Meet Your Mentor

Kimberly Bryant, OTD, OTR/L, FAOTA, has been a practicing occupational therapist since 2003, with over two decades of experience across inpatient, outpatient, geriatric, and school-based settings. She holds a BS in Psychology, Biology, and Allied Health Sciences from the College of Charleston (2000), an MS in Rehabilitation Science from the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) (2003), an MHA from Webster University (2007), and a Post-Professional Doctorate in Occupational Therapy from the University of St. Augustine (2016). She is also a dual-licensed assisted living and skilled nursing facility administrator in South Carolina (2011–present).

Dr. Bryant currently serves as the Lead Occupational Therapist for Darlington County School District, delivering essential services to students ages 3–21 with disabilities. A dedicated advocate for health equity and inclusion, she was an inaugural member of AOTA’s Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Justice, and Belonging Committee and served on the AOTA Vision 2030 Strategic Planning Committee. Dr. Bryant also served as a member of the MUSC Health Services and Resources Scholarship for Disadvantaged Students Awards Committee (2020-2025) that provided 3.25 million in tuition reimbursement to entry level OTD students from geographically or economically disadvantaged backgrounds.

Her contributions to the field have earned her numerous honors, including the AOTA Roster of Fellows Award (2025) for leadership in addressing social determinants of health, the MUSC Distinguished Alumna Award for Clinical Excellence, and the MUSC Achievement in Diversity Award (2022). She also serves as a capstone mentor and adjunct faculty for both entry-level and post-professional OT programs at MUSC and Washington University in St. Louis.

Dr. Bryant has published and presented nationally on healthcare management, interprofessional collaboration, and mentorship. Her leadership and commitment to underserved communities continue to advance health equity and elevate the profession of occupational therapy

Victor M. Camacho, OTD, OTR/L, L.Ac., FAOTA (he/him/el), is an Associate Professor and Doctoral Program Coordinator in the Department of Occupational Therapy at Kean University. A first-generation American of Ecuadorian heritage and the first in his family to attain higher education, Dr. Camacho is passionate about mentoring the next generation of occupational therapy practitioners, scholars, and leaders.

His professional service is centered on mentorship, sponsorship, and leadership development, particularly for students and practitioners from historically underrepresented backgrounds. He actively supports national and state mentorship initiatives, including AOTA's BOLD and TODOS programs, and serves as Co-Chair of the Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) Committee for the New Jersey Occupational Therapy Association.

In 2026, Dr. Camacho was inducted into the AOTA Roster of Fellows (FAOTA), one of the profession's highest honors, in recognition of his sustained leadership, mentorship, advocacy, and service to occupational therapy. AOTA recognized his contributions with the citation: "Visionary Advancing Equity, Mentorship, and Community Impact."

Dr. Camacho's scholarship focuses on proactive and preventive approaches to health promotion, health literacy, and reducing chronic illness and health disparities in underserved and underrepresented communities. Through his teaching, research, service, and mentorship, he is committed to advancing equitable health outcomes and empowering future leaders to transform their communities through occupational therapy.

Wendy Hildenbrand, PhD, MPH, OTR/L, FAOTA earned a Bachelor of Science in Occupational Therapy in 1989, a Master of Public Health in 2002, and a Doctor of Philosophy in Public Administration in 2016 all from the University of Kansas. 

Dr. Hildenbrand’s practice experience includes work in mental health settings for more than a decade, school-based practice, and population and community health contexts. Her professional expertise includes leadership development, professional formation, policy development and implementation, advocacy, public health, and building bridges between policy and practice. 

Dr. Hildenbrand is a former President of AOTA. 

Donald Howard, MBA, MS, OTR/L, CLT, is a distinguished alumnus of Howard University, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Occupational Therapy in 1992. He subsequently earned a Master of Science degree in Occupational Therapy from Boston University in 2008 and a Master of Business Administration from Strayer University in 2022, where he was recognized as a Welch Scholar.

Mr. Howard is an accomplished occupational therapist, healthcare leader, educator, and entrepreneur with more than 30 years of clinical practice experience and over 20 years of healthcare leadership experience. His clinical expertise encompasses physical rehabilitation, with specialization in upper extremity and hand disorders, as well as certification in lymphedema management. Throughout his career, he has held numerous leadership positions, including service as an Assistant Manager at a regional medical center, where he played a key role in the development of a comprehensive cancer rehabilitation program.
He currently serves as President and Co-Founder of BROTHAS, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to cultivating, coordinating, strengthening, and advancing males of the African diaspora within the occupational therapy profession from academic preparation through professional practice. Under his leadership, the organization has implemented initiatives focused on mentorship, education, strategic planning, fundraising, and community engagement. BROTHAS, Inc. has positively impacted the lives of hundreds of Black male students and practitioners across the United States and internationally by providing professional support, guidance, and empowerment.

Mr. Howard is a credentialed American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) Fieldwork Educator and serves as an instructor for AOTA's Fieldwork Educator Certificate Program (FWECP). Through his teaching, coaching, and professional development activities, he has mentored numerous occupational therapy students, clinicians, and fieldwork educators. He has delivered scholarly presentations at national conferences on leadership development, diversity, equity, inclusion, mentorship, and workforce advancement within healthcare professions.

A dedicated advocate for the advancement of occupational therapy, Mr. Howard serves on the Howard University Department of Occupational Therapy Advisory Board and Admissions Committee. He maintains active membership in the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), the National Black Occupational Therapy Caucus, and Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Incorporated. Through his professional, educational, and community service endeavors, Mr. Howard continues to demonstrate a steadfast commitment to leadership, mentorship, health equity, and the advancement of the occupational therapy profession.

Ginny Stoffel, PhD, OT, FAOTA earned her Ph.D. in Leadership for the Advancement of Learning and Service from the Cardinal Stritch University in 2007, a Master of Science in Educational Psychology, Counseling at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and a Bachelor of Arts in Occupational Therapy at St. Catherine University. She first worked as an occupational therapist in a community organization for aging persons, and a year later was hired to develop recovery-oriented programs for adults and adolescents and their families affected by substance use disorders and mental health issues at DePaul Hospital from 1978- 1990. After teaching several occupational therapy courses at the University of Wisconsin- Milwaukee, she became an assistant professor of occupational therapy in 1987, was promoted to associate professor in 1993, and a research scientist with their Center for Addiction and Behavioral Health. She quietly moved into retirement in September of 2022. 

Her research interests include military veteran reintegration, particularly in higher education, leadership development, and lived experiences of people recovering from mental health concerns, using participatory action approaches and photovoice. She is licensed as an occupational therapist in Wisconsin and enjoys balancing her work with students, veterans, community and professional leadership, and her growing family.

Dr. Stoffel has served the American Occupational Therapy Association and the Wisconsin Occupational Therapy Association across her lifetime, from representing student perspectives to the AOTA Commission on Education in 1977, to chairing the Mental Health Special Interest Section in the mid-90's, to chairing the SIS Council in the late 1990's/early 2000's, as AOTA Vice President, then AOTA President from 2013-2016. Dr. Stoffel was honored to lead AOTA efforts from 2008 through 2018 to develop and implement AOTA's Emerging Leadership Development Program and their Executive Leadership Institute, with Dr Nancy Blair, her doctoral advisor and colleague. Dr. Stoffel currently represents the AOTA/United States to the World Federation of Occupational Therapists (alternate delegate from 2016-2021, delegate from 2021-2027) along with alternate delegate Briana Bonner. She has represented the voice of occupational therapy to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's Recovery to Practice program, the National Quality Forum Serious Mental Illness Action Team, and is currently involved in several projects for WFOT on mental health, innovation and advocacy.

She is an invited speaker across the United States and internationally, has authored numerous chapters and articles, and is co- author of Occupational Therapy for Mental Health: A Vision for Participation, 3rd edition, 2025, with Catana Brown and Jaime Munoz, a text used worldwide in occupational therapy education programs since the printing of the first edition in 2011. In 2016, as AOTA prepared its 100th Anniversary celebration, she was honored by being named one of the 100 people who significantly contributed to the development of the profession in its first 100 years. In 2020, Dr. Stoffel was honored to receive the AOTA Award of Merit, the highest honor of the Association.

Dr. Nicole Villegas, OTD, MSOT, OTR/L, is an occupational therapist and founder of the Sensory Conscious®Institute, with a career spanning clinical practice, education, and entrepreneurship. Their work explores how sensory experience, nervous system regulation, and meaningful occupation shape health, leadership, and everyday life. Over the past decade, Nicole has mentored post-professional graduate students at Boston University and enjoys guiding practitioners as they navigate new possibilities in their practice. As a queer, multiracial, first-generation college graduate, Nicole brings lived and professional perspectives to conversations about identity, belonging, and leadership. They enjoy creating space for thoughtful questions and honest conversations while helping practitioners build careers that reflect who they are and how they want to serve.