Photo By Ronald Wolf | The Office of the Army Surgeon General and the U.S. Army Medical Command hold regular...... read more read more
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Falls Church, Va. — The Office of the Army Surgeon General and the U.S. Army Medical Command hold regular leadership seminars to support their Leader Development Program. The goal is to build agile and adaptive leaders for today's environment by sharing the learning, teaching, and personal development experiences of senior leaders.
On Jan. 6, 2021, the leadership series featured Rory Cooper, Ph.D. Cooper’s professional affiliations are the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Pittsburgh; and Rehabilitation Research and Development Service, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. He is a Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army. The lecture was delivered virtually.
Cooper is nationally recognized for the work he has done to improve the lives of our disabled and injured veterans. He expressed the importance of focusing on the things you can change and looking forward and not backward. He reminded us how critical it is that we improvise, adapt and overcome the challenges we face, not just the challenges faced by disabled individuals.
Cooper has dozens of accolades and awards and is nationally recognized for his innovations in wheelchair and robotic design. He has authored or co-authored more than 350 articles in peer-reviewed scholarly journals. He has over 20 patents awarded or pending. Cooper is the author of two books on mobility for disabled individuals. His list of awards is extensive.
He demonstrated that leadership is about more than just commanding people; it is also about what you can do to improve the lives of others and the guidance you can provide them.
Cooper served in the U.S. Army where he sustained a spinal cord injury and had to learn to use a wheelchair. Between his personal experience and his professional skills, he has developed special insights to helping disabled individuals.
Cooper wants to “create opportunities for wounded, ill and injured veterans to regain employment, become scientists and engineers and continue to serve.”
He has a long association with the Warrior Games where wounded, ill, and injured active duty, reserve, and veterans of all Services compete in sports with the use of wheelchair or other assistive devices such as handcycles. Cooper himself is a wheelchair racing champion in events such as the 10-thousand meter race. In 1988, he represented the U.S. in Seoul, Korea, in the Paralympic Games and was a bronze medalist.
Remaining physically fit is important for disabled individuals but a challenge for wounded warriors, Cooper said.
Cooper spoke about the value of adaptive reconditioning, which is the training and fitness work that goes into sports and competitive activities for disabled individuals. Adaptive reconditioning helps injured to regain “a perspective of self” and also helps change the perspectives of non-disabled people, he said.
“All of us are role models,” Cooper said. It’s important to share the possibility of high achievement goals with kids with disabilities, and there are many children of Soldiers who have special needs. “Most kids with disabilities are not encourage to pursue careers in STEM—science, technology, engineering and mathematics.” It’s an important goal to encourage students with or without disabilities to pursue science and technology careers, he said.
“Technology has tremendous potential to improve the lives of people with disabilities,” Cooper said.
He also had some advice for caregivers. They should be encouraged to believe that they will be successful in their roles. “You can have a full, rewarding, productive life and you can continue to serve others despite [their] very severe impairments,” he said. Disabled people are learning to take care of themselves better, and we continue to have advances in healthcare, especially preventative healthcare for those with disabilities, he said.
Cooper said, “Don’t assume you know what others are experiencing or feeling.” If you are trying to accommodate individuals from “underrepresented populations or those who are different than yourself,” the most important thing you can do “is learn to listen.”
| Date Taken: | 01.14.2021 |
| Date Posted: | 01.19.2021 14:30 |
| Story ID: | 386995 |
| Location: | VIRGINIA, US |
| Web Views: | 34 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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