Partnerships abound at Messiah
Forming education partnerships is a critical part of Messiah University’s strategic plan, and there are many ways the University is working with organizations that share our mission.
The Bridge Center
The University is expanding its offerings for adult learners—including customized workforce development; continuing education; reskilling and upskilling programming; and other non-credit learning opportunities—through the launch of the Bridge Center for Continuing Education.
The format of the Bridge Center’s courses and seminars vary and may include face-to-face, online, webinars, hybrid, one-time or weekend formats.
“One of Messiah’s goals as an institution is to instill a passion for learning at every stage of life,” said Kim Phipps, president of Messiah University. “The Bridge Center allows us to provide these lifelong learning opportunities that meet the needs of both adult learners and employers in our region.”
Pathway Partners
A new K-12 educational partnership, the Pathway Partners Program is designed to create lifelong learning opportunities between Messiah and partner schools. While Messiah develops each partnership to address the unique needs of the partner school, agreements typically include a tuition discount, dual enrollment opportunities, continuing education and graduate programming for partner employees, traditional undergraduate enrollment scholarships, special campus events and facility access, and summer camp programming for partner students.
The first collaboration is with the Christian School Association of Greater Harrisburg (CSAGH), a private Christian school district serving more than 850 students in grades K-12.
“We are intentionally seeking new ways to work together with other organizations that share Messiah’s commitment to helping mentor students toward deeper intellect, professional competence, personal integrity and mature faith expressed in love of God and neighbor,” said Rob Pepper, associate provost for graduate and professional studies and university partnerships at Messiah.
PT continuing education with NAIOMT
The School of Graduate and Professional Studies recently announced a partnership with NAIOMT, a private physical therapist-owned organization that will bring physical therapy continuing education events, an orthopedic clinical residency and a Doctor of Science (D.Sc.) in physical therapy to Messiah.
The physical therapy (PT) continuing education program is a series of courses focused on orthopedic manual therapy to earn post-professional certification. The courses, open to licensed physical therapists and third-year PT students, provide pre-approved contact hours through the Pennsylvania State Board of Physical Therapy that can be applied to licensing requirements.
Also, Messiah and NAIOMT are developing an orthopedic clinical residency program and a D.Sc. in physical therapy degree, a terminal degree that provides educational experience for clinicians who want to work in higher education as an educator in health sciences of for clinical professors interested in additional training and development to transition to a tenure-track, research-focused role.
The residency program will prepare licensed physical therapists for the American Board of Physical Therapy Specialists (ABPTS) exam following completion of the program. The program is seeking accreditation by the American Board of Physical Therapy Residency and Fellowship Education (ABPTRFE), and Messiah expects to enroll students for a January 2023 start.
Phoenix PT clinic at Winding Hill
Phoenix Physical Therapy and Messiah will partner to provide a new outpatient clinic at Messiah’s Winding Hill location by the end of this year. The clinic will be open to the public and in the same facility as Messiah’s accredited Doctor of Physical Therapy and Master of Occupational Therapy programs. It will provide comprehensive PT, occupational therapy (OT) and athletic training (AT) services to the community.
The clinic combined with Messiah’s accreditation by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE) makes the University a great option for students exploring DPT programs. Graduation from a CAPTE-accredited program is required for eligibility to take the licensing exam.
The clinic will be led by Kelly Thomas Clancy ’06, a former Messiah soccer player, with more than 13 years of PT experience.
“I am excited to return to Messiah University and look forward to developing individualized therapy plans for my patients,” said Clancy.
The clinic is scheduled to open in mid-December and will be accepting new patients.
— Staff reports