Prior to the creation of a dedicated physical therapy department at the Indianapolis campus, many Indianapolis hospitals employed physical therapists who worked closely with the IU School of Medicine. The need for programs in physical and occupational therapy education at the IU Medical Center was first recognized in the 1950s due to increasing requests from medical students for courses in allied health fields. In 1956, a bachelor of science program in physical therapy was established under the division of Allied Health in the School of Medicine. Frances C. Ekstam was appointed as the first Director of the new phyiscal therapy department in 1958. Ekstam previously served as the Director of Physical Therapy at the Riley Hospital for Children and worked closely with faculty at the medical center. A master of science in physical therapy education was esablished in 1967 to create more qualified physical therapy educators at the medical center to meet the growing demand for graduate programs in allied health fields. In 1969, a master of science program in physical therapy was established. The Department of Physical Therapy is currently under the IU School of Health and Human Sciences, previously known as the School of Allied Health and the School of Health and Rehabiliation Sciences.