Physical Therapy: Sullivan Elected President of APTA’s Student Board of Directors
Colleen Sullivan ’12 participated in the 2011 American Physical Therapy Association’s National Student Conclave (NSC) held in Minneapolis, Minn., Oct. 21 and 22. During the weekend’s events, she was elected to serve as President of the Student Assembly Board of Directors. This is Sullivan’s second year serving on the Board.
“Being surrounded by nine other proactive and motivated students over the past year on the Student Assembly Board of Directors, I was in awe how much we could accomplish merely in a year,” says Sullivan. “Their sheer energy for the profession and the APTA, as well as the excitement of other student members I met along the way, inspired me to run for another term on the Board. I decided to run for President as this role would challenge my current leadership style, as well as facilitate the growth of a new group of student leaders over the course of the next year.”
As President, Sullivan will represent more than 20,000 physical therapy and Physical Therapy Association student members nationwide at national conferences and Board of Director meetings over the next year. As she oversees all board meeting and conference calls for the Student Assembly Board, Sullivan plans to serve as a neutral voice to facilitate all sides of a discussion, and encourage innovative and creative discourse.
“I am delighted with Colleen’s election to President of the National Student Conclave,” says Rebecca Craik, Ph.D., PT, FAPTA, Professor and Chair of the Department of Physical Therapy. “She has been engaged tirelessly in leadership efforts since she attended her first NSC meeting. Colleen has served as a conduit between professional activities and our student body making sure that they are “in the know.” It is remarkable that Colleen has been able to balance her role in the NSC while serving as co-President of the SPTA at Arcadia and excelling in academic and clinical performance. The PT faculty is extremely proud of her outstanding accomplishments.”
Arcadia is ranked seventh among the 211 accredited graduate PT programs in the nation by U.S. News and World Report and is the first program in Pennsylvania to offer both the entry-level and transitional Doctor of Physical Therapy programs.
