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| Anna Walls, coordinator of SCC’s Occupational Therapy Assistant program, works with student David Sherwood of Franklin on an occupational therapy technique at SCC’s Jackson Campus. Southwestern’s Occupational Therapy Assistant program recently received its official accreditation. |
A process that’s taken more than two years and required more than 175 standards to be met has finally drawn to a successful conclusion for one of Southwestern Community College’s newest health sciences programs.
The Occupational Therapy Assistant (OTA) program recently received its official accreditation from the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education of the American Occupational Therapy Association.
Anna Walls, SCC’s program coordinator, and Laurel Cargill Radley, academic fieldwork coordinator, have been working toward the accreditation since 2013.
The program received only one area of concern in the Report of On-Site Evaluation (ROSE) and six strengths, including “…efforts in bridging occupational therapy practitioners in the area with the education program are recognized by students and fieldwork educators as not only innovative, but also vital to the growth of the community.”
“Without this accreditation the students who are set to graduate in May would not have been able to graduate or sit for the national board certification exam for the occupational therapy assistant,” Walls said. “It was not only crucial for the program to be accredited but accredited in a timely manner.”
Fourteen OTA students are set to graduate on May 11.
SCC re-established its OTA program in 2014 following a 12-year absence. The program was initially dropped due to changes in Medicare funding, but those formulas have since changed again – generating a need for occupational therapy assistants throughout Western North Carolina.
“Anna and Laurel have poured themselves into making this program successful, and they’ve invested so much of their time and energy into our students,” said Dr. Mitchell Fischer, dean of health sciences at SCC. “The accreditation process went as smoothly as it possibly can, and I credit Anna and Laurel for doing an outstanding job.”
Thanks to accreditation, students in the OTA program will be able to pursue their careers as occupational therapy assistants and serve the community in a variety of settings from hospitals and clinics to schools and community centers.
As reported in the ROSE, “the students are acknowledged for their enthusiasm and dedication to the program. They exhibit an invested interest in the community-based mission of the college in order to fulfill their community’s needs for many years to come.”
For more information about the OTA program, contact Walls at 828.339.4334 or a_walls@southwestern.edu.
