"Program Director/Instructor - Physical Therapy Assistant Program"

Job Summary

The program director is a physical therapist or physical therapist assistant who demonstrates an understanding of education and contemporary clinical practice appropriate for leadership in physical therapist assistant education.

Nature of Work

The program director provides effective leadership for the program including, but not limited to, responsibility for communication, program assessment and planning, fiscal management, and faculty evaluation. This position also requires adherence and documentation for the accreditation standards for this program.

Summary of Responsibilities

• Communicate with program faculty and other individuals and departments (e.g., admissions, library) involved with the program.
• Communicate with external stakeholders (e.g., advisory board, community partners, clinical faculty) involved with the program.
• Fiscal planning and allocation of resources, including long-term planning.
• Faculty professional development/evaluation.
• Experience with curriculum content, design, and evaluation.
• Employ strategies to promote and support professional development.
• Proven effective interpersonal and conflict management skills.
• Ability to facilitate change.
• Negotiation skills (relative to planning, budgeting, funding, program faculty status, program status, employment and termination, space, and appropriate academic and professional benefits).
• Effective experience in strategic planning.
• Active service on behalf of physical therapist assistant professional education, higher education, the larger community, and organizations related to their academic interest.
• Commitment to lifelong learning.
• Active role in institutional governance.
• Maintenance and dissemination of program information.
• Resource management, to include the management of budget, space, and human and material resources.
• Course scheduling.
• Faculty course assignments, mentoring, and evaluation.
• Curriculum development and assessment.
• Classroom and laboratory instruction.
• Program admissions process management.
• Student advisement.
• Maintenance of accurate information, easily accessible to the public, on the program website regarding accreditation status (including CAPTE logo and required accreditation statement), and current student achievement measures.
• Timely submission of required fees and documentation, including reports of graduation rates, performance on state licensing examinations, and employment rates.
• Following policies and procedures of CAPTE as outlined in the CAPTE Rules of Practice and Procedure.
• Timely notification of expected or unexpected substantive change(s) within the program and of any change in institutional accreditation status or legal authority to provide postsecondary education.
• Coming into compliance with accreditation Standards and Required Elements within two years of being determined to be out of compliance.

Professional Development

• Compliance training is to be completed routinely and timely.
• It is a programmatic requirement that the program director maintain current clinical experience. It is the expectation that the program director complete 50 clinical hours annually.
• 60 contact hours of professional development or education comprising exclusively and comprehensively the four content areas of: education theory and methodology, instructional design, student evaluation and outcome assessment.

Qualifications

The program director is a physical therapist or physical therapist assistant who demonstrates an understanding of education and contemporary clinical practice appropriate for leadership in physical therapist assistant education.

These qualifications include all of the following:

• Holds an active, unencumbered PT license or PTA license/certification in any United States jurisdiction and is in compliance with the practice act in the jurisdiction where the program is located.
• A minimum of a master’s degree.
• A minimum of five years (or equivalent), full-time, post-licensure experience that includes a minimum of three years (or equivalent) of full-time clinical experience within any United States jurisdiction.
• Experience in classroom, lab, or clinical teaching experience.
• Experience in administration, management, and leadership. Experiences derived from the clinic are acceptable.
• Professional development or education in all of the following: educational theory and methodology, instructional design, student evaluation, and outcome assessment.

Education

• Bachelor's, master's, or doctorate degree in physical therapy from a CAPTE accredited program OR closely related field - Required
• Master’s Degree - Required
• Master's, or doctorate degree in physical therapy from a CAPTE accredited program

Experience

• A minimum of five years (or equivalent), full-time, post-licensure experience that includes a minimum of three years (or equivalent) of full-time clinical experience within any United States jurisdiction.
• Experience in classroom, lab, or clinical teaching experience.
• Experience in administration, management, and leadership. Experiences derived from the clinic are acceptable

License or Certification

Holds an active, unencumbered PT license or PTA license/certification in any United States jurisdiction and is in compliance with the practice act in the jurisdiction where the program is located (West Virginia).