Conclave Article

On Saturday September 30^th over 120 students from 13 different Physical Therapy & Physical Therapy Assistant programs gathered for the 2006 Downstate New York Student Conclave. Students came from as far north as Utica College to downtown Brooklyn and met at Long Island University’s Brooklyn Campus LIU was the site and the student experience was the focus.

Physical Therapy programs from the following institutions were represented at the student conclave: the College of Staten Island, Columbia University, Clarkson University, LaGuardia Community College, Long Island University (LIU), Nassau Community College, New York Institute of Technology, New York University (NYU), Stony Brook University, Suffolk Community College, Touro College, the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ), and Utica College.

The event was headlined by four excellent and varied speakers. The morning started off with the new NYPTA president Jim Dunleavy, PT, MS. He discussed topics including the implications of Direct Access on future PT practice. He continued his presentation by highlighting a variety of topics and how they apply to the students. A student from Touro College commented that “I appreciated that membership to the [American Physical Therapy Association] APTA was not forced upon us, but it truly explained essential benefits of joining. Very thoughtful presentation!”

The next speaker, Christiana Kahl Collins, PT, MA, NCS Assistant Professor at Long Island University and Director or the Long Island University Center for Physical Rehabilitation emphasized the importance of lifelong learning. Her presentation was driven by its title: “An Approach To Clinical Thinking.” Prof. Collins relayed her own experiences in education into a motivational speech for the future of this profession. Students enjoyed her insight and a Clarkson University student even commented that they “could see Prof. Collins as their ideal mentor.”

The conclusion of Prof. Collins’ presentation brought about the beginning of lunch, which included healthy choices, local favorites, and some food for thought. A student panel discussion provided mental nourishment through hot topics and a chance for everyone in attendance to share their recipes for making the most of their student experience. The chance was swallowed up whole via the student panel discussion which was led by the Conclave’s student host Eugene Babenko, student PT from LIU and also featured recent NYU graduate Jeremy Crow, PT, DPT, CSCS, current PT student Marc Suznovich from UMDNJ, and current PTA student Julio Chau from LaGuardia Community College. The student focused discussion covered topics such as extracurricular involvement, clinical experiences, curriculum design, research, and provided an open forum for students to share their thoughts about their chosen profession. There was also a chance for students to meet with board members of the New York Student Special Interest Group (SSIG) and learn how to get involved.

After lunch Janet Bezner, PT, PhD - Senior Vice President for Education at the APTA - brought her high energy presentation to the event. Dr. Bezner used a tool called the “color profile” to allow attendees to better understand themselves and their style of communicating and relating to others. A student from LIU stated “The presenter’s interactive style made for an interesting, lively and engaging session!” Another student from Columbia University simply described it as “Awesome!”

The final presenter had the difficult assignment of engaging students at the end of a long but exciting day. Jody Gandy, PT, PhD - Director of the Department of PT Education at the APTA - was up for the challenge as her presentation on “Getting The Most Out Of Your Clinical Education Experience” was a smashing success. Clinical affiliations are one of the most arduous and stress inducing aspects of the student experience and Dr. Gandy’s informative presentation was able to make everyone who stayed for the presentation feel grateful. Another student from LIU exclaimed “Yes! Subject of high interest and anxiety! Thanks for the information and suggestions!”

This great day was brought to an end with a raffling off of 25 brand new textbooks that were donated by the following very generous publishers: Elsevier, Inc., FA Davis Company, Human Kinetics, McGraw Hill Companies, and Slack, Inc. The entire event was made possible by our hard working volunteers, money raised from the book raffle and generous support from the following sources: The New York Physical Therapy Association (NYPTA), the Brooklyn/Staten Island district of the NYPTA, the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA), Long Island University, and Empi - a leading manufacturer and provider of non-invasive medical products for physical rehabilitation.

As stated in the October 2005 NYPTA Board of Directors meeting minutes, the focus of Student Conclaves is to promote membership, professionalism, networking, and awareness of current and future issues of the profession among physical therapy and physical therapy assistant students. The general consensus is that these objectives were met in 2006 by the Downstate Student Conclave at LIU and the Central NY Student Conclave earlier this year held at Utica College. The future looks bright and the 2007 Student Conclaves is expected to continue these great learning experiences.