OU College of Allied Health

OU College of Allied Health. . "There are science and the application of science, bound together as the fruit to the tree that bears it." Louis Pasteur (1822-1895) , In 1967, the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education approved the establishment of an academic home for allied health educational programs. Some programs, including a long-standing physical therapy program were already in existence at University Hospital, and the need for additional baccalaureate - and graduate-level allied health programs was well recognized., The School of Health Related Professions was activated in 1970 with the appointment of Philip E. Smith, D.Sc., as dean. Dr. Smith, who had been an associate dean in both the College of Medicine and the Graduate College, worked closely with OU President Paul F. Sharp in shaping allied health programs on the Oklahoma City campus., In response to funding issues, allied health and public health programs were combined in 1973 into what later became the College of Health. In 1978, the college moved into the historic College of Health Building, which was erected in 1928 to house the College of Medicine., In 1981, to better serve rapidly developing programs and diverging needs, Allied Health and Public Health once again became separate colleges, and in 1982 Dr. Lee Holder was named dean of the College of Allied Health. Holder presided over a period of increasing faculty research and scholarly activity and tremendous growth in enrollment in the college's professional programs., The College of Allied Health has evolved to include educational programs in nutritional sciences; the rehabilitation sciences of physical therapy, occupational therapy and radiation therapy; the medical imaging sciences of radiography, nuclear medicine and diagnostic medical sonography; and the communication sciences of audiology, and speech and language pathology. The college also is home to the Department of Medical Library Science, whose faculty members staff the Robert M. Bird Health Sciences Library. , Allied health students receive clinical training at the college's Oklahoma Assistive Technology Center and the Keys Speech Hearing Clinic and at clinical affiliates across the state., The college offers master's degree programs in occupational therapy and physical therapy on the OU Health Sciences Center Tulsa campus.