Dr. Tsu-Hsin Howe Named New Chair of Department of Occupational Therapy

NYU OT is proud to announce Dr. Howe’s new department chair role and expresses gratitude to our previous chair, Dr. Kristie Patten, for her seven years of dedicated stewardship.

The Department of Occupational Therapy is pleased to name Associate Professor of Occupational Therapy Tsu-Hsin Howe as our new chair. An alum of NYU OT’s MA and PhD programs, Dr. Howe has practiced occupational therapy in both community and hospital-based settings for over 30 years and has served as the Department’s Director of Post-Professional Programs for the past seven years. Dr. Howe first joined the Department of Occupational Therapy’s faculty in 2007.

In her new role as chair, Dr. Howe will focus on preparing students to be occupational therapy practitioners, leaders, scholars, and researchers equipped to respond to society’s ever-changing needs in a wide range of cultural contexts, promoting faculty research, and continued community engagement.

Dr. Howe, whose research focuses on the motor behaviors of children at high risk of developmental delay, will assume her new position upon return from sabbatical in January 2021. For the Fall 2020 semester, Professor of Occupational Therapy Yael Goverover will take the helm as interim chair. 

Dr. Kristie Patten, NYU OT’s previous department chair, will continue to serve the NYU Steinhardt community as the School’s new Vice Dean for Academic Affairs. During her seven-year tenure as chair, Dr. Patten cultivated an environment supportive of student and faculty research and scholarship, resulting in the rise of NYU OT’s U.S. News and World Report ranking from #12 to #8. She also facilitated the formation of the NYU OT Anti-Racism Task Force, a group of students, alumni, and faculty working to advance departmental diversity and address inequity in the representation of voices elevated through course work and informal learning opportunities.

“I have seen our talented group of faculty, staff, and students realize and exceed their potential in the service of our profession,” Dr. Patten said. “Dr. Goverover as interim chair and Dr. Howe as department chair will continue to take NYU OT to places that will be innovative and cutting-edge. The NYU OT family is in such good hands!”