Grant Funds Center For Pediatric Occupational Therapy Education

UW–Madison’s occupational therapy program has received a five-year, $900,000 grant to establish a Center for Leadership in Pediatric Occupational Therapy Education.

Funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Maternal and Child Health Bureau, the center is one of three such facilities in the country. Mary Schneider, an associate professor of occupational therapy, is the principal investigator and director; the co-director is Rita Hohlstein, a clinical associate professor.

The center’s mission will be threefold. First, it will seek to strengthen doctoral training for students in pediatric occupational therapy. Each year it will provide funding for four UW–Madison graduate students who, in addition to their other course work, will participate in a special seminar covering such topics as leadership development, grant writing, and the social and economic challenges that face mothers and children today. The students will also conduct research and participate in community outreach efforts.

A second goal is to develop curricula, teaching models, and other educational resources, which will then be disseminated to university OT programs throughout Wisconsin and the Midwest. In addition, Schneider and her colleagues plan to offer conferences and continuing-education opportunities for occupational therapists who work in public schools and other settings.

Finally, the center will focus on outreach. Several initiatives are planned, including a program to help battered women and pregnant adolescents in Dane County develop better nutrition, more healthy behaviors, and improved life skills.

All of the center’s projects will be tied together by a common theme, Schneider says: “Whether we are training future OT faculty, writing curricula for OT students to use, or reaching out to the local community, everything we do will be geared toward helping children. In the end, that will be the primary purpose of this center.”