About Us

Mission, Vision, and Core Values

 

Educating leaders in physical therapy is the MISSION of the Department of Physical Therapy.

Our VISION is moving individuals and communities toward optimal health.

All of our actions and interactions are guided by the following CORE VALUES:

Altruism, Respect, Integrity, Service, and Excellence (ARISE).

 

Students in lab coats and gloves at anatomy table

DPT Students in Gross Anatomy Lab

The UCA Physical Therapy program is the largest in the state and recognized nationally with over 2,700 alumni.  Currently, UCA has a total enrollment of approximately 10,000 students.  UCA PT is the only program in the state to offer both the DPT and PhD in Physical Therapy degrees, each established in 2000. The first DPT class graduated in August of 2003.  UCA also offers an accredited Pediatric Physical Therapy Residency program established in 2009.  The DPT degree has a class size of 60 students admitted each August for the 36-month program.  As of Spring 2025, the Physical Therapy Faculty comprises 15 full-time members among whom 11 hold a PhD and 8 are board certified clinical specialists in a variety of areas including pediatrics (3), neurologic physical therapy (2), orthopedics (2), and wound care. Eight faculty members in the Department hold tenure.  Clinical partners number approximately 397.  Mr. Joe Finnell founded the PT program and served as the first Chairperson from 1969 to 1979.  He was followed by Patricia Grantham from 1979 to 1980. Dr. Venita Lovelace-Chandler chaired the program for 23 years beginning in 1980 followed by Dr. Nancy Berryman Reese who chaired the program from 2003 to 2020.  The Department of Physical Therapy is chaired today by Dr.  Kevin Garrison, PT, PhD, and Associate Professor of Physical Therapy.  The PT Department is housed in the College of Health and Behavioral Sciences under the leadership of Dr. Nancy Berryman Reese, PhD, who serves as the Dean.

History

group pic of students in lab coats

Physical Therapy Class of 1972

The UCA Physical Therapy Program is the oldest in the state established in 1969 it fulfilled an immediate need for physical therapists in Arkansas, which at that time had approximately 40 licensed physical therapists and a population around 1.9 million people. Mr. Joe Finnell, a physical therapist and assistant professor of physical therapy at Baylor University in Dallas, Texas, began investigating a possible program in 1968 after an invitation from Arkansas Baptist Medical Center in Little Rock (now Baptist Health).  State College of Arkansas (now UCA) and Dr. Jefferson Farris, Dean of the College of Fine Arts and Applied Sciences, agreed to the new school in physical therapy to be located in Little Rock as a joint venture and hired Mr. Finnell as its first director.  The first PT class of sixteen students began the 15-month professional program on June 7, 1971, with candidates earning a bachelor’s degree upon graduation in August of 1972.  The program received full accreditation in September of 1972. The class size grew over the years and eventually moved to the UCA campus in Conway in 1987. UCA also offered an A.A.S. degree in Physical Therapist Assisting from 1986 to 1999.  Graduates of UCA earned the Master of Science degree in PT from 1991 to 2001.  In 2000, UCA admitted the first students to the new Doctor of Physical Therapy and PhD in Physical Therapy degree programs.

Location

Picture of front of Physical Therapy Center building

Physical Therapy Center

UCA is located in Conway, Arkansas (25 miles north of Little Rock) with a population around 68,000.  The Department of Physical Therapy is a member of the College of Health and Behavioral Sciences which also provides programs in psychology, nursing, occupational therapy, speech-language pathology, dietetics, and athletic training.  The PT Department is housed in the Physical Therapy Center newly constructed in the year 2000 and includes over 40,000+ square feet of teaching, lab and research space located on Bruce Street between the Prince Center and Estes Stadium (see campus map below).  Additional facilities used regularly by the program include the 3,300 sq ft anatomy lab located in the Doyne Health Sciences Center (1 block from the PTC). This space, shared with the Department of Occupational Therapy, is a state-of-the-art lab designed to provide a safe and effective learning environment for both gross anatomy and neuroscience courses.  The newly opened Integrated Health Sciences building is an 80,000-square-foot facility that offers educational opportunities for the university’s health care students and faculty in the College of Health and Behavioral Sciences including an expanded Nabholz Center for Healthcare Simulation, and an Interprofessional Teaching Center – the first of its kind in the region.

The building emergency plan (PTC Emergency Procedures) is provided at PTC Emergency Procedures.  Contact the Department of Physical Therapy directly at (501) 450-3611 or email at pt@uca.edu.

UCA Campus Map