Ithaca College

Leave a message for Carole in this virtual guest book!

After 22 years of dedicated service to the Department of Occupational Therapy Department, Professor Carole Dennis is retiring from Ithaca College.  Carole joined IC when the OT program was in its infancy and was instrumental in ensuring its early and ongoing success. Carole served in important leadership roles in the department including Chair and Graduate Chair. During her tenure at IC, Carole was highly engaged in service and leadership across campus and served as a research mentor for many faculty and students.

Carole is well known for her commitment to engaging undergraduate and graduate students in significant research work, most recently, the NSF funded project Tots on Bots. This interdisciplinary project involved countless students over the years and fully engaged them in the research process. Carole’s passion for scholarly work resulted in numerous publications and presentations, many of which included students. To honor Carole’s work, the department named a student award on her behalf the Carole Dennis White Research Award. This award is given to a student who exhibits exceptional research skills during their undergraduate career. The student contributes to the evidence base in occupational therapy through dissemination of scholarly works. The student demonstrates strong skills in research collaboration and embodies the scholarly attitude of a future clinical scholar.

Carole has a significant passion for and commitment to study abroad experiences for students. She worked tirelessly to advise and support OT students in preparing to study abroad and led many trips over the years. One of our alums shared “She made me feel comfortable in a new country I’ve never been to before and was such a great presence to be around with her great humor, stories, and support!” Carole’s legacy includes the endowed Carole White Dennis Study Abroad scholarship which further exemplifies her leadership and service in this area.

Carole is also a staunch advocate for occupational justice and environmental sustainability. She brought these important perspectives into the classroom and into her research to help students understand the bigger picture in the profession. One of our alums shared “She made learning exciting for me. I am so thankful for her guidance. Each day as an OT I carry with me the skills I learned from Carole Dennis at Ithaca College.” One of our current faculty members shared “I had the privilege to have Carole as a professor and as a colleague. I was able to learn so much from her at both stages of our interaction. She is a kindhearted and devoted educator, researcher and has contributed so much of her life to OT and the ICOT program.”

Carole will be deeply missed in our department and we wish her all the best in this new chapter of her life! Please help us celebrate Carole by signing her virtual guest book.