VOTA Committees

Continuing Education Committee

Chair: Heidi Hull

The CE Committee Chair is appointed by the VOTA President.  This position is designed to develop and review continuing education opportunities to support the needs and professional growth of VOTA members which may include scheduling supplemental conferences/workshops, preconference events, and/or concurrent conference offerings.  The CE Chair is automatically a member of the Annual Conference Committee and supports the School System Symposium.

The CE Committee reviews Continuing Education submissions by VOTA members at no charge, and submissions by outside agencies for a fee.  The review process takes approximately one or more hours per submission and includes reviewing speaker qualifications, relationship/relevance to the profession of occupational therapy, course content, and whether references include current information and evidence based practice.  The CE Chair sends an approval email with any additional recommendations to the submitting individual or agencies and reviews monthly budget statements pertaining to CE fees collected from the management company.  Other responsibilities include attending four scheduled board meetings per year, submitting a quarterly board report, and making recommendations to support the annual budget.

Legislative Committee 

Chair: Joni Watling

The legislative committee is dedicated to exploring areas of opportunity for promotion of OT practice in the state of Virginia through advocacy and legislative efforts. Committee members are asked to explore potential areas for growth and lay the foundation for advocacy efforts. When proposed legislation is active, the committee supports the bill through contacting representatives and encouraging other practitioners to do the same. 

The scope of practice ad hoc committee is a committee to explore proposing changes to the Virginia scope of practice in 2024. Meetings are current in session and held the 2nd Sunday of the month.

Fundraising Committee

Chair: Andrea Adkins

The VOTA fundraising committee is dedicated to creating and implementing fundraising plans that support student scholarships and other targeted areas of need for the association. One major activity is the coordination and sale of promotional items at the annual fall conference! Raffle items and silent/live auction donations are also coordinated by this committee.

Scholarship, Awards, and Nominations Committee

Chair:  Shivani B. Vij

Do you like to be the bearer of Great News? Would you like to give money away to very deserving OT students? Then the VOTA Scholarship, Awards, and Nominations Committee is for you! The primary function of the scholarship, Awards, and Nominations Committee is to recognize exceptional OTs who demonstrate leadership in the field and in state and national association involvement. We also recognize upcoming OTs who demonstrate leadership potential and commitment to the profession through scholarship, school leadership, community involvement and exceptional academic performance.

The Review Committee is really an ad-hoc committee formed with the sole purpose of reviewing student scholarship applications and professional award nominations. We meet ‘on line’ through email communications once yearly. The Chairperson assembles scholarship applications and award nominations and distributes to the committee for review. The review committee, made up of 5-6 fellow clinicians, score each application and nomination based on a standard scale. Committee responsibilities generally take less than 6 hours a year with the primary work for committee members occurring in May-July when scholarships are decided. The chairperson has organizational responsibilities throughout the year that generally take less than 4-5 hours a month to complete.

The VOTA Scholarship, Awards, and Nominations Committee is a rewarding position. We have the opportunity to meet and work with other OTs throughout the state as well as the opportunity to practice leadership skills in an encouraging and friendly environment. Let the student essays and award nominations energize your commitment to Occupational Therapy and VOTA.

By-Laws and Ethics Committee

Chair: Vivian Swingle

This committee reviews and revises the By-Laws as needed and solicits recommendations for By-Laws changes from the membership.  The committee informs, educates and advises VOTA members on the functions of professional ethics, the core values of OT practice, and other professional concerns/issues.  Another essential duty is to inform the Board of unethical or illegal conduct by a VOTA member. The members of this committee are appointed for three year terms of office and provide quarterly board reports for meetings, or as requested.

Communications Committee

Chair: Chelsey Hall Henderson

The Communications Committee oversees the content of the website and social media. The committee chair and members solicit articles and submissions from the VOTA membership and publicize VOTA activities and occupational therapy to the members of the profession and to the general public.

Membership Committee

Chair: Jane Hampson

The membership chairperson is responsible for recruiting new members, maintaining current members and helping to promote and educate VOTA to the community.  The committee works closely with our business manager updating our membership letter each year, deciding when to purchase the BOM therapist lists, and implementing creative and useful incentives for membership and when to send reminders about membership renewal.

If you are interested in serving on any of these committees, please contact the VOTA office at office@vaota.org.