Christopher W. O'Brien, PhD, LAT, ATC, FASAHP, FNAP
Dean of Health Sciences
Associate Clinical Professor of Athletic Training
King's College
Wilkes-Barre, PA
Background and aspirations for ASAHP
It is my honor to be considered for election to the Board of Directors of the Association of Schools Advancing Health Professions (ASAHP). For the past 12 years—since my first ASAHP Annual Conference in 2014—the Association has been central to my professional growth as an administrator, researcher, and advocate in health professions education. Equally important, ASAHP has provided opportunities for collaboration and lasting professional relationships with outstanding leaders and educators across the health professions.
I am committed to ASAHP’s continued growth and to expanding its expertise, collaboration, and influence with national organizations and governmental agencies. I believe there are important opportunities to strengthen and expand Professional, Affiliate, and International membership while continuing to retain and recruit Institutional Members. Clearly communicating the increasing value of ASAHP membership will be critical to achieving these goals.
My involvement with ASAHP began in 2015 through the Clinical Education Task Force (CETF), while I was administratively responsible for health and medical sciences clinical programs at my institution. The collaboration, expertise, and collegiality of CETF members proved invaluable to my professional success and led to the publication of a Task Force Report in the Journal of Allied Health, for which I served as lead author. When I began my current role as the Inaugural Dean of Health Sciences at King’s College nine years ago, one of my first requests was for institutional membership in ASAHP. The Association has since played a significant role in my leadership as Dean and in the growth and success of our health sciences programs. I am eager to help others in similar leadership roles recognize ASAHP’s impact on their institutions and professional development.
My engagement with ASAHP has expanded through national presentations and the publication of the gray paper Clinical Education in Transition: Recommendations and Strategies from the Clinical Education Task Force of the Association of Schools of Allied Health Professions. I have presented multiple times at the ASAHP Annual Meeting and have served as a manuscript reviewer for the Journal of Allied Health since 2018.
Some of the most rewarding work of my career has been through the Clinical Education Committee’s webinar series, launched rapidly during the COVID 19 pandemic and continuing multiple times per year on timely topics, including artificial intelligence in health professions education and clinical practice. I served as Co Chair of the CETF from 2021–2023, when the Task Force transitioned to a permanent standing committee of the Association—the Clinical Education Committee (CEC)—reflecting the growing scope, impact, and sustainability of its work. I have been Chair of the CEC since 2024. Under my leadership, the Committee has sustained high impact programming, consistent publications, ongoing research studies, and the development of new initiatives, including a project group focused on AI in clinical education. An updated set of strategies and recommendations is scheduled for publication in Summer 2026.
I was honored to be named a Fellow of ASAHP as part of the Class of 2021. I respectfully ask for your support and sincerely appreciate your consideration of my candidacy for the ASAHP Board of Directors.
ASAHP Activities
Activity I: Recognized as an ASAHP Fellow - Class of 2021
Activity II: Clinical Education Committee: Chair 2024-present, Co-Chair 2021-2023, Member 2015-present
Activity III: Journal of Allied Health manuscript reviewer: 2018-present
Activity IV: Liaison between NATA and ASAHP: 2023-present
Activity V: ASAHP Annual Meeting session presenter (7) and CEC webinar moderator (7)
Relevant Experience
Experience I: National Academies of Practice (NAP) Athletic Training Academy elected Treasurer/Secretary (2025-present) and Distinguished Policy Fellow (Class of 2023)
Experience II: National Athletic Trainers' Association (NATA) Athletic Trainer Service Award (2026)
Experience III: Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education (CAATE) peer reviewer (2008-present), Maintenance of Accreditation Ad Hoc Committee appointed chair (2021-2022), eAccreditation Focus Group invited member (2022)
Experience IV: Sacred Heart of Jesus R.C. Parish, Peckville, PA: Parish Pastoral Council President (2022-2023), Vice President (2025, 2021), Appointed Member (2019-present), COVID-19 Parish Pandemic Team (2020-2022)
Experience V: Grant recipient - Congressionally Directed Community Project Funds (CDCPF) in The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024: $450,000