Editor: Keith Davis Writers: Alex Dippold, Dave Maley Publisher: Office of Public Information Volume 22, No.10   January 31, 2000

Occupational Therapy Program Granted Accreditation The five-year entry-level master’s degree program in occupational therapy has been awarded first-time accreditation by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education. The certificate was granted for seven years, the highest level conferred on an institution in its initial application. "We produced a voluminous self-study document that was followed by a site visit to verify our report," says David Dresser, associate dean in the School of Health Sciences and Human Performance. "The review included curriculum, faculty qualifications, space needs, and fiscal resources. We received no deficiencies in any of the categories, and that was the reason our accreditation level was so high." "Accreditation is based on more than the number of deficiencies. The accreditors examined how the whole program fits together," adds Catherine Gordon, director and associate professor of occupational therapy. "As a first-time applicant, we could have been accredited at the seven-year level or the five-year level with possible suggestions or recommendations. Being accredited for seven years shows how well organized our curriculum is and that we did a good job on our documentation." First offered in 1995, the College’s occupational therapy curriculum leads to a bachelor of science degree in occupational science after four years and a master of science degree in occupational therapy after the fifth year. When the program was inaugurated, it was granted developing program status by ACOTE with a first-time accrediting review scheduled to take place during the 1999–2000 school year. The program’s first class of some 24 students is scheduled to graduate this summer. "The students in our first graduating class took a risk," Gordon says. "We told them we’d have the new building and the accreditation in place by the time they finished the program, and that’s what happened. With the opening of the Center for Health Sciences in August and this grant of accreditation, we honored our commitment to our students." With the initial accrediting process now completed, occupational therapy graduates will be eligible to sit for the national certifying examination. Passing that exam qualifies them to apply for state licensing. "A fully accredited occupational therapy curriculum is the result of 10 years of very careful planning," says Richard Miller, dean of HSHP. "It rounds out the health sciences program here and proves we can give our students a strong basic education as well as the opportunity to explore specialty interests not available in many entry-level programs."

Created by Andrejs Ozolins. Updated 31. Jan. 2000