WASHINGTON – Margaret Plack, Ed.D., Interim Senior Associate Dean for the Health Sciences Programs and Associate Professor of Health Care Sciences at The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, received the Award for Leadership in Education from the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA). This award is the highest honor conferred by the Education Section of APTA, and it is given to the those individuals who have had substantial impact on physical therapy and physical therapy education through scholarship, teaching, administration, and service activities.
Plack has more than 25 years of clinical practice in pediatrics, working specifically with children with developmental disabilities. She has held a variety of leadership positions in both the clinical and academic settings. Her research interests include professional development, reflective practice, and curricular outcomes.
Jeffrey S. Akman, M.D., Interim Vice Provost for Health Affairs and Dean of the School of Medicine and Health Sciences at GW, praised Plack for her leadership and contributions to the field of physical therapy. “There are few people in the country who have accomplished as much as Dr. Plack to advance our understanding of the importance of physical therapy and how it can help improve the lives of patients, especially children,” Akman said. “Dr. Plack is one of the most talented and dedicated members of our faculty, and she has certainly earned this national recognition.”
Plack received her baccalaureate degree in Physical Therapy from New York University in 1978. She went on to receive her Masters degree in Physical Therapy with a specialty in Developmental Disabilities from New York University in 1992. She earned her Doctor of Education degree in Adult Education from the Department of Organization and Leadership at Teachers College, Columbia University, where she studied how students and new graduates learn communication and interpersonal skills essential for physical therapy practice.
"I am honored to be recognized by my peers and the thrill of it is that I am being honored for something that I just love to do," said Dr. Plack.
Plack will be officially acknowledged at the Education Section business meeting and reception at the Combined Sections Meeting of the APTA on Feb. 11, 2011.
