I have been a pediatric occupational therapist in a variety of settings, including early intervention, preschool, school-based therapy, private practice, and hospital care. Before joining Ithaca College, I worked as a senior-level Occupational Therapist at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, where I was the lead Occupational Therapist for the Amplified Musculoskeletal Pain Syndrome (AMPS) program. Locally, I have provided occupational therapy services to children from birth through high school as a service provider with the Tompkins County Department of Health, the Lansing Central School District, and in the Occupational and Physical Therapy Clinic at Ithaca College.
My passion for both pediatric occupational therapy and teaching in higher education led me to Universal Design for Learning (UDL). As an Occupational Therapist, I view human occupation—the meaningful activities we engage in every day—through the lens of creating the best fit between the person, their environment, and the activity. This perspective aligns perfectly with UDL, which is designed to optimize teaching and learning for all students based on how humans learn (CAST, 2018). Using UDL as a foundation, I have developed and redesigned higher education courses that focus on learner agency, flexibility, and universal support.
The connection between UDL and Occupational Therapy inspired me to continue my own learning journey. I completed a 15-week UDL course through CAST (formerly the Center for Applied Special Technology) and went on to earn my doctoral degree in education (Ed.D.), focusing on leadership and teaching and learning in higher education. My dissertation explored the application of the UDL framework in higher education. I had the opportunity to present my research at the international UDL Implementation and Research Network (UDL-IRN) summit.
I am an active member of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) and the Universal Design for Learning Higher Education Network (UDLHE), and I love collaborating with others who are passionate about making learning more accessible and engaging for all students!
In life, I wear multiple hats - wife, mother of two children and multiple dogs, daughter, therapist, educator, and friend. I love Ithaca and Cayuga lake, you can often find me in or on the water, experimenting in the kitchen, or doing my best to keep my garden alive.