Toni (Schuster) Walski Occupational Therapy Scholarship

Toni lived in Madison and Badger Village (a community for married students’ families in the repurposed World War II Army Ammunitions Plant housing outside Baraboo) as a kid. She was raised a Badger. Her father received his Bachelor’s and Law Degrees from UW–Madison. He was hired by the Burlington Northern RR, therefore moving the family to the Chicago area. In high school Toni visited Cook County Hospital, ultimately deciding to pursue Occupational Therapy as a profession. Toni did fieldwork in Milwaukee (pediatrics), Minneapolis (rehab), New York City (GM&S), and the Washington D.C. area (psychology). These diverse field experiences enabled her to start the OT Department at St. Joseph’s Hospital/Marshfield Clinic and ultimately her commitment to OT Assistant education and a career at Madison College.

Toni’s advice for OT students is, “Just follow your joy, including OT. Retrospectively, it’s wonderful, mysterious, and mystical how the journey unfolds. You’ll be enriched through the many people you will meet— UW students, academic educators, fieldwork supervisors, clients (and their significant others), colleagues, etc.”

Eligibility Criteria
Scholarship support for a student in the Occupational Therapy program.

Application Information
To match to, apply for, and accept scholarships, students login to the Wisconsin Scholarship Hub (WiSH) using their UW–Madison NetID and password. Complete the general application and all recommended applications that follow to be considered for the widest variety of scholarship opportunities. For this specific scholarship, be sure to complete the Occupational Therapy Scholarship Application.