Anna Harper

Anna is the Executive Director of Partners in Opportunity (PIO) and oversees the organization’s strategic direction, growth, and overall operations. Anna is a passionate advocate for underprivileged children in her community and abroad. During her 14 years as a pediatric physical therapist at Children’s Health Dallas, and in her work in the Dominican Republic, she worked with low-income and uninsured patients and their families to improve health outcomes through physical therapy.

Anna has an extensive background in program development, having launched and nurtured a series of initiatives throughout her career. In 2009 she co-founded Propel DR, a nonprofit which aims to improve quality of care in the Dominican Republic through clinical skills training and capacity building. Since inception, Anna and her team have provided training to 4,000+ Dominican healthcare professionals across 7 partner rehabilitation centers, clinics, and hospitals. While at Children’s Health Dallas, Anna was the lead PT in the development of the LEAN Families program, a 12-week intervention for families and children struggling with obesity. During her time at The Rise School—where she served sixty 6-month to 6-year-old children, the majority with Down syndrome—she wrote the curriculum for the year-round therapy intervention program.

Anna holds a Bachelor of Science from Wake Forest University and a Masters of Physical Therapy from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. She is a Board Member of Mission Emanuel.