Nissen to Lead USD Occupational Therapy Department
Ranelle Nissen, Ph.D., O.T.R./L., has been named chair of the University of South Dakota’s Department of Occupational Therapy.
Nissen joined USD in 2011 as a faculty member and as academic fieldwork coordinator within the Department of Occupational Therapy. She also serves in several leadership roles at national and state levels regarding the occupational therapy profession, including service on the Roster of Accreditation Evaluators for the national Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education.
Nissen earned an M.S. in occupational therapy from USD in 2006 and a Ph.D. from Texas Woman’s University in 2017. Her special area of expertise is the use of telehealth for occupational therapy. She is a board certified occupational therapist and has worked in multiple care settings including hospital and nursing homes.
