ATSU-ASHS Occupational Therapy department hosts holiday switch-adapted toy event
Posted: December 24, 2025
The Occupational Therapy (OT) department at A.T. Still University-Arizona School of Health Sciences (ATSU-ASHS) continued their holiday season tradition with its annual switch-adapted toy giveaway on Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025.
Organized by instructor Kat Bauer, OTD, MS, OTR/L, ’23, students first learned how to switch-adapt toys from members of the Arizona Assistive Technology Access Program (AzTAP). Because electrical toys often demand fine motor movements, many children with disabilities find them hard to operate. Switch adaptation provides an alternative by enabling play through large, easy-access buttons.
Over 50 children signed up to receive a switch-adapted toy on the Mesa campus, where they also had the opportunity to meet Santa and some of his elves.
At the end of the event, the OT department delivered the remaining toys to the East Valley Family YMCA, giving children in their low-income daycare a chance to take photos with Santa and bring home a toy of their own.
Check out more photos below!
