Dr. Ruth Ford to lead our new doctoral Occupational Therapy program

It’s with a sense of excitement that we announce the hiring of our founding director of Occupational Therapy. Dr. Ruth Ford is currently Associate Professor of Occupational Therapy at Belmont University. Ruth will relocate and join us full-time in January. She is serving in a consulting role now and is already hard at work as we prepare for our Fall 2014 program launch.

Ruth earned her BS in Occupational Therapy at The Ohio State University, her Master’s in Biomedical Sciences in Rehabilitation from the Medical University of Ohio (now University of Toledo) and her EdD in Leadership and Policy from Bowling Green State University. Dr. Ford held teaching positions at Medical College of Ohio and at the University of Findlay prior to her tenure at Belmont. She has continually engaged in clinical practice over the course of her career with positions in home health care, long term care, geriatric care and as a corporate director of OT care.

Dr. Ford has been very committed to her church and community. She and her husband are active members of Franklin First United Methodist Church in Franklin, TN. She has served on state boards of OT practice, served as an expert witness, been employed as a clinical consultant and has served on the Board of Directors for multiple not for profit organizations. She helped create and administer new programs and curriculum in Occupational Therapy at both the Medical College of Ohio and at Belmont University. She has participated in numerous scientific research projects and has published results in disciplinary journals. She also has a passion for student/faculty collaborative research. Dr. Ford is an active Rotarian and is a recent Past President of the Franklin, TN chapter.