President
Ruth Ann Watkins, MBA, OTR/L, FAOTA

Ruth Ann received her OT degree from the University of Illinois and her MBA from the University of Chicago. Most of her professional career was spent ats the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago where she rose from staff OT to Vice President of Allied Health and then Vice President of Marketing and Communications. In 1991 she established her company Out & About, Inc. which, for 10 years, provided individual outings for clients whose average age was 80.

She held faculty positions at Northwestern University Medical School, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine and adjunct faculty position at the University of Illinois, Chicago, in the department of Occupational Therapy.

Ruth Ann was named a Fellow by the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA). She was the first Chair of the AOTA Physical Disabilities Special Interest Section and she served as the AOTA liaison to the National Easter Seal Society’s Board. On the state level she served as Vice President of the Illinois Occupational Therapy Association (IOTA) and co-chairman of the reimbursement Committee and she remains an active member of the state and national OT associations.

Throughout the years she has served on both Boards and committees of professional associations and not for profit organizations. Ruth Ann is a member of the Rotary Club of Chicago and is a Trustee and Secretary of the Retirement Research Foundation. She and her husband Tom split their time between their homes in Old Town in Chicago and Pompano Beach, Florida. In addition to her volunteer activities her hobbies are reading, fishing, gardening, walking, traveling, and spending time with family and friends.

Sharon Ryan studied Occupational Therapy at Sargent College of Allied Health Professions at Boston University. She has trained health professionals on techniques and treatment modalities used in Occupational Therapy, and she has treated geriatric rehabilitation patients. She was elected to the Board of Directors of the American Occupational Therapy Foundation in November 2002, for a three-year term. She was elected Vice President in 2004 and re-elected to the position in 2007

Ms. Ryan's long history of volunteer work and community service includes leadership positions in support of education, social agencies serving the needs of families and children, and in support of the arts-theatre and music. Currently, she is chair of Student Affairs committee of the Boston University Trustee Board and in her spare time enjoys needlepoint and traveling.

Nancy received both a baccalaureate degree in Occupational Therapy and a Masters in Education from the University of New Hampshire. Teaching has always been a major focus for her. After 5 years of clinical experience as a psychiatric Occupational therapist, she spent the rest of her professional career in academia. She taught at 3 different universities, with over 28 years at Boston University, serving as faculty, Department Chair and the last 14 years as Dean of Sargent College at Boston University. She has served in a variety of elected and appointed positions in Massachusetts Occupational Therapy Association and in AOTA, including Treasurer of AOTA for five years. She is a Fellow of AOTA. Over the years she has been a consultant in curriculum development, evaluation of programs in the health fields, and in space planning. She retired in 1996, but the next two years she worked part time to assist the University in fund raising. Her hobbies include watercolors, travel, gardening, photography, swimming, boating and canoeing.

Mary Foto, OT, FAOTA, CCM, a past President of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), is chief executive officer of two companies: The Foto Group, Inc. which provides non-physician peer medical review and supporting systems, and Treat-it.com?, an ASP documentation and practice management package for non-physician rehabilitation and technology providers. In November, she was selected to the American Occupational Therapy Foundation Board.

The Foto Group counts among its current and former clients in both government and commercial healthcare: WellPoint/Blue Cross of California (for more than 38 years), United Government Services, Empire/Blue Cross Blue Shield of New York, HMSA, Blue Cross of Arizona, HealthLink/Blue Cross of Missouri, Anthem Colorado, UniCare, Maximus, Johnson & Johnson, and Kraft. The Foto Group created the first electronic medical information system for Blue Cross of California over 22 years ago, ported the system over to the Florida Shared System (FSS), and later worked with CMS as they made the attachment a national Medicare requirement. The Foto Group also created the Data Dictionary for CMS to accompany the national electronic attachment. Later, The Foto Group created an expert system to electronically review the attachment.

Ms. Foto, an internationally-recognized, non-physician medical review and evidence-based practice expert, has served as AOTA’s representative to the American Medical Association’s (AMA) Health Care Practitioner Advisory Committee (HCPAC) Review Board for the past 14 years. For six of those years, she represented all non-physicians to the AMA’s Practice Expense Advisory Committee. In 1997, she served on Vice President Gore’s task force to develop The Patient Bill of Rights. In April 2003, and again in 2005, where she was elected Co-Chair of the American Medical Association’s HCPAC and continues to represent the Advisory Committee and all of its non-physician member organizations as a voting member of the AMA’s Relative Value Update Committee (RUC). The RUC develops and recommends annual updates to the Medicare fee schedule which is used by most payers in the United States. In March of 2007, she was appointed to the California Medical Evidence Evaluation Advisory Committee.

As a past President of the American Occupational Therapy Association, (1995-1998), she chaired the Tri-Alliance of Therapy Professions and also the Coalition of Rehabilitation Therapies allowing her an opportunity to represent multiple professions.

In 2004-2005, she was a member of CMS’s Negotiated Rule Making for Orthotics and Prosthetics and has testified before Congress a nd Congressional committees on electronic medical records. She has authored many peer-reviewed journal articles and has performed over 300 speaking engagements in the past 10 years.

Phyllis
Bauer Madachy
(Public Member)

Diana Ramsay serves as the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the Sheppard Pratt Health System which is headquartered in Baltimore, MD. She is responsible for overall program operations and delivery of clinical and administrative services for the hospitals, day hospitals, acute care community hospital programs, outpatient services, schools, child and adolescent residential treatment centers, professional services, joint ventures, and community-based psychiatric rehabilitation subsidiaries. In this capacity she establishes overall strategic directives and policies to optimize the service quality, resource allocation and program efficiency of the Health System. Diana also is the past president of the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy. She serves on the boards of the National Association of Psychiatric Health Systems and the American Occupational Therapy Foundation.

Dr. Charles Christiansen assumed duties as Executive Director of the Foundation on March 17, 2008. Prior to that, he served as Vice Provost for Health Sciences at the University of Minnesota Rochester and Founding Director, Center for Allied Health Programs. From 1993-2006, Dr. Christiansen also served as Dean and George T. Bryan Distinguished Professor at the University of Texas Medical Branch and earlier as Professor and Director, School of Rehabilitation Sciences at The University of British Columbia. His academic career has spanned over three decades.

Chuck earned his doctorate in educational administration at The University of Houston and completed a post-doctoral residency through Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas. He holds Master's and professional undergraduate degrees in Counseling Psychology and Occupational Therapy, respectively. Dr. Christiansen was named a distinguished alumnus of the University of North Dakota during its Centennial celebrations and has held adjunct professorships at various universities in this country and abroad. He has served in numerous leadership positions in professional societies, has co-authored or edited eight textbooks in Occupational Therapy and Occupational science, and has published over 100 chapters and scientific articles. He resides in Rockville, Maryland and has three adult children. He is a fellow of the American Occupational Therapy Association and serves on the board of directors of the Society for the Study of Occupation: USA.

Penelope A. Moyers-Cleveland, EdD, OTR/L, BCMH, FAOTA is the 27th President of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA). Moyers-Cleveland was elected in 2006 by the direct vote of association members and took office during the 87th Annual Conference and Expo in St. Louis, MO.

Dr. Moyers-Cleveland has been a strong advocate for the profession of Occupational Therapy. She has 29 years of experience, having developed expertise in mental health practice at Central State Hospital in Louisville, KY and in upper extremity rehabilitation at Plastic Surgery Associates in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Dr. Moyers-Cleveland has also met the requirements developed by AOTA to be Board Certified in Mental Health (BCMH). In addition, she has extensive experience working with persons with substance use disorders; she also has research experience in measurement of upper extremity function. Currently, Dr. Moyers-Cleveland is serving as Professor and Chair of the Occupational Therapy Department at the University of Alabama-Birmingham.

Prior to joining UAB, Dr. Moyers-Cleveland was Dean of the School of Occupational Therapy at the University of Indianapolis. Dr. Moyers-Cleveland co-leads a support group for persons with HIV and AIDS. Dr. Moyers-Cleveland has published extensively on the topic of substance use disorders and has worked with AOTA to systematically review the evidence to identify effective interventions. This work has led to creation of AOTA evidence briefs designed to help practitioners select interventions for facilitating recovery and return to successful Occupational performance. Dr. Moyers-Cleveland has also written articles in OT Practice on the topic of continuing competence and professional development, an outgrowth of her previous AOTA role as Chair of the Commission on Continuing Competence and Professional Development.

Dr. Moyers-Cleveland has an extensive academic resume. She has an EdD in Adult Education, with a major in Public Administration from Ball State University, and a Master's Degree in Community Development from the University of Louisville. Her bachelor's degree is in Occupational Therapy from the University of Missouri.

Dr. Rogers is Professor of Occupational Therapy, Nursing, and Psychiatry and Chair of the Department of Occupational Therapy at the University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA. She received her professional education from the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, and her doctoral degree in educational psychology/life-span human development from the University of Illinois-Urbana. Her clinical expertise is in geriatric Occupational Therapy and she was the first elected chair of the AOTA Gerontology Special Interest Section. Her research focuses on disability in older adults with physical, mental, or affective impairments. The National Institute of Nursing Research s ingled out her intervention study, designed to improve the functional independence in morning care tasks of nursing home residents with dementia, as a "science advance" that made a difference in peoples' lives. Dr. Rogers is a charter member of the AOTF Academy of Research and a recipient of the AOTA's Eleanor Clark Slagle Lectureship, Award of Merit, and Fellow designation. She is also a Fellow of the Gerontological Society of America and a Distinguished Scholar of the Association of Rheumatology Health Professionals. In 2007, she was named Chair of the newly formed AOTA/AOTF Research Advisory Panel; she served on the AOTA Board of Directors from 2005-08.

Ann teaches leadership, interdisciplinary teamwork, consultation and consults with the Colorado Department of Education on issues related to community inclusion. She holds a bachelor's degree in sociology from the College of New Rochelle, a certificate in Occupational Therapy from Columbia University, a master's from the University of Denver and a doctoral degree in human communication studies also from the University of Denver. Ann's research interests include the development of leadership in women and the effectiveness of services delivered in context with children and families. Ann has served the profession in a number of capacities on state and national levels. She is a charter Fellow, former Speaker of the Representative Assembly and past President of the AOTA. Ann previously served as Vice President of the Foundation and Chair of its Research Development Committee. She has been recognized by numerous awards, most notably the AOTA's Eleanor Clarke Slagle Lectureship and the AOTF's Meritorious Service Award. Her passion from all her professional work focuses on the inclusion of all people in their community of choice for living, working and playing. Her love of the mountains and outdoors frequently takes her to her mountain home in Dillon, Colorado, for hiking, cross-county skiing and contemplating.

Don has a great depth of experience in the insurance field, especially in the area of group insurance administration and mass marketing. Maginnis and Associates operates internationally as insurance consultants and administrators for professional associations, specializing in the development and implementation of Professional Liability coverage for Allied Health Professionals. Don is a former Trustee and Treasurer of Foundation for Physical Therapy, former Member of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Nursing Advisory Council, Past President of Professional Insurance Mass-Marketing Association (PIMA), Past Council Member of the American Institute of Professional Association Group Insurance Administration (AIPAGIA), Associate Member of the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE). Former Member - Associate of Rush Presbyterian St. Luke's Medical Center. He enjoys golf, boating and travel.

Dr. Mitcham is a Professor and the Director of Occupational Therapy Educational Program, Department of Rehabilitation Sciences in the College of Health Professions at the Medical University of South Carolina.

An experienced academician, Dr. Mitcham is known nationally and internationally as a resource for teaching and instructional design; curriculum development and evaluation; and for her approach to integrating service and research into Occupational Therapy curricula. Her main research interests focus around Occupational perspectives of health, well-being, and quality of life for elders. She has directed several federally funded community-based grants which focus on partnering with a broad spectrum of community organizations to engage faculty and students in providing services to medically underserved areas. Currently she is leading curriculum initiatives to promote interprofessional education across the campus and pursuing her interests in compassion and caring. She is a past president of the American Occupational Therapy Foundation and during her tenure she designed and delivered a series of faculty development workshops for new faculty members. These workshops continue with colleagues and now focus on designing effective learning experiences for occupation-centered graduate education.

Jane is a native of North Carolina currently living in Durham, North Carolina. She received her Occupational Therapy degree from the University of Pennsylvania. The focus of her clinical experience has been mental health and pediatrics. She has served in a number of professional leadership positions at both the state and national levels. These include President of the North Carolina Occupational Therapy Association, Chair of the North Carolina Licensure Board, Member of the Council on Allied Health in North Carolina, Speaker of the AOTA Representative Assembly, and Chair of the AOTA Specialty Certification Board. Jane and her husband, Henderson, have four adult children. Her special interests and hobbies include spending time with their young grandson, cooking, gardening, quilting, reading, needlepoint and travel.