Announcing Recipient of the Annual ERI Award for Creative School Based Therapy

We are thrilled to announce that Chanda Jothen is the recipient of the ERI Creative Therapies Award

She is being recognized as an individual who has made an extraordinary commitment and outstanding contributions to the practice of school-based therapy by enriching the lives of students through creative solutions.

Chanda created Pink Oatmeal to help school therapists with all their ideas and resource needs for promoting physical activity and motor activities at home, therapy, and in the classroom!

Once the pandemic started, she realized there was a great need for therapists to have access to quality videos and activities they could share with their students and their families virtually.  So she created and uploaded even more digital theme activities related to fine, visual and gross motor games. 
She has been an active participant in Facebook groups for OTs and PTs trying to navigate remote therapy, helping individuals navigate the new world of remote therapy and provided a life line to those who were struggling. 

In addition, she heard from lots of therapists who said they needed more customized activities with better visual representation of those activities.  So she enlisted the help of her children and began to grow her video library to help therapists address areas such as core strength, bilateral coordination, balance activities and more.

As one colleague stated “I’m really not sure what I would have done this year without her!” 

Chanda is able to provide relevant and useful tools because she too was school based therapist for many years until she “retired” about 3 years ago to focus on developing more content and spending time with her young family.   

Congratulations Chanda! 

Thank you to all who submitted nominations. We received many compelling applications and it has proven difficult to chose the winners among the many talented and dedicated candidates.

Chanda will be recognized at the 22nd Annual Therapies in the School Conference November 18-19, 2021 – LIVE WEBINAR

Registrations are still be accepted for the popular 2 day conference
LEARN MORE HERE

Don’t Miss Teresa May Benson – Key Note Speaker at the Annual Therapies in the School Conference

ERI is thrilled to welcome Teresa May-Benson to the Therapies in the School Faculty. 

With two opportunities to hear her present:
Key note address: Praxis as a Whole Brain Process: How Neuroscience Informs Function  and 
Dyspraxia: Tools, Treatment & Accommodations

Teresa A. May-Benson, Sc.D., OTR/L, FAOTA, Owner/President of TMB Education and OTR, Inc. and past Executive Director of the SPIRAL Foundation is a well-known lecturer and researcher on sensory integration theory and intervention.

Teresa May-Benson OTR/L, FAOTA, Sc.D.

She has authored numerous book chapters and articles on praxis and sensory integration, and completed her doctoral dissertation on ideational praxis. Dr. May-Benson has a diverse background as a clinical practitioner having worked in private and public school settings as well as private practice. She has been active in conducting research related to sensory integration through the non-profit Spiral Foundation’s Sensory Processing Research Center for over 25 years. She has collaborated with well-known researchers such as Dr. Diane Parham, Dr. Shelly Lane, Dr. Zoe Mailloux, Dr. Sarah Schoen, Dr. Susanne Smith Roley, Dr. Anita Bundy and Dr. Roseann Schaaf through the Sensory Integration Research Collaborative. In her role of educator, she serves as adjunct faculty at Widener University and has been adjunct and part-time faculty at the University of Indianapolis and Tufts University.

She has a special interest in, and extensive experience with autism, particularly older students and adults. Dr. May-Benson received her bachelor’s degree from Ohio State University and her master’s degree from Boston University with a concentration in sensory integration and school system therapy. She was a Maternal and Child Health Fellow in the Doctoral Program in Therapeutic Studies at Boston University. She has received the Virginia Scardinia Award of Excellence from AOTA for her work in ideational praxis. The Alice Bachman Clinician Award from Pediatric Therapy Network and the Catherine Trombley Award from the Massachusetts Association of Occupational Therapists for her work as a research, clinician and instructor. She is a fellow of the American Occupational Therapy Association.

Praxis as a Whole Brain Process: How Neuroscience Informs Function
Linking the neurobiology of praxis to functional performance. This presentation will facilitate participant’s understanding of the neurological underpinnings of behaviors and skills related to praxis and how those functions and dysfunctions impact on performance of everyday life.

Dyspraxia: Tools, Treatment & Accommodations
Praxis challenges are often overlooked or misunderstood in school-based practice. This session will
provide participants with assessment tools, intervention techniques and classroom accommodations that may be used in a school setting to address praxis-related challenges. The various components of praxis will be discussed along with the relationship of praxis to sensory processing and behavior.

Find out more information here:

Therapies in the School Conference 2021
November 18-19, 2021

Create your own track with 5 afternoon sessions to choose from on each day. 

Download the Brochure Here: Therapies 2021 Brochure

Opportunities to Network and Connect with Other School Therapists

While we may not be meeting in person for our Therapies Conference, ERI is offering new ways to connect, share and learn from each other about the challenges and solutions of returning to school this year. 

In addition to learning from experts in the field about strategies and techniques you can implement in the classroom, ERI is also providing a platform to enable attendees to connect using virtual meet ups based on your interests, social groups tailored to your needs and discussion threads on the topics that matter most to school based therapists. 

We understand the post pandemic struggles and frustrations you are facing this school year and we hope that by sharing both your challenges and successes about what has and has not been working for you in the classroom, you will provide help and support to each other.

Join us!

Learn more here: THEARAPIES IN THE SCHOOL 2021

November 18-19 2021
Earn 12 continuing education hours 1.2 CEUs

Choose your own track from 5 dynamic session each afternoon

ERI Introduces NEW Faculty and a NEW Course Offering to our Community of Therapists!  

Bethanne Mazurczak MS, CCC-SLP, C/NDT and Leslie Paparsenos PT, MS, C/NDT have joined the list of esteemed ERI faculty and bring to you a NEW course offering: ASD: Improving Motor and Speech/Language Outcomes for Function

Bethanne Mazurczak, CCC-SLP, C/NDT has been a practicing clinician since 1990, specializing in the pediatric rehabilitation of infants, children and adolescents. Bethanne has a wide range of experience in working with children of all ages with neurological and developmental disabilities. She is certified in Neuro-Developmental Treatment, SOS Feeding and is currently completing the process as an NDT Candidate Instructor for the NDTA. Bethanne continues to serve the pediatric population with oral- motor/feeding and swallowing as well as communication disorders through her practice as a Speech Pathologist and is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders at the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee. She has presented at the local, national and international level on various topics. 

Leslie Paparsenos, PT, MS, C/NDT is an independent, pediatric therapy provider, licensed Physiotherapist in Australia, and licensed Physical Therapist in the US. She specializes in evidenced based, pediatric rehabilitation, serving babies, children and adolescents across a spectrum of neurological and developmental disabilities, and their families. Leslie is a certified Pediatric NDTATM (USA) Instructor, certified in NeuroDevelopmental Treatment (NDTATM (USA), and a certified clinical instructor by the APTA (USA). She has been teaching both internationally and nationally since 2007. Leslie is committed both to supporting therapists in their clinical development and assisting families and children in their journey to independence.

Marzurczak and Paparsenos join ERI this December to offer a NEW, informative live webinar:
ASD: Improving Motor and Speech/Language Outcomes for Function
December 6, 8 and 13, 2021 
5:40 pm EST • 4:40 pm CST • 3:40 pm MST • 2:40 pm PST (US) 

Learn multidisciplinary and discipline specific assessment and treatment strategies based on the NeuroDevelopmental Treatment – Contemporary Practice Model (NDT-CPM) for children with ASD.

This Intermediate Level webinar will utilize lecture, facilitation, video case studies, demonstrations and self-practice. The intended audience is for OTs, OTAs, PTs, PTAs, SLPs and SLPAs; all practice areas, applies for children of all ages (EI, school, outpatient), and of all levels of ASD (mild to severe).

Please visit the course page for complete CEU details, to download a brochure and to register.

Education Resources, Inc. to Offer “Vestibular Rehabilitation: Evaluation and Management of Individuals with Dizziness and Balance Disorders” as an Online, On-Demand CEU Course

Therapists can learn at their convenience from the vestibular rehab expert Dr. Richard Clendaniel

BOSTON – November 2, 2021 – Education Resources, Inc. (ERI), a leading provider of continuing education for physical therapists, occupational therapists and speech-language pathologists is pleased to offer the highly popular seminar Vestibular Rehabilitation: Evaluation and Management of Individuals with Dizziness and Balance Disorders as a pre-recorded, on-demand continuing education course. The online, self-guided option is ideal for therapists to conveniently learn the latest evidence-based vestibular techniques and treatments from expert practitioner and instructor Dr. Richard Clendaniel, who was recently named a Catherine Worthingham Fellow by the American Physical Therapy Association.

The course focuses on assessment and treatment of patients with vertigo and disequilibrium from vestibular causes including unilateral and bilateral vestibular hypofunction, benign paroxysmal positioning vertigo, central vestibular disorders, and multisensory dizziness. 

With vestibular dysfunction affecting 35% of adults aged 40 and over in the United States, or approximately 60 million individuals, therapists will find the information covered in the course is highly relevant and applicable to a large patient population. Topics covered in the course explore not only geriatric patients, but how to effectively treat individuals with CNS lesions such as multiple sclerosis, CVA, and head injury.

“Offering Dr. Clendaniel’s popular vestibular course as an online option enables therapists to gain comprehensive vestibular training at their convenience,” said Carol Loria, President of Education resources, Inc. “Whether you’re a therapist new to the topic or a seasoned professional who has explored vestibular rehabilitation in the past, this course offers recent insights to effectively treat patients so that they can enjoy a healthier life.”

Vestibular Rehabilitation: Evaluation and Management of Individuals with Dizziness and Balance Disorders is offered for 11 contact hours. . Participants have access to the course material including videos and handouts for one year from the date of registration.  The registration fee is $299 and now accessible via Education Resources, Inc.’s website For more information, contact ERI customer service at info@educationresourcesinc.com, or 800-487-6530.

About Education Resources, Inc.
Education Resources, Inc. (ERI) is an accredited provider of continuing education that helps PTs, OTs, and SLPs transform the lives of their patients. Visit www.educationresourcesinc.com.