Faculty Profiles
Full-Time Faculty
Ruth Ramsey
OT Program Director and Department Chair
Associate Professor, Occupational Therapy
BA San Francisco State University; MA University of California, Los Angeles; MS San Jose State University, Ed.D. University of San Francisco
Dr. Ramsey has been an occupational therapist since 1985 and is the founding director of the occupational therapy program. Since its’ inception in 1996, she has led the program to two national accreditations and a transition to graduate degree-granting status. Prior to coming to Dominican, she taught at San Jose State University as an adjunct faculty member and practiced clinically in the area of mental health with adults, adolescents and seniors. Currently, she teaches research, program development, and education courses in the program, serves as a thesis advisor, and provides academic advising for new majors. Her research interests are promoting healthy aging, community-based practice in occupational therapy, and innovative approaches to health professions education. Dr. Ramsey is active in state and national professional associations and present regularly at conferences. She is a past member of the Commission on Practice of the American Occupational Therapy Association, and a co-founder the Psychiatric Occupational Therapy Action Coalition.
E-mail Ruth Ramsey
Suzanne Degen
Academic Fieldwork Coordinator, Occupational Therapy
BSOT, San Jose State University
Suzanne is a native Californian, born and raised in San Francisco. She is a graduate of the San Jose State University Occupational Therapy Program and has worked in psychiatric, inpatient and outpatient settings, and vocational workshops. Before coming to Dominican University of California, her recent clinical experience was in Home Health. Ms. Degen is the Secretary of the Board of Directors for Marin Brain Injury Network and is on the steering committee of the open space committee, SPAR, in Marin County. She loves the outdoors and is an avid skier, windersurfer, mountain biker, golfer, gardener, and traveller.
E-mail Suzanne Degen
Stacy Frauwirth, MS, OTR/L
Assistant Professor, Occupational Therapy
BS, Tufts University
MS, Boston University
Stacy has more than 14 years of clinical and administrative experience in pediatrics, with expertise in early intervention, NICU, and sensory integration. She has been involved in a number of innovative, grant-supported programs, including the development of a model for providing therapeutic support services in an Early Head Start program and participating in the establishment of the Compassionate Touch program in a local NICU. She is certified to administer the Sensory Integration and Praxis Tests and the Neonatal Oral-Motor Assessment Scale and is trained in Therapeutic Listening. Her ongoing professional interests include the infusion of child rights discourses into occupational therapy practice and developing models for promoting children's wellness and occupational participation within public school systems.
Stacy is currently completing studies in the PhD program in Occupational Science at the University of Southern California. Her research interests include the development of play and play styles and the use of complexity science models to understand occupation and as an organizing framework for Occupational Science. She presents frequently on sensory integration and development to family groups, foster care training programs, and early childhood mental health program staff. Stacy has served on the board of the Association of Pediatric Therapists and is currently the newsletter editor for the organization.
Stacy currently teaches Occupations of Children and Adolescents I and II, Foundations of OT, and Research in the Health Professions, courses in the OT program.
Karen Pitbladdo
Assistant Professor, Occupational Therapy
BSOT SUNY at Buffalo; MS University of Rochester (NY)
Karen brings over 20 years of clinical experience to Dominican University of California. Her varied clinical experiences include acute and outpatient rehabilitation at Stanford Hospital (CA); and Brigham and Women's Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital (Boston). Ms. Pitbladdo has also helped develop a work re-entry program at Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester (NY). She has been a certified Hand Therapist for nearly 10 years, and is on staff at Kentfield Rehabilitation Hospital. Karen has authored a chapter titled: "Hip Fractures and Total Hip Replacement: in L.W. Pedretti ed. Occupational Therapy: Practice Skills for Physical Dysfuction. Ms. Pitbladdo teaches Human Movement Analysis, OT Management, and Introduction to OT.
Janis Davis
Associate Professor, Occupational Therapy
BSOT, University of Kansas; MA in Counseling, University of Missouri; PhD, University of Kansas
The occupational therapy department at Dominican University of California welcomes Dr. Janis Davis to the faculty as a full-time associate professor, starting in the fall 2008. Prior to coming to Dominican, Dr. Davis taught for 14 years at Rockhurst University in Kansas City, Missouri. Dr. Davis received her PhD degree from University of Kansas, and has been involved in many research initiatives, including therapeutic listening, workshops on learning and the brain, and a grant-funded community partnership program for persons recovering from stroke. Dr. Davis will be teaching courses in the psychosocial aspects of occupational therapy, professional development, and foundations of occupation as well as advising master’s thesis students.
Part-Time Faculty
Bonnie Napier-Tibere
Associate Professor, Occupational Therapy
BA Humboldt State University; BSOT University of Puget Sound; MRA University of San Francisco;
EdD Pepperdine University
Dr. Napier-Tibere has practiced as a licensed clinician in Washington, Oregon, and California with expertise in brain injury, spinal cord injury, and orthopedics. She has published articles in Home Care Provider and Gerontology, and Geriatrics Education. Bonnie is the author of The Occupational Therapy Fieldwork Survival Guide (FA Davis). She has written, constructed and currently maintains a wbsite on diversity issues in healthcare (Click here to go to her website). This project is funded by On-Lok SeniorHealth, Inc., and Stanford University School of Medicine's Geriatric Education Center where she is also an affiliated faculty. Dr. Napier-Tibere has over 20 years of clinical and educational experience as a clinician and in teaching. Her special interests include cultural perspectives of health and illness; biofeedback; and technology applications in rehabilitation.
E-mail Bonnie Napier-Tibere
Alison Chaplin
Academic Fieldwork Associate, Occupational Therapy
BSOT, Dominican University of California
Alison Chaplin, who graduated in the first DUC occupational therapy graduating class of 2000, has returned as our new academic fieldwork associate. In this position, she assists the academic fieldwork coordinator, Suzanne Degen, in developing new fieldwork sites and placing students in those sites. In the fall 2008 semester, she is teaching the labs for “Foundations of Occupational Therapy”, and assisting Karen Pitbladdo in the labs for “Occupations of Adults and Seniors I”. Ms. Chaplin previously worked at Kentfield Rehabilitation Center and the Hand and Physical Therapy Center of Marin, and is completing her Master of Science degree in education here at Dominican University.
