Alumni/Donor Spotlight
The Sudha Agrawal Memorial Endowment
The Sudha Agrawal Memorial Endowment has been established in memory of Sudha Agrawal (1956-2016) through a generous gift from her family and friends for the benefit of the Department of Physical Therapy.
Sudha received her MPT from Ohio University in 1998, but her path to physical therapy was non-traditional. She had a degree in architecture from Bhopal, India and worked as an architect in New Delhi and Syracuse, NY. In 1983, she moved with her two young sons to Athens, Ohio where her husband accepted a faculty position at Ohio University. In Athens, she worked with a local architect firm on a part-time basis for about 8 years.
Her interest in physical therapy began in 1986 when she crushed her femur in a car accident and was in the hospital under traction for 10-weeks. She had intensive physical therapy treatment almost for a year. Having benefitted from physical therapy, she wanted to help others. She began taking pre-PT courses with students half her age at Ohio University in 1992 while taking care of her family. It was not easy, but she was determined. She was admitted to the physical therapy program at Ohio University in 1995. There were days when she almost quit the program, but she persevered and graduated with her MPT in 1998. She was 42. After graduation, she worked at local clinics in Athens for 15 years. She was passionate about physical therapy and her enthusiasm as a caring therapist is acknowledged by her the many patients who still remember her fondly today. She took early retirement in 2013 to be able to travel and spend time gardening. Unfortunately, ovarian cancer cut her life short and she passed away in 2016.
The Sudha Agrawal Memorial Endowment is her legacy to the students and faculty of the Department of Physical Therapy at Ohio University. It will provide funds to the Department of Physical Therapy to invite annually one or more prominent researcher(s) or practitioner(s) in the field as guest speaker(s) to organize lectures, symposia, workshops, seminars, or colloquia for the benefit of research and professional development of faculty and students. May it assist in educating the next generation of therapists who are as passionate about the field as she was.
2025 Agrawal Lecture Series
Pursuing Innovation and Excellence in Physical Therapy Education
The 2025 Agrawal Lecture Series, Pursuing Innovation and Excellence in Physical Therapy Education, will be held on January 30-31 featuring Ana Acosta, PhD from the Northwestern University Department of Physical Therapy and Movement Sciences in the Feinberg School of Medicine. Her background is in electrical and biomedical engineering with specific training and experience in robotics, human biomechanics and movement and rehabilitation science. The focus of her research is to characterize the mechanisms underlying the loss of independent joint control of the arm, leg and trunk following brain injury due to stroke. The main approach that she is pursuing in her research is the development of portable robotic devices that can be used for therapeutic and diagnostic purposes to help stroke survivors regain movement of the arm.
Stay tuned for information regarding specific times and session topics that will be distributed here and on social media.