Thank you for your interest in the CU Sports Medicine and Performance Center Orthopaedic Physical Therapy Residency (CUSMPCOPTR)!

• What is a physical therapy residency?
  • Post-professional physical therapy education through one-to-one mentoring, structured curricular experiences, and guided learning designed to increase the quality of patient care and practitioner knowledge in specialty and subspecialty areas through best practices.
  • The curriculum encompasses the essential knowledge, skills, and responsibilities of an advanced physical therapist within orthopaedic physical therapy practice.
  • The residency program prepares the physical therapist with the requisite knowledge and skill set needed to pass the American Board of Physical Therapy Specialties – Board Certified Clinical Specialist in Orthopaedic Physical Therapy Examination (OCS) following graduation.
  • As of 2020, only 6.5% of physical therapists are Board-Certified Orthopaedic Specialists (OCS) and only ~1% have completed orthopaedic residency training.

CU Sports Medicine and Performance Center Orthopaedic PT Residency

• Mission Statement
  • The mission of the CUSMPCOPTR is to develop the next generation of leaders in the field of orthopaedic physical therapy. These expert physical therapists will exemplify excellence in patient-centered care, advanced clinical reasoning, evidence-informed practice, effective communication, multidisciplinary collaboration, leadership, and lifelong learning.

• About our clinic
  • The CU Sports Medicine and Performance Center is a unique multidisciplinary clinic located in the CU football stadium in Boulder, CO. It is a non-profit joint venture between Boulder Community Health and CU Sports Medicine. We serve Boulder's active population across all ages and activities, providing care for complex cases, sports injuries, and both operative and non-operative conditions across all body regions.
  • Learn more about our clinic, the CU Sports Medicine and Performance Center

• About our program
  • Our program is an annual 50-week program
    • Cohort #1 will begin Jan 1, 2025 and complete on Dec 19, 2025
  • Clinical Mentoring
    • ~3.5-4.5 hours weekly at CUSMPC during patient care hours
    • All clinical mentoring will be performed by board certified specialists
    • Over the program residents will get at least ~175 mentoring hours 1:1 (resident, mentor) including at least ~150 1:1:1 mentoring hours (resident, mentor, patient)
  • Didactic Content
    • Residents will attend lecture/lab weekly from 2:30-5:30pm on Fridays
    • The residency program will utilize asynchronous pre-recorded content, assigned readings, and other self-paced activities to facilitate learning.
    • Some days will be purely didactic and may in clinic or virtually over zoom when interacting with out of state researchers, clinicians, and educators. Other days will have split lecture/lab
  • Research
    • Residents will engage in research involvement through a center sponsored research study or completion of three case reports
      • To advance the field and represent our clinic on the national level, residents will be encouraged to attend and present their findings at conferences (ex. American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) Combined Sections Meeting Annual Conference, American Academy of Orthopaedic Manual Physical Therapists (AAOMPT) Annual Conference, APTA Colorado Annual Conference, American College of Sports Medicine Annual Conference, etc) via poster presentation, platform, 5x5, etc.
    • Journal Clubs
      • Residents will be expected to lead at least 3 journal clubs per year.
      • Monthly scholarly presentations will help to keep the clinic informed of newest evidence as well as provide beneficial discussion of complex cases.
  • Accreditation Process
    • CUSMPCOPTR achieved candidacy status on September 30, 2024, from the American Board of Physical Therapy Residency and Fellowship Education (ABPTRFE). The program will be audited by ABPTRFE in mid-2025, with an accreditation decision expected by February 2026.

Please click here for access to the financial fact sheet.

• Application Information
  • Resident Requirements
    • Successful completion of a CAPTE accredited professional physical therapy curriculum or have had a state physical therapy board approve the applicant’s first-professional physical therapy program as “equivalent” to a US CAPTE accredited professional physical therapy program.
    • Colorado State PT licensure
      • This license must not be under suspension, revocation, probationary status, or subject to disciplinary proceedings or inquiry.
      • Current American Heart Association BLS Certification
      • APTA and Academy of Orthopaedic Physical Therapy (AOPT) membership
        • Required to purchase the AOPT Orthopaedic curriculum package (the standard for ortho residency education)
  • Application requirements
    • CUSMPCOPTR Resident Candidate application window is now open! The application window will close October 31, 2024.
    • We will conduct virtual Zoom interviews for candidates in early November and plan to hire by late November.
    • Ideally, residents will start as employees in mid-December 2025 to onboard, familiarize themselves with the EPIC documentation system, shadow in MD clinics and surgeries, and gradually ramp up patient care before the educational program begins in January.
    • Please email your completed applications to kyle.denlinger@cuanschutz.edu. There is NO fee to apply.
    • In the email, please enclose the following:
      • Resume/Curriculum Vitae
      • Letter of Intent (750 word maximum) addressing the following:
        • Statement of current licensure and professional employment status.
        • A narrative summary of prior clinical and educational experience.
        • Personal goals and objectives for the orthopaedic residency.
        • A narrative self-assessment of orthopaedic clinical strengths and weaknesses.
        • Statement of resident’s short- and long-term goals for orthopaedic practice following successful completion of the residency.
        • Statement on why CUSMPCOPTR would be the best fit for you and why you would make an ideal candidate
      • Three letters of recommendation including at least 2 of the 3 following options:
        • Current or former physical therapist supervisor (or CI, if a recent graduate with less than 6 months experience).
        • Instructor or faculty member from a CAPTE-accredited physical therapy program, or a mentor from an accredited orthopaedic physical therapy residency.
        • A physician with whom the applicant has collaborated within the past year in clinical care, research, or physical therapy education.
  • Residency Faculty
    • Core Faculty
      • Kyle Denlinger PT, DPT, OCS, SCS, CSCS, FAAOMPT
        • Program Director
      • Calvin Cook PT, DPT, OCS, COMT, FiT
        • Site Coordinator
      • Kate Martin PT, DPT, MS, SCS
        • Research Coordinator
    • Clinical Faculty
      • Eric Gustafson PT, DPT, OCS, SCS, CSCS
      • Max Lepage PT, DPT, OCS
      • Lara Baum PT, DPT, OCS, FAAOMPT
      • Kelli Baggett PT, DPT, OCS, FAAOMPT
    • Adjunct Faculty
      • Emily Becker PT, MS, EdD
      • Alex Bengtsson PT, DPT, OCS, FAAOMPT
      • Helene Bengtsson PT, DPT, OCS, WCS, CAPP-Pelvic
      • Nicole Bettin PT, DPT
      • Leanna Blanchard PT, DPT, CLT, OCS, FAAOMPT
      • Rachel Brakke-Holman MD
      • Pawel Bronkowski PT, DPT, Retul Certified Bike Fitter
      • Sarah Burkhardt PT, DPT, OCS
      • Bradley Changstrom MD, CAQSM
      • Chad Cook PT, PhD, MBA, FAPTA, FAAOMPT
      • Carol Courtney PT, PhD, ATC, FAPTA, FAAOMPT
      • Joe DeHope PT, DPT, MS, OCS, CSCS
      • Katherine Denlinger PT, DPT, PCS
      • John DeWitt PT, DPT, ATC, SCS
      • Stephanie Di Stasi PhD, PT, DPT, SCS
      • Rachel Frank MD, CAQSM
      • James Heighway PT, DPT
      • Douglas Jowdy PhD
      • Adriaan Louw PT, PhD
      • Daniel Malone PT, PhD, CCS
      • Amanda McCarthy MS, RDN, CSSD
      • Eric McCarty MD, CAQSM
      • Sarah McAuliffe PT, DPT, OCS, FAAOMPT
      • Amy McDevitt PT, DPT, PhD, OCS, FAAOMPT
      • Kenneth Miller MA, PT, DPT, PhD, GCS
      • Amanda Owen PharmD, BCPP, CACP
      • Matthew Pomeroy PT, DPT, OCS
      • Oliver Rivera PT, DPT, OCS, SCS, FAAOMPT
      • Christine Schauerte PT, MS, DPT, OCS, FAAOMPT
      • Ellie Smith PT, DPT
      • Mary Swayze PT DPT, OCS, USA Triathlon L2 Coach
      • Aryn Taylor PhD, CRC, LPCC
      • August Winter PT, DPT, FAAOMPT
      • Bryce Zaffarano, PT, DPT, OCS, FAAOMPT
      • Katherine Zisk PT, DPT, OCS, FAAOMPT

Our Outcomes:

CUSMPCOPTR cohorts broken down into residents admitted, withdrawn, failed, & graduated

For more information, contact Kyle Denlinger at kyle.denlinger@cuanschutz.edu or 303-315-9951