Program Director/Department Chair

Department chair is responsible for the ongoing growth and development of the Occupational Therapy Program. Along with faculty, they develop a curriculum plan; design, develop, implement, evaluate, and modify the curriculum and all program –related outcomes. He or she coordinates the curriculum, supervises faculty teaching and workload, fosters faculty development programs, ensures programmatic resources are met, is accountable for the budget, supervises committees, is accountable for all aspects of the accreditation process and reports all program activities to the School and College administration. He/she provides oversight to, and ensures that resources are available to support the fieldwork education program within the curriculum.

Academic Fieldwork Coordinator (AFC)

Academic fieldwork coordinator works collaboratively with all participants in clinical education including core faculty, fieldwork educators, and students, to ensure close integration between didactic and clinical course work throughout the curriculum. He/she is responsible for developing and maintaining the contractual relationships with fieldwork sites. The AFC is primarily responsible for arranging all fieldwork experiences, as well as oversight of fieldwork education programming. The AFC dialogues with the fieldwork educators at each site to further ensure that clinical experiences are coordinated with the academic program. During all fieldwork experiences, the AFC facilitates problem-solving and development as requested by fieldwork educators, core faculty, and/or students. The AFC participates in local, regional, and AOTA meetings and conferences on occupational therapy fieldwork education and activities

Capstone Coordinator

The capstone coordinator works collaboratively with all participates in the capstone experiences and projects including core faculty. He/she is responsible for coordinating all capstone courses, faculty/expert mentors, approving student proposals, assisting students in securing capstone experiences placements, and dissemination of capstone results and project details. He/she provides oversight to, and ensures that resources are available to support the capstone within the curriculum.

Core Faculty Members

Include the Program Director/Department Chair, AFC, and the faculty members whose primary employment is with the OTD Program. The core faculty is responsible for teaching, research, and service within and outside of the Occupational Therapy Program. The scope of responsibilities includes classroom and laboratory teaching, research, and community, professional, program, School and/or College service. The core faculty is responsible for the design, development, implementation, and evaluation of the curriculum, as well as all program specific policies and procedures.

Associated Faculty Members

Include those instructors who teach in the curriculum but do not hold primary appointments within the program. Adjunct instructors and teaching assistants are considered associated faculty. The associated faculty is responsible for teaching within their area of expertise within the OTD Program. The responsibilities may include classroom and laboratory teaching, as well as student evaluation. Associated faculty members provide ongoing support to students in the classroom by being available before and/or after class as well as through electronic mail throughout the week. The associated faculty is responsible to provide input to the core faculty about the design, development, implementation, and evaluation of the curriculum, as well as program-specific policies and procedures.

Fieldwork Educator

Is the licensed occupational therapist at the fieldwork site who directly supervises and instructs the student during the fieldwork education experience. Fieldwork educators meet the minimal requirements to accept students. They work collaboratively with the AFC, Core Faculty, and students to design, organize, deliver, supervise, and assess student learning experiences.

Capstone Site Mentor

An individual that provides mentorship to a capstone student during their capstone experience. Role includes evaluating capstone student regarding progress toward capstone learning objectives as well as verifying student hours of the capstone experience.