After two years of preparation and development, the College of Western Idaho (CWI) Occupational Therapy Assistant program recently admitted its first cohort of students. This fall, dedicated students will embark on an educational journey that will invite expansive personal and professional change and growth and that will culminate in a degree in occupational therapy assisting. These students are not promised an easy two years. In fact, the rigorous program will require much dedication, sacrifice, and hard work. However, the students will be led and assisted by a group of passionate occupational therapy practitioners who feel that service to the field of Occupational Therapy (OT) and to their students is a calling that requires them to dedicate the time and energy necessary to impart to their students a deep love of OT.
Each semester, students will be involved in comprehensive service learning projects involving real-world clients with real-world hardships. To this end, the program is developing collaborations with valuable community organizations to create these vital hands-on experiences for students. Specific programmatic goals include increasing knowledge of the profession within the community and providing unique and therapeutic opportunities for underserved populations.
For Fall 2021 semester, the program is working in collaboration with the Treasure Valley Institute of Children’s Arts (TRICA), a National Dance Institute affiliate, to provide an adaptive dance camp for children of all abilities. The program is actively recruiting up to 12 children between the third and sixth grades to participate in the program that starts this fall. Families interested in involving their children in this amazing opportunity are encouraged to apply by August 15! For further information, please contact Angela Zaugg, Academic Fieldwork Coordinator, at angelazaugg@cwi.edu.
