Long recognized as a national leader in occupational therapy education, Eastern Kentucky University's Department of Occupational Therapy has taken the first step toward building a similar reputation in the research field.

Leading that effort will be Dr. Doris Pierce, recently named the Endowed Chair in Occupational Therapy. The position is funded through Kentucky's 1998-2000 Endowed Matching Program.

"To my knowledge," Pierce said, "there are no other Endowed Chairs in OT nationwide. This represents a very strong investment in occupational therapy at EKU."

Widely published, frequently sought as a speaker and a former research assistant to world-famous chimpanzee researcher Jane Goodall, Pierce likened her new home to "OT heaven.

"EKU's occupational therapy program has the largest number of OT faculty on one campus in the nation," she noted. "We're very highly regarded for the quality of our teaching, but we have not been well known for scholarship. The Department started with a mandate to address a severe shortage of occupational therapists across Kentucky. Now that the shortage is no longer severe, the department is maturing to a point where it can turn its attention to graduate education, scholarship and leadership in the field beyond our region."

In her newly created role, Pierce, in addition to her own research in infant and toddler development and disability, will assist in identifying funding sources and facilitate faculty scholarship efforts. A faculty research center will open in the Dizney Building early next year, she said.

EKU's Department of Occupational Therapy and the University of Kentucky recently launched a joint doctoral program in rehabilitative sciences. "There are very few doctoral programs nationwide in occupational therapy or rehabilitative sciences," Pierce said. "We're responding to national needs and trends."

Also, Pierce will assist in the development of a new entry-level master's degree program. The current graduate program in occupational therapy targets primarily practicing therapists.

Pierce said the EKU's program's strength lies in the diversity of its faculty.

"It's such a wealth of disciplinary culture," she said. "There is no confusion about where the focus is here. It's very clearly on occupational therapy."

Pierce said the "environment at EKU is ripe for the application of occupational science - a new discipline dedicated to the study of patterns in human activity. I hope to see occupational science strongly shaping OT faculty research here at EKU, as well as the new master's and doctoral programs."

An Ohio native whose mother came from the Paintsville, Ky., area, Pierce earned a bachelor's degree in occupational therapy from Ohio State University in 1983, a master's degree in occupational therapy from the University of Southern California in 1988 and a doctoral degree in occupational science from the University of Southern California in 1996.

Since 1996, she has been an associate professor in Creighton University's Department of Occupational Therapy. Pierce is a Fellow of the American Occupational Therapy Association.

EKU offers one of only two baccalaureate OT programs in Kentucky and the Commonwealth's only master's degree program. The undergraduate and graduate programs are accredited by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education.

Contact Dr. Pierce at 859-622-6302.