Faculty/Staff Information

2020 Doctor of Philosophy - Pediatric Science

         Rocky Mountain University of Health Professions - Provo, UT

2017 Doctor of Occupational Therapy – Pediatric Track 

         Rocky Mountain University of Health Professions - Provo, UT

1994 Master of Occupational Therapy

         Rockhurst University - Kansas City, MO

1989 Bachelor of Arts, English 

         Indiana University - Bloomington, IN

Owner, Director, Clinical Supervisor - Sensory KIDS, LLC - Portland, OR

Clinical & Research Fellow – STAR Institute - Centennial, CO

Occupational Therapist - Portland Public Schools - Portland, OR

Occupational Therapist - St. Charles Medical Center - Bend, OR

Senior Occupational Therapist - Grady Memorial Hospital - Atlanta, GA

Occupational Therapist - Emory University Center for Rehab Medicine - Atlanta, GA  

As an educator, I strive to model and teach the foundations of reflective practice and professional reasoning, both of which are rooted in curiosity, self-awareness, and the ability to ask thoughtful questions. In my classes you can count on learning about the critical role of sensory integration and processing across the lifespan and across contexts. I believe learning is an embodied process, requiring your active involvement and my commitment to relational teaching.

• OT students' sense of beloning
• Reflective practice and professional reasing 
• Parents as adult learners
• Sensory integration and processing

Porter, L., Lane, S., Sweeney, J., Demchick, B., Mullens, P., & Kearney, B. (in revision). Learning Needs During a Group Parent-training with Parents of Children with Sensory Over-responsivity:  A Mixed Methods Study. 

Porter, L., Johnson, K. & Brown, C. (in progress). A Qualitative Exploration of Black Occupational Therapy Students’ Sense of Belonging. 

Spielmann, V., Schoen, S., & Porter, L. (submitted). A Frame of Reference for Sensory Integration and Processing Differences: Sensory Therapies and Research (STAR) in Kramer, P. (Ed.), Frames of reference for pediatric occupational therapy, 3^rd Edition. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

Porter, L., Sheekey, C., Brady, E., & Kearney, B. (in revise and resubmit stage). Professional Reasoning in Play-Based OT: A Pilot Study of Professional reasoning and Reflection on Observation (PROOF): An Organizational Framework.

Miller, D., Schoen, S., Schmitt, C., & Porter, L. (2023). A Qualitative Analysis of Adults and Adolescents’ Lived Experiences with Sensory Challenges. The American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 77(5).

Porter, L., Lane, S., Sweeney, J., Demchick, B., Mullens, P., & Kearney, B. (2023). Parents as Adult Learners in Occupational Therapy for Children with Sensory Challenges: A Scoping Study. The American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 77(1). 

Spielmann, V., & Porter, L. M. (2019). Model of Imposed Adaptation in Childhood Learning Environments—Application to Autism. A precarious game of developmental Jenga. Autism and Developmental Disorders, 17(2), 18-33.

Tavassoli, T., Brandes-Aitken, A., Chu, R., Porter, L., Schoen, S., Miller, L. J., ... & Marco, E. J. (2019). Sensory over-responsivity: parent report, direct assessment measures, and neural architecture. Molecular autism, 10(1), 4.

Secondary Sources

Miller, L. J., Porter, L. M., & Bialer, D. S. (2021). No Longer A SECRET: Unique Common Sense Strategies for Children with Sensory or Regulation Challenges. Arlington, TX: Sensory World. 

Freese, D., Porter, L., & Pelham-Foster, S. (2016). Providing Parent Education for Children with Sensory Processing Disorder. OT Practice, 21(12), 18-20. 

Blanton, S., Porter, L., Smith, D., & Wolf, S. (1999). Strategies to Enhance Mobility in Traumatic Brain Injured Patients. In Rosenthal, M., Griffith, E.R., Kreutzer, J.S., & Pentland, B. (Eds.), Rehabilitation of the Adult and Child with Traumatic Brain Injury (219-241). Philadelphia, PA: F.A. Davis Company.