Thanks to your support and the careful stewardship through 2020, we were able to increase funding levels in 2021. We awarded $82,500 in PODS I Scholarships, $135,000 in PODS II Scholarships, $15,000 towards our first ever combined fellowship award, and $610,000 in research grants!
On behalf of the FPTR Board of Trustees, it has been an honor to steward the careful investments that FPTR makes in emerging research and researchers.
Through careful spending in 2020, we were able to increase funding for new researchers in 2021. FPTR’s largest investment to date, a ten-year grant funding the Center on Health Services Training and Research (CoHSTAR) continued to yield remarkable results in 2021. We also developed a new strategic plan to further grow the reach of our mission beginning in 2022. The future of the organization remains strong.
I would like to thank you for your continued support over the years. Donors and volunteers like you have helped us continue our critically needed work during the unforeseeable challenges of recent years.
In good health and hope,
Paul Rockar
A 2012 Mary McMillan Lecture presented by Alan Jette, PT, PhD, MPH, FAPTA, Face Into the Storm, was the catalyst for FPTR to make a major investment in health services research.
In 2021, FPTR continued funding CoHSTAR with a $250,000 investment. The grant establishing CoHSTAR was awarded in 2015 and will be funded through 2025.
Just a decade after Jette's initial call for action, CoHSTAR is in full swing and stands as the leading organization in developing researchers specialized in this urgently needed field. The initial investment in CoHSTAR has also led to a $5.5 million grant to create the Learning Health Systems Rehabilitation Research Network.
Funding for CoHSTAR was made possible with a $1 million gift from the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA), gifts from APTA components, and donations from physical therapists, foundations, and corporations. More than 150 donors made the grant possible.
The FPTR Board of Trustees approved a new strategic plan in 2021 to guide the Foundation for Physical Therapy Research beginning in 2022. Goals include increasing the diversity of funding applicants, developing key partnerships to achieve our mission, and continuing post-pandemic recovery and growth.
FPTR named 2021 Service Awardees for their commitment and contributions to the profession. Stanley V. Paris, PT, PhD, FAPTA, HonLLD (Otago), received the 2021 Robert C. Bartlett Trustee Recognition Service Award. The California Physical Therapy Association and the California Physical Therapy Fund (CAL-PT-FUND) received the 2021 Premier Partner in Research Award. Michael J. Mueller, PT, PhD, FAPTA, received the 2021 Charles M. Magistro Distinguished Service Award. Stanley V. Paris, PT, PhD, FAPTA, HonLLD (Otago) and Catherine Patla, PT, DHSc, MS, OCS, MTC, FAAOMPT, FAPTA, received the 2021 Spirit of Philanthropy Award.
Drew Bossen
Don Jackson
Eva Norman
FPTR named three new appointees to the organization’s Board of Trustees in 2021. The appointees — Drew Bossen, PT, MBA; Don Jackson, PT, MS; and Eva Norman, PT, DPT –joined FPTR starting January 2022. Helene M. Fearon, PT, FAPTA; Randy Roesch, PT, DPT, MBA, FAPTA; Sheila Schindler-Ivens, PT, PhD; and Francis Welk, PT, DPT, MED; concluded their service in 2022. FPTR also elected for Stanley Paris, PT, PhD, FAPTA, HonLLD(Otago) to serve a one-year term as a non-voting Honorary Trustee beginning January 1, 2022.
DON JACKSON, PT, MS
Treasurer
"It is an honor for me to steward the Foundation’s investments in the profession as we continue to grow. It’s thanks to the generosity of our donors that we are able to fund the most promising research. For a complete financial statement, follow the link below."
Effective January 1, 2021, FPTR and APTA entered an agreement to solidify a decades-long partnership. Through APTA’s support, FPTR will continue to fund research to advance the physical therapy profession and the people it serves. We award funding using a transparent peer-review process and will remain an independent 501(c)3.
FPTR was founded in 1979 with seed money from APTA members. For more than 40 years, APTA has remained the nonprofit's lead partner in research. APTA has also stepped in to support major FPTR-funded research initiatives such as the Center on Health Services Training and Research (CoHSTAR).
Thank you for your support of research, APTA!
As part of the new partnership agreement, FPTR's office is now located in the APTA headquarters, APTA Centennial Center. This state-of-the-art building aligns with APTA's mission-based pursuit to build community and is designed with health and wellness in mind. The move to APTA's new home is symbolic of the shared collaboration of the two organizations.
Mazzarella, of The Ohio State University, will apply this award to her project titled: “Hippotherapy for Children with Cerebral Palsy: Upper Extremity Activity, Participation, and Engagement.”
Funded by the APTA Scholarship Fund
Funded by the the Mildred Wood Fund
Funded by the APTA Scholarship Fund
Funded through the Florence Kendall Doctoral Scholarship Fund
Recipient of the Florence Kendall Award, funded through the Florence Kendall Doctoral Scholarship Fund
Recipient of the Marquette Challenge Award, funded through the General Research Fund
Made possible by a donation from PhysicalTherapy.com to the General Research Fund
Recipient of the Pediatric PODS Award funded by the Academy of Pediatric Physical Therapy Fund
Recipient of the Charlene Mae Nelson Award, funded through the Charlene Mae Nelson Endowment Fund
Funded by the Academy of Orthopaedic Physical Therapy
Recipient of the Patricia Leahy Award, funded by the Neurology Endowment Fund
Funded through the APTA Supporting the Profession Fund
Recipient of the Scot C. Irwin Award, funded by Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Physical Therapy Endowment Fund
Equally funded by the Charlene Mae Nelson Fund and the Academy of Pelvic Health
Recipient of the Mary Lou Barnes Award, funded by the Neurology Endowment Fund
Recipient of the Mary Lou Barnes Award funded by the Neurology Endowment Fund
Recipient of the Karen St. John Award, funded through the General Research Fund
Recipient of the Phoebe Rhomberger Award, funded by the Phoebe Rhomberger Fund
Equally funded through the Neurology Endowment Fund and the General Research Fund
Recipient of the Phoebe Rhomberger Award, funded by the Phoebe Rhomberger Fund
These fundraisers add up! Since 1989, students have raised more than $4.5 MILLION for research. This year is especially meaningful because of the creativity of the student fundraisers. With social distancing and other safety measures, students held virtual events from craft nights to 5Ks in support of research. We extend our gratitude to the students for their perseverance.
