By: Dr. Luis Arabit, Assistant Professor, Department of Occupational Therapy
On November 3, 2003, the Occupational Therapy department, in the College of Health and Human Science at San José State University (SJSU) proudly celebrated its 80th founding anniversary. The program was founded in 1943 as one of the first occupational therapy programs in the Western United States and is the oldest accredited Occupational Therapy program in the California State University system.
The celebration was held at the SJSU Student Union Ballroom and featured two well known leaders in the OT field as co-keynote speakers, Dr. Lela Llorens and Dr. Penny Kyler. Both speakers discussed the importance of membership in OT professional organizations and also addressed the significance of increasing diversity equity and inclusion in the OT workforce through advocacy and recruitment. The event included attendees such as former alumni and faculty who have contributed to the OT program’s rich history. The celebration also hosted concurrent educational sessions for attendees with invited guest speakers who are graduates of the OT program. The celebration culminated with a dinner reception complete with a photo booth, a jazz band and raffle prizes provided by event sponsors.
Tremendous appreciation goes out to the Chair of the OT department, Dr. Gigi Smith, the OT Staff, Faculty and the Student Occupational Therapy Association (SOTA) who volunteered their precious time to contribute to the success of the celebration! Happy 80th Anniversary to the OT Program!
**A little piece of SJSU OT Program history: In March 1943, the OT curriculum was presented to the AOTA Council on Education for approval and by June 1944, the program was fully accredited with Ms. Mary Booth as the first appointed occupational therapist in charge of the program. Soon thereafter, Ms. Booth received an academic appointment as Assistant Professor and was responsible for establishing the foundation upon which the program was built. During Ms. Booth’s tenure as department head, the department grew as well as the quality of the educational curriculum. Through a gift in Ms. Booth’s will the College established the Mary D. Booth Occupational Therapy Endowment Scholarship in her memory. (Lorraine Pedretti, 1993. History of the department of occupational therapy, 1943-1993).