Eligibility Requirements

• All nominees for the award must teach, or have taught, in an accredited physical therapist assistant education program from which students earn an academic degree, or in a developing physical therapist assistant education program that has established a formal liaison with the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education.

Criteria for Selection

• Commitment to physical therapist assistant education and to their students.
• Commitment to the advancement of physical therapist assistant education through participation in activities occurring at the state and national level.
• Current or past participation in activities that serve to advance, promote, and define physical therapist assistant education.
• Commitment to service and to the profession.

A strong application should demonstrate the following:

A strong commitment to PTA education and to their students.

• Involvement is current and sustained.

Demonstrated commitment to the advancement of PTA education through participation in activities occurring at the state and national levels.

• National level activities.
• State/chapter level activities.
• Local/district level activities.

Current or past participation in activities that serve to advance, promote, and define physical therapist assistant education.

• Quality education activities.
• Creative education activities.
• Promotion of the profession to students.

Demonstrated commitment to service and to the profession.

• National level activities.
• State/chapter level activities.
• Local/district level activities.

Letters of support that are positive, cite specific examples of professional accomplishments, and provide additional information on depth, scope, and quality in a convincing manner.

What Recipients Receive

An award and monetary award of $1,500 will be presented to the recipient by APTA's Board of Directors at an APTA national event, and an official announcement will appear in an association publication.

Submission Requirements

During the online process, the following documents will be required for upload:

• Current curriculum vitae or resume of the nominee.
• A letter of nomination that specifically focuses on the strengths of the nominee in relation to the award criteria, not to exceed three pages. Letters of nomination cannot serve as one of the required letters of support. 
• Two letters of support obtained from the following: a faculty member from the nominee’s institution and a current or former student, not to exceed two pages each. (Note: If more than two letters of support are received, only the first two will be considered. The nominator will be asked to remove additional letters.)

Submit a Nomination

The nominations call for the Honors & Awards Program is open from Sept. 1- Dec. 1. Nominations must be submitted through our online portal by Dec. 1. Late submissions will not be considered. Selected recipients and their nominators will be notified in May.

Additional Resources

For questions regarding the nomination process or the award, please contact honorsandawards@apta.org.