Description: Through memoir, research, painting, and poetry, Elizabeth Ching guides us through the next 10 exits of Vallejo, California.
Brief description: Elizabeth "Beth" Ching, OTD, M.Ed., BSOT, OTR/L, Associate Professor, Samuel Merritt University (SMU), is a Third Generation Korean Chinese American born in Vallejo, California and has been an occupational therapist since 1985. Beth has been committed to working with underserved populations throughout her career. She has presented at the National Conference on Race and Ethnicity in Higher Education (NCORE) about reducing health disparities and mentoring Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) youth to enter the health professions. She also held the SMU Faculty Diversity Coordinator position in the Office of Diversity and Inclusion. Dr. Ching has published in the Journal of Cultural Diversity, Journal of Occupational Therapy Education, Journal of Diversity and Equality in Health and Care; she has co-authored "Psychosocial and Cognitive Issues Affecting Therapy" in Neurorehabilitation for the Physical Therapist Assistant (2021). Dr. Ching was honored to receive the 2021 Faculty of the Year Award at SMU.