College of Health & Human Services - School of Occupational Therapy

Students receive instruction from full-time occupational therapy faculty, adjunct, and guest faculty and clinical supervisors who are practitioners in the community. All full-time faculty in the School of Occupational Therapy are on-site and directly accessible to the students. All adjunct faculty provide classroom instruction on-site in the School of Occupational Therapy classroom spaces. Clinical supervision is provided by occupational therapy practitioners who have been specifically-trained to be clinical supervisors and to follow the curriculum standards and goals to thereby ensure clinical excellence.

Full-time Faculty in the School of Occupational Therapy

Karen Picus, EdD, OTR/L, is the Founding Program Director and also serves in the faculty capacity as Associate Professor. Her clinical expertise is in adult/geriatric clinical care including home modification, community based service provision, business ownership, management, supervision, and education. Dr. Picus served as Academic Fieldwork Coordinator with Concordia University Wisconsin prior to relocating to the Las Vegas area in 2003. Her doctorate is in Leadership for the Advancement of Learning and Service from Cardinal Stritch University in Milwaukee, WI. Contact her at: 702-777-1811; email: karen.picus@tun.touro.edu.

Yvonne Randall, EdD, OTR/L, is the Academic Clinical Coordinator and in that role arranges and monitors all student fieldwork placement experiences. Dr. Randall has extensive clinical expertise in childhood development, early intervention, with previous experience in inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation and acute care occupational therapy provision. She has resided in the Las Vegas area for more than a decade and has served in numerous leadership capacities in the Nevada Occupational Therapy Association and the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA). She is currently the Nominations Chairperson for the Representative Assembly of the American Occupational Therapy Association. Contact her at: 702-777-1783; email: yvonne.randall@tun.touro.edu

Tana Brown, PhD, OTR/L, joined the faculty of Touro University Nevada School of Occupational Therapy in 2007 from the University of Kansas. Dr. Brown is an author and co-author of multiple publications, chapters in texts and she is currently finishing a co-authored text which will be used in psychosocial coursework. Her involvements in mental health clinical practice and research in multiple clinical areas adds to the depth of scholarly experience of the Occupational Therapy faculty. Dr. Brown is the primary investigator for an extensive multi-location research project involving individuals in the mental health arena surrounding issues of weight management while taking medications that promote weight gain. Contact her at: 702-777-4750; email: catana.brown@tun.touro.edu

Julie Honan, MS, OTR/L, joined the faculty of the School of Occupational Therapy in March 2006. Julie's clinical expertise is adult physical and neurological disability and her clinical practice includes the working age adult as well as the older adult and the occupational performance needs of those populations. Contact her at: 702-777-4762; email: julie.honan@tun.touro.edu

Cynthia Lau, PhD, OTR/L, has taught in the School of Occupational Therapy curriculum since it’s beginning in 2005. Dr. Lau has agreed to assume a regular part-time faculty position in 2007 and shares her expertise in child-based assessment and treatment to a broader array of child-based courses in the 2nd session of the curriculum. Dr. Lau is currently pursuing board certification through the American Occupational Therapy Association in pediatrics. Contact her at: 702-777-4780; email: cynthia.lau@tun.touro.edu

Robyn Otty, MEd, OTR/L, joined the faculty of the Touro University Nevada School of Occupational Therapy in 2007. Her background is varied and offers wide array of clinical experiences including school system occupational therapy service provision and administrative leadership, and adult/older adult clinical practice in home health settings. Contact her at: 702-777-4793; email: robyn.otty@tun.touro.edu

Additional Faculty in the School of Occupational Therapy

Dr. William Roy, PhD, PT, Basic Sciences, Touro University Nevada

Dr. Mike Wells, PhD, Neurosciences Faculty, Basic Sciences, Touro University Nevada

Dr. David Skyba, Neurosciences Faculty, Basic Sciences, Touro University Nevada

Yoel Levy, MS, Basic Sciences, Touro University Nevada

Clinical Supervisors

The School of Occupational Therapy is proud of its large number of community clinicians who participate in clinical education of Touro students. The School wishes to continually develop additional qualified clinical educators and seeks facility clinical supervisors who are willing to share their expertise with students. An ongoing Clinical Educators Series is conducted at the School of Occupational Therapy with Dr. Yvonne Randall. The goal is to provide clinical affiliation sites that embody the mission and goals of our program: occupational performance, evidence based practice, leadership, and social justice.

If you are a practicing occupational therapist with at least one year of clinical experience and are interested in becoming a clinical supervisor, please contact Dr. Randall at 702-777-1783 or via email at yvonne.randall@tun.touro.edu.