ILOTA Volunteer Opportunities - Recruitment is Underway!

(April 2022)

We are fortunate to have scores of talented ILOTA members as volunteers to lead our organization! Recruitment for new volunteers is an ongoing process, so please review the list below of current volunteer opportunities and send an email message to [email protected] if you are interested. (Please note that volunteer positions are only open to current ILOTA practitioner and student members. Not a member? Click here for our membership benefits and dues options!)

Please see the message below from our ILOTA Recruitment Coordinator, Sarah Zera, OTD, OTR/L, on the various volunteer opportunities...

Dear ILOTA Members,

In my role volunteering as the Recruitment Coordinator for ILOTA, I have had the firsthand opportunity to observe just how important our volunteer leaders are. The efforts of our leadership provide a myriad of means in which ILOTA supports occupational therapy practitioners in Illinois. ILOTA provides low and no-cost continuing education, advocates for our profession in Springfield, and provides additional opportunities to network and grow including town halls, the leadership development program, and OT Month events. 

To keep this work going we need to keep our Executive Board filled. To do this we are seeking a new Nominations Coordinator.  

The beauty of this role is it is seasonal. Once a year, the Nominations Coordinator works with the ILOTA leadership to fill the ballot for the open Executive Board positions. Our current Nominations Coordinator is willing to mentor the next volunteer in this position.

The Responsibilities of the Nominations Coordinator include:

  • Oversees the nominations process of developing and communicating a ballot of qualified candidates for elected offices two months before each election.
  • Collaborates with Executive Board and other Coordinators to determine current open positions.
  • Consults the volunteer database and contacts interested members to recruit for open positions.
  • Collaborates with the Executive Director and Director of Communications to communicate with members via email and social media regarding recruitment and the nomination process.
  • Serves on ad hoc committees related to membership.
  • Presents a slate of qualified candidates for elected offices two months before each election.
  • Coordinates with the Executive Director regarding the preparation of the ballots; the ballots must allow for write-in candidates and shall be by electronic vote.
  • Publishes election results via email and social media following the election.

If you are interested in the Nominations Coordinator position, please send an email to [email protected]

If the Nominations Coordinator isn’t the right fit for you, we have many other opportunities available to volunteer as a board member or committee member. Please view the opportunities below. If you are interested in volunteering or would like to learn more, please send an email message to [email protected] and note the position(s). All occupational therapy practitioners are eligible for these positions.

If you are already volunteering for ILOTA, then...we thank you! Additionally, if you are a current ILOTA volunteer, you do not need to "re-up" your volunteer status.

Here is a complete list of our current volunteer opportunities:

Full Board Positions (may be filled by any OT practitioner; OT/OTA students may be eligible based on previous experiences):

·         Board Recruitment Coordinator

  • Responsibilities include collaborating with the Executive Board and other Coordinators to determine current open positions within the Full Board. The recruitment coordinator uses a variety of recruitment methods, including consulting the volunteer database, networking, and email blasts to recruit for open positions.
  • Oversees Recruitment Committee.
  • Attends quarterly full board meetings (third Saturday in Feb, May, and August).
  • Duration: at least one year, opportunity to extend term if desired.
  • Approximate time commitment: 2-3 hours per month

·         Accessibility Coordinator

  • Responsibilities include collaborating with the Executive Board and Full Board to ensure that all ILOTA events and communications are accessible to all attendees, visitors, members, and guests; arranging for accommodations as requested by registrants; and making suggested edits to our website and other communications.
  • Attends quarterly full board meetings (third Saturday in Feb, May, and August).
  • Duration: at least one year, opportunity to extend term if desired.
  • Approximate time commitment: 2-3 hours per month

·         Community Outreach Coordinator

  • Responsibilities include designing and implementing OT educational/awareness materials; designing and implementing a pre-OT mentoring program; coordinating with community partners to send ILOTA volunteers to career fairs and educational events.
  • Oversees Community Outreach Committee.
  • Attends quarterly full board meetings (third Saturday in Feb, May, and August).
  • Duration: at least one year, opportunity to extend term if desired.
  • Approximate time commitment: 3-4 hours per month

·         Retention Coordinator

  • Responsibilities include collaborating with the Director to welcome new ILOTA members, implement new member benefits, and engage with existing members to promote member retention.
  • Attends quarterly full board meetings (third Saturday in Feb, May, and August).
  • Duration: at least one year, opportunity to extend term if desired.
  • Approximate time commitment: 3-4 hours per month

·         SIS Co-Coordinators: We are currently looking for co-coordinators for several Special Interest Sections:

  • Responsibilities include collaborating with the other SIS-co-chair(s) to develop SIS-related resources, plan SIS-related CE events, coordinate SIS networking opportunities, monitor SIS-related advocacy issues/needs, coordinate SIS committee meetings as appropriate, attending quarterly full board meetings (third Saturday in Feb, May, and August), and meeting with Networking Coordinator as needed
  • Approximate time commitment: 4-5 hours per month
  • Duration: at least one year, opportunity to extend term if desired
  • Below are the co-coordinator positions we are seeking to fill:
    • Early Intervention
    • Developmental Disabilities
    • Occupational Therapy Assistant

Ad-Hoc Committee Positions (open to all members):

·         IL OT Practice Act and Rules Review Committee: In preparation for the sunset of the OT Practice Act in 2024, several subcommittees have begun identifying suggested changes to the administrative rules and will begin working on suggested revisions to the Practice Act soon.  We would love your input and suggestions!

  • Responsibilities include participating in subcommittee virtual meetings as needed, reviewing rules/act, suggesting proposed changes, and reviewing drafts.
  • Approximate time commitment: variable, but 2-3 hours per month, 1-4 months per year (depending on which subcommittees you join)
  • Duration: through 2023

Ongoing Committee Positions (open to all members):

·        Recruitment Committee: We are starting this committee this year to increase our networking opportunities when recruiting for Full Board positions. This is a great opportunity to support our efforts to develop greater diversity in our Full Board.

  • Responsibilities include participating in monthly committee meetings and doing additional work to recruit for open Full Board positions.
  • Approximate time commitment: 2-3 hours per month
  • Duration: at least one year.

·        Community Outreach Ad-Hoc Committee Member: We started this committee in January related to our new diversity and inclusion strategic focus area, and have three subcommittees that could use more members: a) Resource Development Committee - developing print and audiovisual materials to educate the public and students about OT; b) Connections in the Community committee - developing partnerships with schools, libraries, and other organizations across Illinois to provide presenters or materials for job fairs and other events for educating about OT; and, c) Mentoring Program Committee - developing a mentorship program for pre-OT students to help students prepare to apply for OT/OTA programs.

  • Responsibilities include participating in monthly committee meetings and completing follow-tasks as needed
  • Approximate time commitment: 2-4 hours per month
  • Duration: at least one year

·        Awards Committee Member:

  • Responsibilities include meeting with Awards committee to review award nominations and select award recipients
  • Approximate time commitment: 6-8 hours during the month of August
  • Duration: One month (August 2022) 

·        Newsletter Committee Member:

  • Responsibilities include assisting with the creation of four newsletters per year: recruiting authors, editing submitted articles, editing drafts of issues, and sending certificates to authors after issue publication; participating in committee meetings as needed
  • Approximate time commitment: 4 hours per month
  • Duration: at least one year, opportunity to extend term if desired

·        Student Conclave Committee Member:

  • Responsibilities include participating in committee meetings (1-4 meetings per month), completing follow-up tasks as needed, assisting with identifying potential topics and speakers, assisting with scheduling, assisting with recruiting sponsors
  • Approximate time commitment: 2-4 hours per month
  • Duration: Fall 2022 – Spring 2023

·         Student Committee Member: (Great volunteer opportunity for OT and OTA students!) We are currently revamping our student committee and would love to have at least one representative from each OT and OTA school in Illinois!

  • Responsibilities include participating in committee meetings with the Student Liaisons and Networking Coordinator, assisting with planning various student networking and educational events
  • Approximate time commitment: 1-2 hours per month
  • Duration: at least 6 months – 1 year, opportunity to extend term

·         SIS Committee Member: We are currently open to adding committee members to all of our Special Interest Sections:

  • Responsibilities include participating in SIS committee meetings (some are weekly or biweekly, some may be quarterly) and assisting with SIS-related education, advocacy, and networking initiatives
  • Approximate time commitment: 1-4 hours per month
  • Duration: at least one year, opportunity to extend term if desired
  • The Special Interest Sections include:
    • Academic Education
    • Administration & Management
    • Assistive Technology
    • Developmental Disabilities
    • Early Intervention
    • Gerontology
    • Home & Community Health
    • Justice, Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion
    • Mental Health
    • Neurorehabilitation
    • Orthopedic & Upper Extremity Rehab
    • Occupational Therapy Assistant
    • Pediatrics
    • School-Based Practice
    • Sensory Integration

If you are interested in volunteering for any of these positions, or would like more information, please send an email message to [email protected] and note which position(s), and we’ll follow up with you soon!  Thank you in advance for considering volunteering with ILOTA.

Thank you,

Sarah Zera, OTD, OTR/L