SWAGÊÓƵ

Dr. Benner joined the PT faculty in 2022 as the Assistant Director of Clinical Education and Assistant Professor. After teaching as an adjunct since 2017, she was motivated to transition to higher education fueled by a passion for life-long learning. She graduated from the SWAGÊÓƵ with a BS in Medical Biology in 2007, then completed her DPT from SWAGÊÓƵ in 2011. She specialized in working with adults with neurologic disorders, and received her Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Neurologic Physical Therapy in 2015. Her clinical experience includes in-patient rehabilitation at New England Rehabilitation Hospital of Portland where she was the program leader for the Brain Injury Team. In 2016 she transitioned to Northern Light Home Care with a passion for patient advocacy. She has a background working with children and adults with disabilities as a therapeutic horse-back riding instructor.

She is a strong believer in the importance and impact of clinical education. This has been ignited by her own exposure to valuable mentorship throughout her career. As a SWAGÊÓƵ alumna, active APTA member and Maine native, she is enthusiastic about student excellence and promotion of physical therapy both locally and nationally. Her interests outside the realm of physical therapy include spending time with her family, running, horse-back riding and skiing.