By Abby Rathburn | Staff Writer
Bonding with peers and faculty, occupational therapy students met for a tailgate Wednesday afternoon at the SLC. The tailgate offered students a chance to get to know one another and celebrate their recent white coat ceremony.
With students from all over, connecting with classmates in a hybrid program like OTD is difficult. Jake Gililland, the program manager of clinical education, said the day was a way to break that barrier and celebrate students’ success.
“I’m doing icebreaker stuff with them, and we brought them here to play games and just hang out,” Gililland said.
According to the Baylor University website, Baylor’s occupational therapy program is ranked No. 1 for two-year doctorate programs in the nation by U.S. News and World Report. The occupational therapy department equips students for their future profession through a 24-month intensive hybrid curriculum, enabling them to graduate a year earlier than traditional programs.
“Students come to Waco for lab a few times a year, and the rest is online, so that’s the hybrid part, “ Gililland said. “It’s accelerated, so they get out in two years with their doctorate.”
Established in 2018, the program has attracted students, including Garden Grove, Calif., doctoral candidate Cordelia Loyo.
“I heard about it from a friend I was shadowing at a clinic who went to Baylor undergrad and then decided to come to Baylor OTD, and I just thought it was really interesting,” Loyo said.
In accordance with Baylor’s Christ-centered mission, Loyo said the program was a perfect fit for her because it brought Christian virtues into the classroom.
“I also just really liked the program because it was Christian, very religious, so it was just a really good match,” Loyo said.
Because it is a hybrid program, students only set foot on campus a few times a year. Gililland said the event was a great opportunity to show students more of the campus.
“Since they’re not on campus a lot, they don’t get to experience the SLC a lot, so it’s kinda cool to bring them to another spot on campus,” Gililland said.
The inaugural tailgate was introduced to replace a portion of the January orientation, which was canceled due to inclement weather.
“We had to cancel because we have students from all over the U.S.,” Gililland said. “They couldn’t fly here or drive even when they got to Waco.”
