LORIE RICHARDS

I began my career by earning a BS in Occupational Therapy from Elizabethtown College. I then worked as a clinical therapist for 3 years before deciding that I did not know enough and returned to school. I completed an MS and PhD in Experimental Psychology from Syracuse University, with an emphasis in cognitive neuropsychology. My first faculty position was at the University of Kansas Medical Center where I was first introduced to clinical research, having the great fortune to participate in a Claude D. Pepper grant emphasizing rehabilitation after stroke, and learning how to teach at the university level. I subsequently joined the faculty at the University of Florida and became a Research Health Scientist with the Malcom Randall VA Medical Center, where I continued to develop my expertise in clinical trials in stroke rehabilitation. I moved to the University of Utah in 2011 to be the Chair of the Division of Occupational Therapy. I am enjoying the challenging nature of being a Chair at a research intensive university that also prides itself on excellence in education.