Hi- we have had an advisory board since our program started in 1999. We have yearly meetings, typically in April. We meet in person (we serve a light dinner) and also have a zoom option. We have about 20 on our board, some are alum of our program, some aren't.  They are all OT's who work in various settings and have varied roles in those settings. We look to our advisory board to help us keep up with new trends in each setting, letting us know what we should consider adding or deleting from the curriculum. I keep them up-to-date about changes to the program through email throughout the year.

Mary Kientz, OTD, MS, OTR
Associate Professor Occupational Therapy
Program Director
Stockton University
101 Vera King Farris Drive
Galloway, NJ 08205
609-626-6843
Office: West Quad 213

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From: AOTA ot-pd List <ot-pd@aotalists.org>
Sent: Wednesday, June 4, 2025 8:33 AM
To: AOTA ot-pd List
Subject: [OT-PD List - AOTA] -  Re: Advisory Boards

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Hello,
Yes, we created an advisory board as we were developing our program.  We have 25 people, and we chose them in order to have 2 from each practice area and specialty area, and to have representation from various areas of the state as well.  They are not only OTs, but we do also have administrators as well (one former Dean).

We created a review process with feedback surveys, and we have everything reviewed by 2-3 people.  That includes all of our syllabi, the student manual, the strategic plan, the advising process, our level 1 student "passport system" that we are using, and the competency framework we developed for our competency assessment process.

We meet in person once a year but then have frequent virtual contact throughout the year.  I also created a Facebook group and invited them to join if they so desired- and I post there occasionally as well.  When we met in person, it was difficult to find a time for all- the first meeting was an evening where I provided a dinner, and we had most everyone.  This past meeting we ended up with a breakfast and had about 15 of the 25 who were able to make it in person

Beyond the reviews, they have helped with finding level 1 fieldwork places, and some have ended up as adjuncts with us.  Everyone has been so amazingly helpful- I highly recommend having this type of group!  It is worth the additional time and effort to manage all of it- especially if you are a newer program.

Best of luck and I am happy to answer any other questions you may have- if you want to contact me off of the list as well.
Heather

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Heather Kuhaneck, PhD OTR/L FAOTA
(She/Her/Hers)
Professor and Founding Program Director, Occupational Therapy, Department of Recreation, Tourism and Sports Management, Southern Connecticut State University

203-392-7089<tel:203-392-7089>  |  Kuhaneckh1@southernct.edu<mailto:Kuhaneckh1@southernct.edu>

http://www.southernct.edu/occupational-therapy<https://www.southernct.edu/occupational-therapy>

https://wizardofot.blog/

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________________________________
From: AOTA ot-pd List <ot-pd@aotalists.org>
Sent: Tuesday, June 3, 2025 12:20 PM
To: AOTA ot-pd List <ot-pd@aotalists.org>
Subject: [OT-PD List - AOTA] - Advisory Boards

Hello Program Director Community,

We are planning to create a community advisory board for our department. We want only one board, not separate ones for fieldwork related and education/community involvement related. I would love to get advice from others who have a community advisory board.

Some of my specific logistical questions are:

  *   How many people are on your advisory board?
  *   How often do you meet?
  *   What is your meeting format? (i.e. in-person, zoom, hybrid)
  *   What time of day have you found to be successful for meetings?
  *   How did you choose who is on the board?
  *   Are they all OTs or have you included others, i.e. a PT who is FW site coordinator for a large system, a non-profit partner for capstone projects who is a social worker, etc.

Some of my bigger picture questions are:

  *   What is it you want from the board? What are the goals of the board?
  *   Do you find that you do get valuable information and insight from your board?
  *   Are there other benefits that have flowed from this, i.e. help in putting a fund raiser together, purchasing something, getting new FW sites, supporting the students in some non-educational way, assisting with department events like applicant interviews.

I know this is a lot of questions! Please feel free to answer only what you have time for.

Thank you in advance!

Ingrid

Ingrid Franc, PhD, LOTR

Associate Professor of Occupational Therapy

Department Head and Admissons Chair

Department of Occupational Therapy

1900 Gravier St., 8A15

New Orleans, LA 70112

P: 504-568-4304

Ifran1@lsuhsc.edu

She/her

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