens left the football team as a player after three seasons to focus on his academics, but remained a part of the team environment by working with the athletic trainers. He became active in WestConn’s HPX Club, Minorities in Medicine Club, Sigma Chi Fraternity and as a Resident Adviser in Newbury Hall. After his WestConn internship, Carthens landed a 450-hour internship at Post University with its athletic trainers and sports teams.

As part of his classwork toward his HPX degree, Carthens was exposed to not only traditional, or Western, medical modalities, but also to Eastern or Holistic health practices. “I feel as though Western medicine often fails to fix the problem — it is usually focused on just healing the symptoms,” Carthens said. “Eastern-type medicine worries about the whole person, lifestyle and eating habits, and will play into my practice as a chiropractor.”

Carthens will graduate in December 2024, and has already been accepted to Logan University, a private university focused on chiropractic and the health sciences located in Chesterfield, Missouri. He became aware of Logan thanks to HPX Professor Dr. Robyn Housemann, who connected Carthens with a personal contact there.

“Logan is in the top 10 in the nation for chiropractic studies,” Carthens said. “They have a three-year program that will prepare me for the Board of Certification exam and enable me to become a Doctor of Chiropractic Medicine.”

Carthens credits his academic readiness to attend chiropractic school to WestConn’s small class sizes. “You really can get one-on-one with your professors and advisers here,” he said. “The community is really close. If you need help, it most definitely will be there for you. My advisers and professors — especially Julie Perelli, Robyn Housemann and Christel Autuori — have really been a great help, and I have grown a relationship with each of them. I tend to be shy and stay to myself until I get to know somebody; but here, I’ve built a close community around me.”

It’s not lost on Carthens that some of his closest connections on campus have been with female faculty members. “I grew up around a lot of female role models,” he said. “The first part of my life was especially spent around women who were role models to me, so I think that may be a factor. I just wish my grandmother was still here to see me graduate.”

In her absence, there will be several supporters at commencement to cheer Carthens on.

Western Connecticut State University changes lives by providing all students with a high-quality education that fosters their growth as individuals, scholars, professionals and leaders in a global society. Our vision: To be widely recognized as a premier public university with outstanding teachers and scholars who prepare students to contribute to the world in a meaningful way.