Lone Star College-Montgomery’s Student Physical Therapist Assistant Association (SPTAA) members recently came in first place in the academic student bowl at the 2014 Texas Physical Therapy Association (TPTA) Annual Conference in Galveston, Texas. |
Assistant Association (SPTAA) members recently bowled a clean game and scored first place in the academic student bowl at the 2014 Texas Physical Therapy Association (TPTA) Annual Conference in Galveston, Texas.
The SPTAA team, led by Nanette Meyer, clinical coordinator and physical therapist assistant (PTA) professor at LSC-Montgomery, and Renee Pruitt, PTA program director, has four goals. The first goal is to promote the development of leadership in students; the second is to encourage interaction between the PTA program and the college; the third is to increase awareness of physical therapy services in the south Montgomery county area; and the final is to provide a PTA-specific scholarship fundraising mechanism for students.
“As part of their leadership development, we encourage attendance at the annual TPTA conference and student conclave,” said Meyer. “More than 24 students attended the service project, and 42 out of the 54 students attended something at the conference.”
The TPTA conference is an annual three-day event that focuses on the profession of physical therapy and offers educational programming, networking opportunities, and product and service exhibits to student physical therapists and physical therapist assistants across the state.
The conference begins with a ‘PT cares’ service learning opportunity and this year students were able to participate in painting a historic home in the Galveston area. They were also able to attend instructional courses such as “Exercise Interventions for Patients with Multiple Sclerosis,” “Hip Dysfunction in the Running Athlete,” “The Role of Social Media in Physical Therapy,” and “Pelvic Floor Dysfunction in an Athletic Population.” They are also able to participate in networking events like the TEAM TPTA pre-sunrise walk, and contests such as the PTA academic student bowl.
The academic student bowl allows students to compete on physical therapy knowledge. Rules stress that students must first submit 20 questions prior to the event. Participants at the event are placed in teams of four students, with a maximum of three teams. The teams are then given a chance to answer the previously submitted questions, and the team with the most correct answers wins.
“Our team only missed 1 question in the final round and earned the top spot among 16 schools,” said Dr. Renee Pruitt, PTA program director at LSC-Montgomery. “This only gave them bragging rights and the ability to show how great they are academically, but we are very happy for them.”
Pruitt indicates that about 75 percent of the PTAs practicing in our area graduated from LSC-Montgomery and, in 2013, graduates who became licensed earned 7.3 percent more than the average graduate with a bachelor’s degree. PTAs provide assistance to patients by implementing the plan of a physical therapist and can work in hospitals, outpatient facilities, rehabilitation facilities, home health settings, schools, fitness centers and sports medicine clinics.
For more information about the fire-semester PTA program at LSC-Montgomery, visit www.LoneStar.edu/physical-therapist-assistant-dept-montgomery.
LSC-Montgomery is located at 3200 College Park Drive, one-half mile west of Interstate 45, between Conroe and The Woodlands. For more information about the college, call (936) 273-7000, or visit www.LoneStar.edu/montgomery.
Lone Star College System has been opening doors to a better community for more than 40 years. Founded in 1973, LSCS remains steadfast in its commitment to student success and credential completion. Today, with 78,000 students in credit classes, and a total enrollment of more than 90,000, Lone Star College System is the largest institution of higher education in the Houston area and one of the fastest-growing community college systems in the nation. Dr. Steve Head is the chancellor of LSCS, which consists of six colleges including LSC-CyFair, LSC-Kingwood, LSC-Montgomery, LSC-North Harris, LSC-Tomball and LSC-University Park, seven centers, LSC-University Center at Montgomery, LSC-University Center at University Park, Lone Star Corporate College, and LSC-Online. To learn more visit LoneStar.edu.