OTA leadership: It's your time to shine

Occupational therapy assistants (OTAs) are skilled practitioners in the occupational therapy profession and play an intricate role in clinical, academic, and emerging areas. OTAs were not recognized as full members of AOTA until 1975 (Jones, 1992), yet today there are many opportunities and privileges to engage and serve in various leadership roles within the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) alongside occupational therapists. The first OTA leadership role with AOTA was noted in 1968, when eight OTAs served on AOTA committees (Carr & Sladyk, 2014). Since then, OTAs have served in various leadership opportunities across the profession, including with AOTA, the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE®), the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy, and state associations. Although some OTAs have sought these opportunities, others report having little knowledge that these opportunities exist, don’t believe they have the skills to be considered, or under-recognize their values and contributions.