By Maria Prato-Gaines, Staff Writer
CRANBURY — Three years ago, while studying college courses at Duke University through a national program for youth, local Boy Scout William Marks was assaulted by a roommate, an incident that changed not only his life but his outlook on life.
”I blacked out,” he said. “I woke up in my bed after that.”
Although William had been knocked unconscious for only a matter of seconds, he was diagnosed with a concussion and discharged from the Duke Medical Center later that night.
”I got the concussion and it was very severe,” William, now 17, said. “I couldn’t concentrate, pay attention or even look at a sheet of paper because the white was too bright. I spent six months trying to figure out what to do.”
For the next year, William faced constant headaches, memory impairment and dizzy spells, while the time he took to complete homework assignments from his teachers at Peddie School in Hightstown grew longer and longer.
Through his Eagle Scout Leadership Service Project with Cranbury Boy Scout Troop 52, William found a way to focus on a goal.
He decided to take a two-pronged approach to teach others about the injury that had taken so much from him. First, he saw to it that all his classmates were tested and then he brought his education program to the public.
More than a year ago, William said, he took on the task of having his peers at Peddie School tested using ImPACT software, a computer-based neuropsychological testing program employed by the NFL. It was purchased by the school in 2005 to assist in the diagnosis and evaluation of concussions.
Through a series of questions, the program tests vocabulary and long- and short-term memory, determines the level at which a person is testing and then stores the data, William said. Following a concussion, a person would retake the test and previous and current data would be compared to determine what area of the brain may have been injured and what treatments could assist with recovery, he said.
A coach at Peddie School had been administering the test, but initially only to a select group of students, he said. The school had been using the software to test at-risk varsity athletes. William’s goal was for all his fellow students at Peddie School to be assessed.
With the help of the faculty, William saw to it that all 525 of his peers were tested, said Peddie School Head Athletic Trainer, Jose Roca, who conducted the testing.
But even though William had reached the students at Peddie School, that wasn’t enough for this Boy Scout. He aimed to educate an even larger audience on the dangers of concussions.
At local craft fairs, health and wellness forums and the public library, William started handing out educational brochures, provided by the Brain Injury Association of New Jersey.
In the months to follow, William expanded his efforts by convincing many local businesses to distribute the brochures, like Cranbury Pizza on North Main Street, which attached leaflets to its pizza boxes.
By the time William had completed his project, “tens of thousands” of brochures had been distributed to New Jersey residents.
William said he hopes his efforts will help dispel the common misconception that “concussions aren’t serious.”
”It makes people feel like they’re crazy,” he said of the misconception. “There is something wrong, your brain has been bruised. You’ve injured one of the most essential things in your body.”
Graduating from Peddie School in three years, William is now a freshman at Harvard University, looking into studying bio-medical engineering or bio-chemical engineering.
William may continue his work with concussions and said he can only thank Troop 52 for inspiring the first leg of his journey.
”This troop was absolutely phenomenal,” he said. “I’m very proud to become an Eagle Scout through them. I’d like to think of them as one of the most essential parts of Cranbury. Were they not there, I think the town would be for the worse.”
William suggests that anyone who may have suffered a concussion contact a physician or the Brain Injury Association of New Jersey as soon as possible.

