Program Director
Chad Taylor, PT, DPT, ATC, CSCS -- Assistant Professor, Department of Physical Therapy, Virginia Commonwealth University taylotcc2@vcu.edu
Board Certified Clinical Specialist in Sports Physical Therapy
Board Certified Clinical Specialist in Orthopedic Physical Therapy
Chad joined VCU Sports Medicine in 2015. Chad enjoys working with all athletes, particularly those with injuries of the lower extremity and shoulder. He also performs biomechanical foot evaluations and casts patients for custom orthotics. He has a history of working with young adolescents up to professional athletes.
Chad holds the distinction of being a Board Certified Clinical Specialist in Sports Physical Therapy and Orthopedic Physical Therapy through the American Physical Therapy Association. Chad is also a certified athletic trainer through the National Athletic Training Association, as well as a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the National Strength and Conditioning Association. Chad is an assistant professor in the VCU Department of Physical Therapy where he teaches courses in musculoskeletal physical therapy. Chad serves as the Director of the VCU Sports Residency program. He is a member of the American Physical Therapy Association and its Sports Section.
Chad received his undergraduate degree in 1998 from the College of William and Mary. He earned his MSPT in 2001 and his DPT in 2007 from VCU.
Residency Coordinator
Cheryl Ford-Smith, PT, DPT, MS (cdfordsm@vcu.edu)
Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Neurologic Physical Therapy
Dr. Cheryl D. Ford-Smith is an Associate Professor in the Department of Physical Therapy, College of Health Professions at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) where she teaches Adult Neurological Physical Therapy among other courses. Cheryl is a practicing physical therapist with over twenty-five years of clinical and academic experience in neurological rehabilitation with specific expertise in the examination and treatment of individuals with neurological diagnoses and complex vestibular and balance disorders. She is a V2FIT Certified Competent Concussion Specialist. Her current research interest is in the effectiveness of vestibular rehabilitation methods for individuals with mild traumatic brain injury and post-concussion syndrome.
Dr. Ford-Smith received her undergraduate Physical Therapy degree from Old Dominion University, her Advanced Master’s degree from Virginia Commonwealth University and her DPT degree in 2007 from VCU.
Residency Faculty
Jaime Brooks, PT, DPT
Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Neurologic Physical Therapy
Jaime has clinical experience across the continuum of care, including acute care, inpatient rehab, day program, and skilled nursing facilities. However, the bulk of her time as a therapist has been in the outpatient setting at VCU for the past 8 years with a focus on the neurological patient population. Jaime's areas of interest include LE amputees, CVA, TBI, and Parkinson disease, but she sees a wide variety of diagnoses in her current position. Her skill set also includes seating clinic. Jaime also enjoys working with the VCU PT Department as a lab assistant, guest lecturer, and clinical instructor on a regular basis.
Jaime completed her undergraduate degree at Mary Washington College in 2000, and completed her DPT at VCU in 2004.
Zach Crump, PT, DPT
Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Neurologic Physical Therapy
Zach holds a Doctor of Physical Therapy degree from Old Dominion University and has 8 years of experience as a staff inpatient Physical Therapist. He is a member of the APTA's neurology section and has been board certified in neurological Physical Therapy since 2015. He is a contributing author on the iWalk Clinical Practice Guideline, which is an evidenced based guideline on how to utilize advanced technology for neurologically involved patients. He serves as a knowledge broker, where he utilizes his time to develop/perform clinical research, conduct technology training, and develop extra practice programs for stroke survivors. He also has an interest for increasing racial diversity within the allied health care field and facilitates experiential learning opportunities for middle, high school, and college students at his work place.
He has a beautiful wife and three children that he gets to share life with. He enjoys running, poetry, good hip-hop music, and reading journal articles with a fresh highlighter.
Morgan Eppes, PT, DPT
Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Neurologic Physical Therapy
Morgan has been with Sheltering Arms Outpatient Rehab since 2013. She is specializing in rehabilitation of neurologic disorders (Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, stroke, etc.) and currently part of the Multiple Sclerosis and Parkinson’s team at Bon Air. She is LVST BIG Certified which delivers a protocol specifically designed for physical rehabilitation of Parkinson’s Disease. She also specializes in gait recovery and orthotic assessment, including patients with amputations.
She graduated from JMU in 2009 with a Bachelor of Science degree, and then earned her Doctorate of Physical Therapy degree from Shenandoah University in 2013.
In her free time, she enjoys spending time with friends and family and checking out all the restaurants Richmond has to offer.
Megan Murphey, PT, DPT
Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Neurologic Physical Therapy
Megan has worked at VCU Health in inpatient rehabilitation since 2009. Her areas of clinical interest include treating patients with spinal cord injury, wheelchair prescription and positioning, stroke and traumatic brain injury. She became a board certified Neurologic Clinical Specialist in 2014. She has been a mentor for the residency program since 2015. She is a member of the American Physical Therapy Association as well as the Neurologic Section and Spinal Cord Injury Special Interest Group. In addition, Megan also participates annually in management of an overnight camp for adult survivors of traumatic brain injury that allows individuals with brain injury an opportunity for socialization and recreation as well as respite for their caregivers.
Megan received her undergraduate degree in 2006 from Virginia Tech and her Doctor of Physical Therapy in 2009 from Virginia Commonwealth University.
Stephanie Ross, PT, DPT
Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Neurologic Physical Therapy
Stephanie has been with VCUHS since 2006. She has worked across the spectrum of care, starting in acute care in the transplant and cardiac units, then transitioning to inpatient rehab, where she worked with the Brain Injury and Spinal Cord Injury teams for 7 years. In 2012, Stephanie moved to Outpatient rehab and in 2016, was the first therapist to start in the NOW clinic.
Stephanie enjoys working with patients of all ages with neuro diagnoses. She has worked closely with her colleagues to expand service, the wheelchair clinic, and treatments for patients with spinal cord injuries and progressive disorders. Stephanie holds the distinction of being Board-Certified in Neurologic Physical Therapy through the American Physical Therapy Association. She is also certified for Balance Wear Fitting, LSVT Big, and Neuro Development Treatment. Stephanie received her undergraduate degree in Biology from James Madison University in 2001. She received her DPT from VCU in 2004.
Amber Walter, PT, DPT, NCS
Board-certified in Neurologic Physical Therapy
Amber has been a physical therapist at Sheltering Arms since 2007 and has served as a mentor since 2015. She has worked in the inpatient and outpatient settings and is currently an outpatient therapist, knowledge broker, and research coordinator. She enjoys working with patients of varying ages and neurologic diagnoses. She has experience serving people with complex conditions, chronic deficits, and progressive conditions. She recently coordinated two clinical trials at Sheltering Arms to investigate use of an exoskeleton. Amber also led a team to implement a clinical practice guideline for use of advanced technology for gait recovery at Sheltering Arms and continues to be passionate about clinical knowledge translation for functional recovery in people with neurologic injury or illness.
Amber is an APTA credentialed clinical instructor and became an APTA board-certified Neurologic Clinical Specialist in 2012. She received the Clinical Excellence Award in Neurologic Physical Therapy in 2018. She has enjoyed giving national and international presentations on her work at Sheltering Arms.
Amber holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Virginia Commonwealth University, and she graduated with a Doctorate in Physical Therapy from Old Dominion University in 2017.
-380x87.png)