More than 200 University alumni, students and employees, along with alumni families and community members, attended the inaugural Alumni Reunion and Family Weekend, held September 15–17 on the St. Augustine, FL campus.
Activities included a family barbecue, continuing education sessions, campus tours, a campus fair and community impact activity, alumni/employee reception and an in-person Alumni Association Advisory Board meeting, plus free time to enjoy the St. Augustine area.
Says Director, Alumni Engagement Polly Crabtree, “We’re thrilled to have brought together the USAHS community and the wider community for this event on our first USAHS campus. It was an ideal opportunity for us all to connect, learn, have an enjoyable time and recognize the impact of the work USAHS and our graduates are doing.”
The event kicked off Friday evening with a festive barbecue celebration featuring games for the whole family, followed by a morning of learning with continuing professional education sessions on topics such as leadership, communication and innovation.
Student, alumni, community and clinical partner groups exhibited during the Campus Fair, sharing information regarding the healthcare professions supported by the University. During the Campus Fair, volunteers created 100 hygiene kits to distribute to a local clinic and an area youth shelter. Crabtee says the sensory experience activity held during the fair was one of the highlights. University occupational therapy Flex students and faculty led a craft project activity designed for sensory input for 27 children from St. Augustine Youth Services.
Alumni Association Advisory Board member and officer Rebekah Jarrar, OTD, MA, MDT, OTR/L (MOT ’17, OTD ’23) says participating in the inaugural reunion was fun and rewarding. “Connecting with other graduates of USAHS was a definite highlight for the Advocacy Committee. Local community partners, including adolescents from the St. Augustine Youth Services, came to our campus to learn about different areas of practice, have fun with a sensory fair, and meet with both students and alumni. The OT students developed interventions for the kids to help them with emotional regulation, social and play skills,” she says. “Planning outreach efforts that our alumni and their families can participate in and then seeing our students, faculty and alumni work together to impact the local community is the definition of grassroots advocacy in action. We are already looking forward to highlighting advocacy opportunities at our next alumni reunion.”
Also on Saturday, alumni and faculty participants completed continuing professional education courses and attended a lunch where information about the University was shared with an interactive contest. Saturday evening approximately 60 alumni, faculty and staff mingled and networked during a reception that included appetizers, beverages and entertainment.
“The weather was perfect! Alumni in attendance shared that the weekend far exceeded their expectations, and they cannot wait for the next annual reunion event, which will be held on our San Marcos, CA campus September 27-28 this fall,” exclaims Crabtree. “A big thank you to our event sponsors for the 2023 weekend—PT Solutions, Upstream Rehab/Benchmark Physical Therapy and PRN—Physical Rehabilitation Network.”
