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Each semester, ����ɫ��ҹ University of California graduate occupational therapy students immersed themselves in community-based projects, designing and implementing occupation-based programs in partnership with Marin and San Francisco-based organizations.

Recent community projects, led by Kaitlyn Trimarchi, adjunct associate professor of occupational therapy, include creating a stress management program for Huckleberry Youth Programs, a Bay Area nonprofit focused on empowering young people to develop and maintain healthy relationships. OT students also have worked with San Francisco’s Institute on Aging, applying reminiscence therapy to establish and honor life histories of community members, and with Marin Villages on a fall prevention program.

“These projects provide students with a unique opportunity to advocate for the occupational therapy profession in our community and provide real-world experience in working with an interdisciplinary team to make positive changes in the lives directly in the populations we serve here in Marin and San Francisco,” says Trimarchi.

Huckleberry Youth Programs
Last semester, OT students and Kaitlyn Trimarchi, adjunct associate professor of occupational therapy, partnered with Huckleberry Youth Programs to work with students in the organization’s ACE Academy. ACE Academy participants are current high school students and future first-generation college students. The ACE Academy programming provides participants with a roadmap to achieve their goals of attending college and experiencing success in college.

The OT team created a program to address stress management for high school students. This program educates students on signs of stress and offers coping strategies. It also has an interactive portion where students are guided to create their own stress survival kit.

Institute on Aging 
Trimarchi and another team of OT students recently worked with the Institute on Aging to develop a program that supports older adults’ remaining abilities by honoring their life histories and fostering emotional expression and connection through storytelling and personal mementos.

The OT students created a program aligned with IOA’s mission and in response to needs identified by enrichment directors, care coordinators, and members, the OT team developed a program rooted in a habilitative approach that prioritizes supporting remaining abilities. The program centers on reminiscence therapy as a tool to establish and honor each member’s Life History. Through storytelling and guided prompts, members had the opportunity to share meaningful experiences from their past (e.g. travel experiences, work, favorite sport, or culturally significant, etc.).

Members were also encouraged to bring in personal items like photos or objects connected to their stories to deepen the engagement. The process of sharing their story helps members feel more connected and express their emotions, additionally it increases opportunities for members to engage with both peers and care coordinators.

Marin Villages 
Marin Villages is a nonprofit organization that is committed to helping older adults age in place by providing resources, events, and neighborly support to promote healthy, independent living. The OT team created a program focused on fall prevention.

“Fall Prevention and Beyond: A Holistic Blend of Wellness and Technology” was developed to address a critical need among older adults: preventing falls while aging at home.

The program’s mission is to expand members’ perspectives on fall prevention by integrating education on physical and environmental risk factors into the meaningful activities of daily life. A user-friendly website provides accessible resources on fall prevention, covering topics such as base of support, balance strategies, and health conditions that increase fall risk. In addition to the website, the program also included a workshop on activity analysis for the group leaders of events at Marin Villages.