CHS Welcomes New Faculty: Meet Dr. Daisy Alvarado
Published September 5, 2025
By Darlene Muguiro
UTEP College of Health Sciences
This fall, the College of Health Sciences is welcoming several new faculty members across various programs. We’re pleased to present the first profile for Dr. Daisy Alvarado, Visiting Assistant Professor of Occupational Therapy.
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Dr. Daisy Alvarado, visiting assistant professor of Occupational Therapy, says that she didn’t always think that she’d end up in the OT profession. She started her academic journey at UTEP as an undergraduate biochemistry major and BUILDing SCHOLAR who was intent on going to medical school.
“Sometime during my junior year, I realized that I wanted to work more closely with people in returning to their daily lives and not just medically managing a condition,” she said. “I wanted to help people do what were the most meaningful things to them, despite whatever else was going – which is really the definition of occupational therapy,” she said.
During an NIH panel for BUILDing SCHOLARS, Alvarado met Dr. David Banks. After sharing her passion points and challenges identifying her professional path with him, he suggested that she check out the rehabilitation professions. Following his advice, she began shadowing a local occupational therapist and realized she had found her fit. She graduated with her bachelor’s degree in biology from UTEP and began investigating options that combined research with clinical education and settled on Nova Southeastern University – at the time, UTEP was still not offering the Doctor of Occupational Therapy degree. She graduated with her OTD in 2022. She returned to El Paso following graduation to practice as an occupational therapist, focusing first on acute care for adults at University Medical Center of El Paso and then transitioning to El Paso Children’s Hospital, where she primarily treated patients in the oncology and pediatric intensive care units. She completed certifications as a neuro specialist as well as oncology rehabilitation therapist.
While remaining fully engaged in her clinical practice, Alvarado simultaneously began serving as adjunct faculty for the Department of Occupational Therapy and looking for opportunities to participate in research. She eventually approached Dr. William Roberts, department chair, who swiftly recruited her to teach the OTD program’s research courses. This past spring, under her guidance, the entire OTD Class of 2026 was invited to present their research abstracts at the American Occupational Therapy Association national conference.
“I was really fortunate to have attended an OTD program that was heavy on research, and after graduating, my biggest fear was actually losing those opportunities. I wanted to position myself in a way that I could stay connected, and being able to teach the research courses at UTEP helped me do that,” she said.
While building and maintaining connections to the OTD faculty at Nova Southeastern and the NIH Clinical Center where she completed her capstone, Alvarado realized that she wanted to do more of her own research, so she embarked on a second doctorate – a PhD from Texas Woman’s University – which she began in 2023. Her research focuses on occupational identity and how what people do shapes who they are.
“My goal is to remain licensed but also to build projects that connect to a clinical population. I want to do clinical research that benefits the population and really work at that intersection of research and practice,” she said.
Alvarado began teaching for UTEP full time this fall. She says the most meaningful part of teaching is having students bring their lived experiences into the classroom, where everyone can learn from their perspectives. She also says that she tells her students if they’re ever stuck in an elevator with her, to just begin talking about traveling and places they would like to visit.
“I’ve found myself in many places that I never believed I would see in person, beginning with a trip to Ireland as an undergraduate through the Global Enrichment Student Enrichment Experience at UTEP,” she said. “As an occupational therapist, I find myself watching people wherever I am and wondering about how they go about their daily lives and what brings them meaning, which I think is just a great way to live.”
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Go Miners!
For more information about the Doctor of Occupational Therapy Program, please visit: www.utep.edu/chs/ot.
