Billings, Montana — Rocky Mountain College welcomed 28 students into its Occupational Therapy Doctorate (OTD) program this year, the largest incoming class the program has seen in five years and one of the largest classes in its history. The milestone reflects a period of deliberate growth for the program, built on expanded faculty mentorship, a growing research focus, and a new on-site clinical partnership that gives students hands-on clinical experience starting in their first year.
Class of 2029 by the numbers
- 11% identify as Native American
- 7% are active duty military or veterans
- 46% are Montana residents, coming from communities across the state including Thompson Falls, Sidney, Joliet, Helena, Livingston, Bozeman, Missoula, and Billings
- 54% bring an out-of-state perspective, representing Minnesota, North Dakota, Indiana, Kansas, Vermont, Idaho, Virginia, Colorado, Oklahoma, Alaska, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and Texas
People are also reading…
While this class draws from a wider geographic range, many of its Montana, Idaho, and Midwest students still come from the same small, rural communities the program has long been built to serve. “This is one of the strongest classes we’ve brought into the program, both in size and in the range of experience they bring with them,” said Dr. Corwin Sutherin, program director of the OTD program. “Growth like this doesn’t happen by accident. It’s the direct result of the mentorship, research opportunities, and clinical training we’ve built into this program over the last few years.”
Program growth behind the numbers
The program’s expansion is tied to a broader investment in supportive faculty mentorship and early, hands-on clinical training. This summer, Rocky Mountain College welcomed Dr. Paula Kitzenberg, an occupational therapist with years of experience integrating OT students into interdisciplinary clinical settings, to its OTD faculty. Kitzenberg now leads student participation in the Montana Developmental Assessment Clinic (MtDAC), a comprehensive autism evaluation clinic now operating on campus in partnership with the program every Friday.
Through MtDAC, OTD students conduct fine motor skill assessments and sensory evaluations as part of a full interdisciplinary team, then present their findings and recommendations directly to that team, gaining clinical decision-making experience most doctoral OT students don’t encounter until their fieldwork placements.
“Bringing Dr. Kitzenberg on board and building this clinical partnership was about giving students something rare: real clinical stakes from year one, not just case studies,” Sutherin said. “That kind of early experience is part of why more students are choosing this program.”
The program maintains full continuing accreditation through the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE).
As Montana’s first Montana-based Occupational Therapy Doctorate program, Rocky Mountain College continues to expand its role in developing the state’s occupational therapy workforce, combining small cohort mentorship, hands-on fieldwork, and an on-site clinical training model.
