Rocky Mountain University of Health Professions (RMUoHP) is pleased to announce that Matt Malcolm, PHD, OTR/L, FAOTA, has joined the university as the new program director for the post-professional Doctor of Occupational Therapy (OTD) program effective June 2022.
As program director, Dr. Malcolm will oversee the online and limited-residency aspects of the post-professional OTD program, which includes around 50 current students and over 700 alumni. As a post-professional program, the OTD curriculum and culminating capstone helps current occupational therapists prepare for career advancement in academia or in clinical practice.
Dr. Malcolm explains the importance of occupational therapists in helping people recover and have fulfilling lives. “Occupational therapists (OTs) employ a wide range of tools, interventions, and supports to help their clients reach these goals and strive to work within their client’s physical, cultural, social, and occupational contexts. In these ways, OTs help people live their best and most-satisfying lives.”
As program director, Dr. Malcolm looks forward to serving occupational therapists in their academic journey. “More than anything, I want them to feel even more confident in what they do in their career. Such confidence can be spurred on by educational experiences that help students to achieve a sense of mastery over their ability to treat, lead, research, and educate,” said Dr. Malcolm.
Prior to coming to RMUoHP, Dr. Malcolm worked at Colorado State University, where he co-founded and directed the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Occupation and Rehabilitation Science program; served as Director of Research in the Assistive Technology Resource Center; and served as a professor in the Department of Occupational Therapy and Colorado School of Public Health.
Dr. Malcolm received his degree in occupational therapy from the University of Buffalo and his PhD in rehabilitation science from the University of Florida. He is a nationally and internationally recognized educator and scholar. He currently serves as an International Research Mentor in the Brain Korea 21 Program at Yonsei University in Seoul, Korea, and recently completed a Visiting Professorship at Yamagata Prefectural University of Health Sciences in Yamagata, Japan.
Dr. Malcolm’s research focuses on health and rehabilitation services, disparities, and outcomes and assistive technology services and outcomes and has been funded by more than $2 million in grants. He has published more than 50 articles and proceedings in highly reputable scientific journals, including more than 20 publications with his research students. As a result of his collaborative research efforts and leadership, Dr. Malcolm was recently inducted into the American Occupational Therapy Association Roster of Fellows (FAOTA).
RMUoHP Occupational Therapy Department Chair and former OTD program director Bryan Gee, PhD, OTD, OTR/L, BCP, CLA, remarked on the impact Dr. Malcolm will have on the program and its students. “Dr. Malcolm’s experience educating and mentoring PhD students; experience with leadership, research, writing, and publication; and his past and current service to the occupational therapy profession add a level of emprise that will assist the post-professional OTD students with their capstone projects and professional goals, all while navigating the demands of a professional career, a doctoral program, and personal family demands.”
For more information on the post-professional Doctor of Occupational Therapy program at Rocky Mountain University of Health Professions, visit the OTD website.
