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Why an ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ DPT: A History of Professional Excellence

Mission Statement

ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ’s Doctor of Physical Therapy program prepares innovative, ethical, and relationship-driven clinicians through a curriculum emphasizing clinical reasoning, inclusive excellence, intercultural responsiveness, engaged and experiential learning, and collaborative leadership. In partnership with Cone Health – Alamance Regional Medical Center, the program advances equitable health outcomes, delivers evidence-informed and value-based care, fosters wellness, and collaborates with diverse communities and interprofessional teams, promoting leadership within evolving local and global healthcare systems.

Program History

ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ’s Department of Physical Therapy Education was created in 1996, in partnership with Cone Health – Alamance Regional Medical Center. When ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ enrolled its first physical therapy class in 1998, the university offered a master’s degree. The ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ MPT program received accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education two years later. The report included a rare commendation stating “the curricular plan is unusually well developed and graduates are singularly equipped to join the physical therapy profession.”

As physical therapists began to take on more substantial roles in the direct care of patients, the profession recommended transition into doctoral-level education. In 2003, ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ debuted an innovative DPT program integrating dynamic classroom instruction with an impressive number of hands-on clinical opportunities. In 2012, the program moved to the newly renovated Gerald L. Francis Center, custom-designed for ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ’s School of Health Sciences.

Partnership with Cone Health – Alamance Regional Medical Center

The department fosters the continuing professional growth of the physical therapy faculty as a part of a community of learners in partnership with their professional colleagues at ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ, at Cone Health – Alamance Regional and in the wider community. The partnership with Cone Health – Alamance Regional provides opportunities for faculty and students to have access to patient models for learning as well as the enhancement of clinical and research opportunities. For the physical therapy faculty, the department promotes involvement and strong participation on campus committees, in campus governance and in campus activities; and promotes appropriate areas of cooperation between the physical therapy program and ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ’s other academic programs.