The AOTF Scholarship Program is proud to recognize the dedicated service of Kerri Morgan, PhD, OTR/L, ATP, professor at Washington University in St. Louis, School of Medicine, as she concludes her term as Co-Chair of the Scholarship Review Committee. Dr. Morgan's leadership has been instrumental in modernizing the application and review process, making it more user-friendly for students and more efficient for reviewers.

Under her guidance, the program experienced remarkable growth. In the most recent cycle, the Scholarship Program received nearly 350 applications and awarded over 50 scholarships—a significant increase in both applicants and awards compared to previous years.

While Dr. Morgan will be stepping down from her Co-Chair role, Mary Zadnik, PhD, OTR/L, will continue in her position, providing continuity and experienced leadership. Joining her as the new Co-Chair is Tracey Recigno, PhD, OTD, OTR/L, a professional occupational therapist with nearly two decades of experience in clinical and academic settings. Dr. Recigno is the program director for the developing hybrid Doctor of Occupational Therapy program at Hawai‘i Pacific University in Honolulu. Though the program is based in O‘ahu, she resides in southern New Jersey, just outside Philadelphia. In addition to her new role, Dr. Recigno also serves as Vice President of Pi Theta Epsilon (PTE), a national occupational therapy honor society. 

New Timeline for the 2026 Application Cycle

In a departure from tradition, the AOTF Scholarship Program will shift its application launch from mid-August to mid-January 2026. This change is designed to better align with academic calendars and provide applicants with additional preparation time. Scholarship recipients will be notified in May 2026.

For more information about the Scholarship Program or to submit questions, please contact: David Robertson, scholarships@aotf.org.

The American Occupational Therapy Foundation (AOTF) is thrilled to announce the appointment of Dr. Patricia L. Davies, PhD, OTR/L, FAOTA,  as its new Board Chair. Dr. Davies is a distinguished professor at Colorado State University, where she leads the Brainwaves Research Laboratory. Her research focuses on understanding the neurological basis of cognitive, sensory, and motor functions, particularly in children with developmental disorders.

Davies' accomplishments include: 

• Over four decades of experience in occupational therapy
• Significant contributions to the field through research and education
• Extensive global collaborations and presentations
• Recipient of substantial funding from organizations like the NIH and NSF

Other Board Changes

We are honored to welcome Timothy Reistetter, PhD, OTR, FAOTA, as the new Secretary of our Executive Board for 2025, while Janet Poole, PhD, OTR/L, will continue as Vice Chair, and Anne Bryden, PhD, OTR/L, as Treasurer.

Furthermore, we are delighted to announce the inclusion of Shawn Roll, PhD, OTR/L, Brent Braveman, OTR, PhD, FAOTA, Megan Chang, PhD, OTR/L, FAOTA, Lisa Juckett, PhD, OTR/L, CHT, and Rebecca Martin, OTR/L, OTD as Trustees.

Outgoing Board Members

The AOTF extends its profound gratitude to the outgoing Board members: Mary Jane (MJ) Mulcahey, PhD, OTR/L, our immediate past Chair, and Douglene Jackson, PhD, OTR/L, LMT, ATP, BCTS, our former Secretary, for their dedicated service and invaluable contributions.

We also thank Kathleen Lyons, SCD, OTR/L, Pamela Talero Cabrejo, OTD, OTR/L, CPAM, and Antoinette Shaw, OTR, for their dedicated service as Board Trustees.

Celebrating 60 Years of Impact

As we celebrate our 60th anniversary, the AOTF remains committed to advancing occupational therapy through research, education, and advocacy. We look forward to continuing our mission with the support of our dedicated Board members and the entire occupational therapy community.

Just announced! Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) awards $7 million for new patient-centered comparative clinical effectiveness research (CER) led by AOTF Board of Trustee, Elizabeth Pfieffer PhD, OTR/L, BCP, FAOTA and Jessica Kramer, PhD, OTR/L, AOTF Engage Summit 2024 Co-Chair, and OTJR Associate Editor.

Effectiveness and Implementation of a Peer- and Staff-Delivered Transportation Intervention for Young Adults With Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD)

"Public transportation can allow people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDDs) to go places and do activities. Even though travel training is often provided by vocational rehabilitation and independent living programs, many young adults with IDDs do not learn how to use public transportation. Some people believe that young adults with IDDs cannot learn to use public transportation safely — this is an example of ableism. However, there are young adults with IDDs who do use public transportation independently and safely. These young adults can show other young adults with IDDs how to use public transportation on their own. That way, more young adults with IDDs can learn to use public transportation and do activities that support their health and participation in the community."

This project aims to determine whether a travel training program called Chance to Ride, which is an eight-week intervention designed to teach young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDDs) how to use public transportation safely and independently, produces the same outcomes when delivered by a peer supporter with an IDD as it does when provided by a professional staff member. Additionally, the project will explore the factors that facilitate or hinder community service organizations in offering Chance to Ride. The main outcomes being measured in the study are loneliness, satisfaction with social activities, and travel skills.

Dr. Pfeiffer is an Associate Professor in the Department of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences in the College of Public Health at Temple University and the Director of the Research, Engagement and Advocacy for Community Participation and Health (REACH) Lab. Her research focuses on the development of interventions and outcomes measures to support engagement in meaningful activities in the community for transitional age youth and young adults with ASD and/or IDD. In all aspects of her work in the REACH lab, she is committed to engaging stakeholders/community partners in research planning and decision-making. Dr. Pfeiffer teaches research in the post-professional and entry-level Occupational Therapy Doctorate program and mentors PhD students. She continues her clinical practice in the area of pediatrics. In addition, she's an AOTF Mid-Career Research Excellence Awardee and Health Services Research Grant Recipient.

Dr. Kramer is an Associate Professor in the Department of Occupational Therapy, College of Public Health and Health Professions, University of Florida. Dr. Kramer’s occupational therapy practice experience is with enabling children and youth ages 3 to 20 with multiple, severe disabilities to participate and learn in a public school setting. Dr. Kramer’s research draws upon theoretical concepts and methodologies from occupational therapy, disability studies, education and rehabilitation to partner with youth with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) in the development and evaluation of rehabilitation products, develop community-based interventions that equip youth with I/DD and their families with the skills to identify and resolve environmental barriers to participation, and design high-quality patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) using contemporary measurement approaches. In addition, she's an AOTF Mid-Career Research Excellence Awardee and Health Services Research Grant Recipient.

Read full PCORI article.

In 2018, The American Occupational Therapy Foundation (AOTF) convened a group of scientists from seven different disciplines in a Planning Grant Collective (PGC) to stimulate research to identify scalable ways to preserve and optimize participation among cancer survivors and then identify interventions that improve participation in roles and life. In 2019, one of the PGC committee members, current AOTF Board Member and Academy of Research Member, Kathleen Lyons, OT, ScD, OTR, Professor, MGH Institute of Health Professions, was awarded an R01 and its outcomes were recently published in the JAMA Network Open article, Telephone-Based Rehabilitation Intervention to Optimize Activity Participation After Breast Cancer (Lyons KD, Wechsler SB, Ejem DB, et al). The intervention is an example of one of the three priorities identified during that 2018 AOTF workshop with fellow participant and author, Robin Newman, OTD, OTR, CLT, FAOTA, Program Director of the Department of Occupational Therapy, Boston University.

“The discussions with the PGC participants (including the program officers) were instrumental in my ability to hone the argument and get the grant funded. So, thank you AOTF!” says Lyons.

The PGC discussion and recommendations regarding all three recommendations that could catalyze research on participation of cancer survivors were published in AOTF’s OTJR: Occupational Therapy Journal of Research, Catalyzing Research to Optimize Cancer Survivors’ Participation in Work and Life Roles (Newman RM, Alfano CM, Radomski MV, et al).

Together, with Foundation volunteers like Kathy, we support key strategic pillars, including establishing partnerships between researchers, practitioners and community partners, that fulfill our mission of building evidence to improve OT practice and health.

• Read more in the MGH Institute of Health Professions feature, Cancer Rehabilitative Therapy Could Be Just a Phone Call Away.
• The most recent AOTF PGC “Functional Cognition: Moving the Science Forward” was held in Alexandria, VA last fall. Its findings will be published in OTJR with the balance of the Collectives.
• Interested in volunteering for the Foundation? We currently are accepting applications for several of our 10 committees.