Current Position: Acute Care Physical Therapist
Yakima Valley Memorial Hospital
Rita Davis earned her Master’s in Physical Therapy from Eastern Washington University in 2000. That year, she also was awarded the Minority Scholarship Award from the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA). She began work at the Yakima Regional Medial Cardiac Center in 2007, and completed her Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) at the University of Montana in May 2011. In August 2011, she took her current position in the acute care setting at Yakima Valley Memorial Hospital. She plans to continue her education by pursuing an MBA in Healthcare Management.
In her own words: “First of all, TRIO McNair gave me an instant support system for furthering my education. Being the first person in my family to go to college meant that although my family was proud of me, they did not always understand how to help me. The program taught me how to be a better student and to get what I needed out of my programs. McNair TRIO allowed me to develop my leadership skills by mentoring students in the cohorts after me, which I loved doing. The staff at EWU’s McNair TRIO program still offer me support as I continue to pursue higher education opportunities. I am thankful that I was given the opportunity to be a McNair Scholar. It was an experience that gave me the tools I needed to be successful and skills that I use every day.
