Ep 43: An Interview with AOTA’s Presidential Candidates Karen Sames & Arameh Avarizade [Election Series Part 1]

Feb 6 2024 • 1 hr 5 mins

An Interview with AOTA’s Presidential Candidates Karen Sames & Arameh Avarizade [Election Series Part 1]

AOTA’s elections are upon us! That’s why this week on The Amplify OT Podcast, through a 3-part episode series, I am sitting down with the candidates running for President and Vice-President in the 2024 AOTA election. Through these conversations, it is my hope that we can all learn more about the people running for important leadership positions so we can make an informed choice.

Listen/watch all interviews at https://amplifyot.com.com/elections and read their bios.

As a reminder, voting opens February 2, 2024 and close Feb 23, 2024 at 11:59 AM ET. Please remember that you must be an AOTA member as of January 2, 2024 in order to participate in voting and you must be a current member on the date that you vote.

🗳️ Vote here: AOTA.org/elections

Sample Ballot (members only)

Disclaimer: I, myself, and Amplify OT as an entity are not endorsing any specific candidate. I am using my platform as a resource for these candidates to speak on.

⏩ Looking to skip ahead?

Karen M. Sames interview begins at 04:04

Dr. Arameh Anvarizadeh’s interview begins after the ad break at 29:55

In each interview, the candidates are asked the following questions:

Why are you running for President of AOTA and why now?
What would be your "day one" priorities, if elected?
In your opinion what is the primary role or mission of AOTA in our profession?
Do you believe membership is important? Why or why not?
The last AOTA workforce study showed that 25% of practitioners are considering leaving the field, and AOTA had a 7% drop in membership this year. Do you think these issues are related? And in your opinion, what would be the best way to address these issues?
What advice would you give to someone who may be interested in volunteering or taking a leadership role?
Why should someone vote for you?

For more information and candidate bios, head over to https://amplifyot.com/elections