Diversity, Equity and Inclusion CEU Courses | Occupational Therapy Continuing Education Courses

Aspire OT believes that continuing education courses should support diversity, equity, and inclusion in the OT profession.

DEI Courses

Aspire OT is an AOTA approved provider!

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Instructor Bios

Khalilah Johnson, PhD, MS, OTR/L
NOTA Guest Instructor
Dr. Khalilah R. Johnson is an Assistant Professor in the Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. She also serves as an affiliate research faculty member at the Virginia Commonwealth University Center for Cultural Experiences in Prevention in Richmond, Virginia. Broadly, Dr. Johnson's research focuses on health services access and participation with racially minoritized adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, as well as developing culturally affirming interventions that support their community engagement. Additionally, she is involved in research aimed to address pathways to occupational therapy education for African American students and racial equity in occupational science and occupational therapy curricula. Her work is informed by 15 years of experience spanning the states of Georgia, North Carolina, and Virginia.
Dr. Johnson serves on the boards of the Society for the Study of Occupation: USA (SSO:USA) and the Coalition of Occupational Therapy Advocates for Diversity (COTAD), and is the immediate past Advocacy and Policy Coordinator for the Developmental Disabilities Special Interest Section of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA). In addition to her memberships with SSO:USA, COTAD, and AOTA, Dr. Johnson is a member of the World Federation of Occupational Therapists, the National Black Occupational Therapy Caucus, the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, the Brenau University Heritage Society, the Carolina Black Caucus, and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. She also serves on the Autism in Adulthood editorial board, and a host of other advisory boards and scholarly committees.

Stephanie Lancaster, EdD, OTR/L
TNOTA Guest Instructor

Stephanie Lancaster, EdD, OTR/L, ATP, CDP has been an OT practitioner for 30 years. She is the program director and an assistant professor at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. She serves as Vice Chair of the Coalition of Occupational Therapy Advocates for Diversity (COTAD) and is Tennessee’s representative for AOTA’s Representative Assembly. She hosts the “On The air” podcast about OT. Her research interests center on the impact of technology in the clinical and educational arenas with an emphasis on technology for learners with diverse needs. Stephanie received the TNOTA Educator of the Year Award in 2020.

DeOnna Clark, MOT, OTR/L
TNOTA Guest Instructor

DeOnna Clark, MOT, OTR/L is a graduate of Loma Linda University, and has been an OT practitioner for 6+ years. She currently serves as the lead Occupational Therapist serving on the cardiovascular ICU and medical ICU at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. She has professional experience in acute/ICU care, geriatrics, and early intervention pediatrics. She is currently the founding chair of the diversity committee for TNOTA. Her personal and professional interests include OT and ADL performance within critical care, diversity and equity initiatives, and practitioner mental health and personal development.

Morgan Booth
TNOTA Guest Instructor

Morgan is planning to graduate in December 2021 from TSU with a Masters in Occupational Therapy. Her undergraduate degree is in Kinesiology at the University of Montevallo. During this time she was President of Kinesiology Honors society, named to Women’s Track and field all academic team as well as earned a conference championship in Track. For the past two years she has been the Alumni/Supervisor Relations officer for TSU’s student-led Tiger Clinic. She is the Co-founder of Coalition of Occupational Therapists Advocating for Diversity chapter at her program, TNOTA’s Middle District Secretary and a member of TNOTA's DEI committee.

Allison Nance
TNOTA Guest Instructor

Allison Nance is a second year Master of Occupational Therapy student at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center who will be graduating in May 2022. She has a B.S. in Kinesiology from Louisiana State University and a Master of Public Health degree from the University of Southern Mississippi. As a wellness professional of 11 years, she advocated for healthy lifestyle behavior change and relationship building. Currently, she serves as the Student Occupational Therapy Association (SOTA) Diversity Chair and UTHSC Coalition of Occupational Therapy Advocates for Diversity (COTAD) Chapter Chair. She also serves as a West District Co-Chair for TNOTA, College of Health Professions Representative for the Black Student Association, and a member of TNOTA’s Diversity and Inclusion committee.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion are important concepts for all OTs, OTAs, and students

Occupational therapy practitioners have to understand how to address these concepts in our clients, but we also need to understand how to promote DEI within our profession.
Photo Niccole Rowe and Kimberly Breeden accepting AOTA award in 2018
2018 Terri Brittell OTA/OT Partnership Award

Dedicated to empowering all OTs, OTAs, and students

Founding Partners, Niccole and Kim founded Aspire OT to celebrate the distinct power of occupational therapy. We believe that OT practitioners need more than just contact hours for their professional development. Aspire OT wants to support OTs and OTAs to make best practice an every day practice through our courses and our coaching services. 

Kim and Niccole are nationally recognized for their efforts in improving occupational therapy treatment for pain. They have co-authored two continuing education articles published in OT Practice Magazine, "A Biopsychosocial Approach to Addressing Chronic Pain in Everyday Occupational Therapy Practice" and "Opioid Guidelines and Their Implications for Occupational Therapy." Kim and Niccole were honored to co-author the AOTA Official Position Statement "Occupational Therapy's Role in Pain Management" published in December 2021.
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Live OT Workshops

Aspire OT provides in-person live continuing education courses where we focus on providing your organization practical tools with interactive practice opportunities. OT practitioners will leave with specific strategies that can be used the next day in their practice setting.

We can create an event that meets your organization's continuing education needs.
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We can create a custom CEU event to meet the needs of your organization.

Our Partners

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