I am deeply honored to serve as your President and to share in the celebration of our 10-year anniversary since our incorporation in 2014. ACAPT has made great strides in propelling the academic physical therapy profession forward. The spirit of collaboration, dedication, and excellence among our members is inspiring.

The enclosed annual report will provide you with a lot of insights into our accomplishments in 2024.  But I want to take a moment to call attention to the highlights of ACAPT’s decade in service to our academic community.

ACAPT's decade in service to the academic PT community

Creation of:

• Center for Excellence, the data hub housing the Criteria for Excellence and Excellence Framework, Institutional Profile Surveys, Engagement Measure Surveys, and more.
• ACAPT's four institutes operationalize the Criteria for Excellence, Excellence Framework and their task forces to address specific issues and opportunities within the profession.
  
• Clinical reasoning symposium and systems thinking videos, terms, definitions, and fact sheets developed by ACAPT’s Clinical Reasoning Curricula and Assessment Consortium
• The ACAPT Awards program features the Emerging Educator award, the Friend of Physical Therapy award, and the Innovation award.
• Mental health & wellness resources and others created and curated by ACAPT’s Consortium for the Humanities, Ethics and Professionalism
• National Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Commission (NEDIC) and the NEDIC Summit stemmed from the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Consortium
• National Interprofessional Education Consortium & the IPE Compendium
• Early Assurance BS/DPT Program Consortium and Education & Pedagogy Consortium
• PhD directory of programs created by ACAPT’s Consortium of Research-Intensive Programs in Physical Therapy
• Leadership Compass self-paced professional development tool
• Standard Pre-requisite courses for admission in entry-level physical therapist education programs
• Admissions Traffic Rules for programs and applicants and pre-admissions observation hours studies
• Learning management center & career center
• Launched first Advancing Accessibility & Disability Equity Summit
• National Physical Therapy Student Honor Society
• Standardized Graduate Outcomes Recommendations 
• Recommendations for program director responsibilities
• Quarterly town hall meetings with ACAPT Board of Directors
• Numerous relevant education and events including the hybrid course for Empowering the Academic Physical Therapy Leadership Team Towards Excellence
• Joint host of the Annual Physical Therapy Education Leadership Conference (ELC)
• Joint creation of the Doctor of Physical Therapy Program Financial Fact Sheet

Products and services created from the 2014 Clinical Education Summit:

• The Physical Therapy Common Terminology Glossary
•  Collaborative Model of Clinical Education Toolkit and Resource Handbook
• A definition for Integrated Clinical Education (ICE) and the Parameters of baseline expectation for integrated clinical education 
• KSAs and levels of competency for considering student readiness 
• A simulation scenario library, The Simulation Instructor Training for Rehabilitation Professionals course, and simulation standards of best practice developed by ACAPT’s Simulation Consortium
• Clinical Education Roadshows established by ACAPT’s National Consortium of Clinical Educators (now the ACAPT Clinical Education Commission)

In support of:

• APTA Centennial Scholar program.
• Education research initiatives include the Grant Writing and Mentorship in Education Research (GAMER), mini-GAMER, and the Medical Education Research Certificate program (AAMC).
• Membership established with the American Council on Education, the NASEM Global Forum on Innovation in Health Professional Education, the Federation of Associations of Schools in the Health Professions, and the Interprofessional Education Collaborative
• Education Leadership Partnership that jointly produced the A Vision for Excellence in Physical Therapy Education

Future ACAPT products and services:

• Clinical Reasoning Toolshed - a searchable site with data and related instruments on all things clinical reasoning.
• Blueprint for Excellence - e-book outlining the core elements of an excellent DPT program.
• Higher Logic platform that allows for higher member engagement and resource sharing
• Several products following the NEDIC Summit, Accessibility Summit, and Institute task forces

I would be remiss if I didn't acknowledge the many people instrumental in the formation of ACAPT. Thank you to Alicia Theile, Barbara Sanders, Beth Marcoux, Dave Sommers, Diane Jette, George Coggeshall, Jan Richardson, Jennifer Collins, Jim Carey, Jim Gordon, Leslie Portney, Mark Reinking, Nancy Reese, Neva Greenwald, Randy Walker, Rick Segal, Robert Sandstrom, Steve Tippet, Stuart Binder-MacLeod, and Tom Mayhew. While 2014 marks the 10-year anniversary of ACAPT's Articles of Incorporation, it also marks the 15th anniversary of ACAPT's creation that took root by these individuals at ELC in 2009. We invite you to visit our history page which includes video testimonials and transcripts from our founders and more.

As we reflect on the past year, I am proud to share our accomplishments and the impact we’ve made together.  I hope you enjoy perusing through this year’s annual report and noting all that has happened with a handful of staff and hundreds of dedicated volunteers.

Looking ahead, I am excited about the opportunities that are before us. We will continue to innovate, collaborate, and make a positive difference in the lives of those we serve. Your commitment and passion are the driving force behind our collective success.