Faculty and Staff

The Occupational Therapy Department faculty are excellent teachers, experienced clinicians, and nationally recognized leaders and scholars in the profession.

All of the faculty members are occupational therapists with advanced degrees, diverse backgrounds, specializations, interests and expertise including : physical and mental health rehabilitation, pediatrics, community mental health, gerontology, independent living skills, measurement and research, international occupational therapy, multicultural issues, the history of occupational therapy, kinesiology, infant and family mental health, psychogeriatrics, family-centered intervention, neurological rehabilitation, the social inclusion of children, job analysis, the uses of therapeutic humor, and health promotion.

Follow the links below for faculty and staff directory: 

Department Chair

Faculty

Emeritus/Emerita Faculty

Staff

The Occupational Therapy Department is excited to announce the awards and honor garnered by our faculty members.

2023 SJSU RSCA Seed Grant Program Award

Congratulations to Dr. Chiao-Ju Fang, who was awarded the 2023 SJSU RSCA Seed Grant award for her work, "Social Participation and Navigation (SPAN): Description and Usability of App-based Coaching Intervention for Young Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)."

The award letter states: “The Office of Research, with support from the RSCA Advisory Council, concluded evaluations of all submitted proposals after the first review by the college review committee. The proposal entitled 'Social Participation and Navigation (SPAN): Description and Usability of App-based Coaching Intervention for Young Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)' ranked highly and has been approved for funding.”

2023 AOTF Implementation Research Grant

Dr. Chiao-Ju Fang was also recently notified that she is receiving a large Implementation Research Grant (Option #1) from the American Occupational Therapy Foundation (AOTF) for two years!

The title of her project is "Implementation of App-Based Coaching Intervention (Social Participation and Navigation; SPAN) to Promote Participation of Young Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)". According to Dr. Fang, the proposed research aims to close the gap between evidence (i.e., using technology-based interventions) and practice (i.e., evidence-based interventions assisting young adults with ASD) by adapting and evaluating the implementation of evidence-based practices in routine care via telehealth to improve their quality and effectiveness with a focus on participation.

2022 OTAC Awards

Three of our faculty are getting the following 2022 OTAC Awards: the Award of Excellence, the Janice Matsutsuyu Outstanding Service Award, and the Susan J. Harris OT Entrepreneur Award. These faculty will be recognized at the Annual Awards Ceremony on Friday, October 28 at the Hyatt Regency Santa Clara in conjunction with the OTAC 2022 Annual Conference and Innovation Expo.

Award of Excellence
Deborah J. Bolding, PhD, OTR/L, FAOTA

Janice Matsutsuyu Outstanding Service Award
Alison H. George, MS, OTR/L

Susan J. Harris OT Entrepreneur Award
Hiral Khatri, OTD, OTR/L  

2022 University Grants Academy success

Dr. Megan Chang, participated in the University Grants Academy this last year and just received an intervention research grant award from the American Occupational Therapy Foundation. Her topic is the Use of a Telehealth Approach to Build Resilience in Parents of Children with Autism through Mindfulness Practice. According to Dr. Chang, “this is a grant to support the diverse community of parents of children with autism ages 5-12 in the Bay Area. The goal is to examine the effects of online MBSR through self-reported outcomes as well as psychophysiological measures. The psychophysiological measures, namely electrodermal activity and electrocardiogram, will allow us to test changes in autonomic nervous system responses to stress that these parents chronically experience. OT Lecturer Rochelle McLaughlin, our very own MBSR guru, is the soul and interventionist of this pilot study. She will be delivering the UMASS MBSR program to these parents following the fidelity to treatment protocol. ”

CFOT Research Grant

Dr. Melisa Kaye was awarded the Lisa Test Endowed Research Award combined with the CFOT Grant Award at the California Foundation of Occupational Therapy event during the recently held 2022 OTAC conference in Santa Clara, CA. Her research title is "Investigating Resilience in Families with Young Children: Steps to Inform Holistic Clinical Interventions".

Fellow of the American Occupational Therapy Association (FAOTA)

ROSTER OF FELLOWS (Est. 1973) recognizes occupational therapists who through their knowledge, expertise, leadership, advocacy, and/or guidance have made a significant contribution over time to the profession with a measured impact on consumers of occupational therapy services and/or members of the Association. There are currently over 60,000 AOTA members and fewer than 300 have been honored with this award since 2010!

The following SJSU Occupational Therapy faculty have met the rigorous requirements and have been awarded their FAOTA credentials.

• Dr. Luis de Leon Arabit
• Dr. Deborah Bolding
• Dr. Megan C. Chang
• Dr. Gigi Smith
• Dr. Winifred Schultz-Krohn

Previous Occupational Therapy faculty also awarded this honor include:

• Dr. Heidi Pendleton
• Dr. Marti Southam
• Dr. Anne MacRae
• Dr. Kay Schwartz
• Dr. Pamela Richardson
• Dr. Lela Llorens
• Dr. Karen Diasio-Serrett 

Name: Dr. Gigi Smith
Location: CCB 204
Phone: 408.924.3070

Graduate (MSOT) & Undergraduate (Pre-OT) Coordinator

Name: Dr. Gigi Smith
Location: CCB 204
Phone: 408.924.3094

OT Doctorate Coordinators

Name: Dr. Gigi Smith/Dr. Courtney Boitano
Location: CCB 204/220
Phone: 408.924.3188

Read Faculty Bios

Andonian, Lynne
CCB 208
408.924.3059
Lynne.Andonian@sjsu.edu

Arabit, Luis
CCB 111
408.924.3077
Luis.Arabit@sjsu.edu

Arada, Cesar
CCB 207
408.924.3078
Cesar.Arada@sjsu.edu

Bailey, Peter
CCB 220
408.924.3851
Peter.Bailey@sjsu.edu

Boitano, Courtney
CCB 111
408.924.3150
Courtney.Boitano@sjsu.edu

Bolding, Deborah
CCB 113
408.924.3038
Deborah.Bolding@sjsu.edu

Chang, Megan
CCB 112
408.924.3075
Megan.Chang@sjsu.edu

Chio, Choi
CCB 111
408.924.3090
Choi.Chio@sjsu.edu

Fang, Chiao-Ju
HB 233
408.924.3085
Chiao-Ju.Fang@sjsu.edu

George, Alison
CCB 208
408.924.3095
Alison.George@sjsu.edu

Golembeski, Yvonne
CCB 220
408.924.3087
Yvonne.Golembeski@sjsu.edu

Haworth, Christine
CCB 220
408.924.2911
Christine.Haworth@sjsu.edu

Kaye, Melisa
CCB 113
408.924.3073
Melisa.Kaye@sjsu.edu

Khatri, Hiral
CCB 220
408.924.5811
Hiral.Khatri@sjsu.edu

Long, Katrina
CCB 111
408.924.3139
Katrina.Long@sjsu.edu

McLaughlin, Rochelle
CCB 104
408.924.3089
Rochelle.Mclaughlin@sjsu.edu

Sarah McPeak
CCB 111
408.924.7046
Sarah.Mcpeak@sjsu.edu

Nguyen, Uyen
CCB 104
408.924.3074
Uyen.Nguyen@sjsu.edu

Paige, Lesley
CCB 111
408.924.3112
Lesley.Paige@sjsu.edu

Pickett, Karen
CCB 220
408.924.3201
Karen.Pickett@sjsu.edu

Rivera, Jennifer 
CCB 104
408.924.3064
Jen.Rivera@sjsu.edu

Schultz-Krohn, Winifred
CCB 206
408.924.3081
Winifred.Schultz-Krohn@sjsu.edu

Smith, Gigi
CCB 204
408.924.3072
Gigi.Smith@sjsu.edu

Teaford, Graham
CCB 104
408.924.3335
Graham.Teaford@sjsu.edu

Tipton-Burton, Michelle
CCB 220
408.924.3696
Michelle.Tipton-Burton@sjsu.edu

Wise, Kathryn
CCB 111
408.924.7435
Kathryn.Wise@sjsu.edu

Read Faculty Emeritus/Emerita Bios

Burton, Gordon
Gordon.Burton@sjsu.edu

Cara, Elizabeth
Elizabeth.Cara@sjsu.edu

Glogoski, Carolyn
Carolyn.Glogoski@sjsu.edu

Killingsworth, Amy
Amy.Killingsworth@sjsu.edu

Llorens, Lela A. W.

MacRae, Anne

Pedretti, Lorraine

Pendleton, Heidi McHugh
Heidi.Pendleton@sjsu.edu

Richardson, Pamela
Pamela.Richardson@sjsu.edu

Schultz-Krohn, Winifred
Winifred.Schultz-Krohn@sjsu.edu

Schwartz, Kathleen Barker
Kathleen.Schwartz@sjsu.edu

Serrett, Karen Diasio

Southam, Marti
Marti.Southam@sjsu.edu

Fanfa-Sullivan, Catherine
CCB 205
408.924.3079
Catherine.FanfaSullivan@sjsu.edu

Sara Villarreal
CCB 203
408.924.3071
Sara.Villarreal@sjsu.edu

Ocampo, Vicky
CCB 212
408.924.3086
Vicky.Ocampo@sjsu.edu