That’s A Wrap! – Mentorship Pilot Cohort Retrospective
By Alyssa DeCarlo, MS, OTR/L, MSCS, CSRS, LSVT
One of the greatest aspects of attending OOTA’s conference is seeing the natural unfolding of relationship building, networking, and camaraderie; which is not surprising given the propensity for OTP’s to stoke the flames of success in one another. With 2026 being the inaugural year for a formalized mentorship program, we were able to see the effects of this first hand.
You asked, we listened regarding the need for more opportunities to support mentorship; whether that was to provide support transitioning to a different setting, provide assistance as the only OTP in a school district, or to bounce ideas off of for challenging cases. The initial interest was overwhelming with >50 OOTA members expressing interest in becoming a mentor or mentee. With support both inside and outside of OOTA’s organization to aid in matching pairings as best as possible, 25 pairings started their journey after an orientation in late March-early April of 2026, finishing right before conference this October.
As a pilot program, this initial cohort was afforded no limitations in how to best maintain collaboration and connection within their pairings. It was a “create your own journey;” pick your meeting time, frequency, topic, etc. Intermittent communication was provided through OOTA staff to check-in on the pairings and provide any support needed throughout the process.
With a 6 month long commitment, and as with all “firsts” we saw a variety of responsiveness amongst the pairings; some relationships shined bright and others that fizzled out due to the growing responsibilities of being an OTP in today’s healthcare world. Ultimately, 10 pairings were able to successfully complete the program and had some amazing feedback to share!
“The OOTA Mentorship Program has easily been the best experience I have had as a third year OTD student. My mentor is such a wealth of knowledge and is very passionate about helping set me up for success..."
One mentee noted: “The OOTA Mentorship Program has easily been the best experience I have had as a third year OTD student. My mentor is such a wealth of knowledge and is very passionate about helping set me up for success in a career in inpatient pediatrics. She invited me to spend time with her at work, and I could finally see (and eventually fall in love with!) the setting and the OT process with inpatient peds. During my Level II Fieldwork in Outpatient Peds, I was able to meet and text her often when I needed help brainstorming ideas for some of my more complex kids. Our conversations transitioned more towards NBCOT preparation and considerations for applying for my first job! This experience has truly pushed me to the next level in terms of clinical and professional development, and I’m awe inspired by everything I’ll be able to do once I pass my boards and officially become a peds OT! I also know that I’ll always have a mentor and friend who I can turn to for anything!” A mentor supplied, “while I do not work in the same setting as my mentee, I realized that I know more than I thought I did and can mentor anyone, regardless of setting, because we all work in similar ways.”
Throughout this initial cohort, many glows and grows were identified to help ensure the ongoing success of the mentorship program. Firstly, the mentorship committee is now being folded under the umbrella of the Career Development Special Interest Section where a smaller sub-committee committed to all things mentorship is being developed. Secondly, we will looking to achieve the following goals for the next cohort: development of setting specific tool-kits and resources to provide throughout the 6 month period to foster communication and skill development, development of a more targeted rubric for aligning pairings, and collaboration with other SIS’s within OOTA and other mentorship programs of other state organizations with historically established programs to support ongoing success. Finally, we are looking to utilize the successes of our initial pairings to provide feedback that can afford the same opportunity in future pairings.
The future is bright because of you, and we hope you are interested in either learning more as a future mentee or providing support to those seeking it as a future mentor! If you are interested in being a part of the Mentorship Committee, please feel free to indicate your interest here. Help us shape the future of OTP’s in Ohio!
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