Perspectives Inaugural Issue (Winter 2013)

PERSPECTIVES • WINTER/SPRING 2013 10 Sandra Dunbar, D.P.A, OTR/L, FAOTA, recently assumed the position of assistant dean of professional development and edu- cation, having formerly served as chair of the Occupational Therapy Department at NSU’s main campus. Dr. Dunbar is not new to the challenges of leadership and de- velopment, having arrived at NSU 17 years ago to teach in the Occupational Therapy program, where she partnered with fellow NSU professors to assist in building the OT program. For those who may wonder what profes- sional development actually means, Dr. Dunbar explains it as an avenue for im- proving one’s skills, not just within the specific discipline, but in more broad- based ways as a professional. This form of development encompasses identifying the area of needed growth, assessing how/what improvements can be made, and then “making it happen.” This is done in order to contribute to one’s profession, organiza- tion, and society in a positive way. According to Dr. Dunbar, “Self-assessment is at the core of professional development; all people have a responsibility to evaluate their own needs as a leader, educator, man- ager etc., and then strive for improvement.” Professional development is not intended to solely benefit NSU faculty members. Stu- dents will also be affected as faculty mem- bers develop their leadership skills, thus having a positive impact on the classroom experience. Providing continuing education opportunities is a way to meet professional development needs within the College of Health Care Sciences, as well as for the community, and this will also be a primary role for Dr. Dunbar. In collaboration with the Dr. Richard Davis, Stanley Wilson, Ed.D., associate dean, and Marcia McNeil, assistant coordinator, Dr. Dunbar will focus on developing three ini- tial goals in her role as assistant dean of professional development and education: • develop and initiate the Leadership and Management Academy, which is intended to reinforce and develop NSU faculty members’ and department directors’ leader- ship skills, with long-term goals to offer academy courses to the community. For more information on the Leadership and Management Academy, please visit http://www.nova.edu/chcs/leadership-man- agement/description.html. • partner with the local Urban League—an organization dedicated to empowering com- munities and changing lives in the areas of education, jobs, housing, and health—to provide health education seminars with rep- resentative faculty members and students from the College of Health Care Sciences. In partnership with the Urban League, the goal is for NSU to become even more in- volved in serving the underserved and reaching out to the community with our di- verse knowledge of health care. • develop annual interprofessional continu- ing education opportunities for clinical ed- ucators, specifically for clinicians in the community who take NSU students for fieldwork and clinical rotations. The first session, entitled “Culturally Effective Care” and presented by Roxie Black, Ph.D., OTR/L, FAOTA, director and pro- fessor of the Occupational Therapy Depart- ment at the University of Southern Maine, took place on October 18. Surveys were recently sent by Dr. Dunbar to all CHCS faculty members to obtain feedback regarding interprofessional con- tinuing education needs. Through coopera- tive efforts with fellow leaders within the Dr. Sandra Dunbar Starts New CHCS Position CHCS NEWS OF NOTE “Making it Happen.”