Bio

Zipporah Brown, ppOTD, MS, OTR/L, DipACLM is a licensed occupational therapist, Assistant Professor at Hawaii Pacific University, and entrepreneur committed to increasing access to education and healthcare. Dr. Brown is a first generation, higher education, trailblazer whom completed her doctoral training at University of Southern California specializing in health promotion through lifestyle optimization, occupational engagement, and community integration for vulnerable populations; there she also co-founded the first student run diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) association within the division.
 
Dr. Brown is a board-certified lifestyle medicine professional, one of two occupational therapists in the entire state of Oregon with this designation. Her work focuses extensively on establishing occupational therapy’s distinct role in community-based settings, emphasizing the connection of attunement and healing. Clinically, as the inaugural occupational therapist at Linn County Department of Mental Health in Albany, Oregon, she works with individuals facing complex challenges due to physical, cognitive, developmental, and emotional factors to support them in managing their health. Additionally, Dr. Brown partners with organizations to develop community-centered health education programming with an emphasis on culturally relevant offerings.
 
Within academia, Dr. Brown’s role focuses on implementing health equity and lifestyle optimization curriculum within multidisciplinary graduate programs. Notably, she initiated the integration of lifestyle medicine competencies into the Doctor of Physical Therapy curriculum at Western University of Health Sciences and went on to spearhead a partnership with the American College of Lifestyle Medicine to become the first DPT program approved for the ACLM Partial Academic Pathway program.
 
Dr. Brown has presented at a variety of state, national and international conferences on: research addressing psychosocial considerations for women living in permanent supportive housing; strategies to increase diversity, equity, and inclusion in academia; and the integration of lifestyle medicine into allied health professional programs.  As a budding leader, she has served in various leadership roles locally and nationally that focus on amplifying student voices, establishing best practices for client-centered care, and advocating for inclusivity within academia and healthcare.
 
Ultimately, Dr. Brown intentionally uses her formal training and lived experience to contribute to materializing impactful solutions that empower individuals and communities to heal and thrive.