Erin Simunds, MS, PT

Instructor Erin Simunds MS, PT joined the Doctorate of Physical Therapy program as a fulltime faculty member in 2016.  She earned her BS in Physical Therapy from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities and MS in Therapeutic Science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with an emphasis in Motor Control/ Motor Learning. Currently, she is pursuing an educational doctorate at Concordia and intends to study the scholarship of teaching ethics in physical therapy.

Instructor Simunds has over has over 13 years of teaching in accredited physical therapy programs. Her teaching responsibilities include Administration Roles, Biopsychosocial Aspects, Clinical Skills series, Ethics, Lifespan sequence, Musculoskeletal III, and Neuromuscular III. She has practiced in a variety of environments including outpatient services, transitional care, special education, and reimbursement venues.

Instructor Simunds’ research interests focus on various service models for children and adults with disabilities.  She is interested in elevating parental contributions in the process of identifying children with developmental delay. Some examples of recent dissemination include:

• Poster presentation at APTA Combined Sections Meeting: “Level of agreement of 36-month ASQ-3 between parents, child care providers, and health care professionals” (Hill, Nichols, Sohre, Swain, Zenker: Simunds) (2020)
• Student Platform presentation at MNPTA spring conference: “Level of agreement between parent, child care providers, and student physical therapists: developmental screening using ASQ-3 in early childhood” (Colaco, Diede, Lebert, Marold, Wiltgen: Simunds) (2019)
• Presentation at APTA CSM: “Worlds Collide: The intersection of hypersensitivity in autism and chronic pain” (Geiser, Simunds) (2018)
• Poster presentation at MNPTA spring conference: “Level of agreement between parents, child care providers and student physical therapists: developmental screening in early childhood pilot study” (Falk, Larson, Reff, Ruhland: Simunds.) (2018)
• Presentation at MNPTA spring conference “Emerging evidence in pediatric brain injury: implications for recovery and intervention” (Simunds) (2018)

Instructor Simunds has held several leadership positions for the Minnesota Chapter of the APTA and is currently serving on the education committee. She is also an active member of the APTA Academy of Pediatrics, where she served as Regional Director and Secretary.  She enjoys collaborating with students to facilitate the Leaps and Bounds motor program for Gigi’s Playhouse in Hudson, WI.

Email: [email protected]