CPERL Sponsors and Celebrates Research Engaged Practice

CPERL is thrilled to start 2022 with milestone moments for three team members at different phases of pursuing their research engaged practitioner trajectory in occupational therapy (OT).

Julia submitted her Occupational Therapist Centralized Application Service (OTCAS) application to pursue graduate study in OT. This process included compiling transcripts, references, test scores, and OT observation hours. Additionally, Julia wrote a powerful personal statement and school specific essays about why she seeks to join the OT profession. Julia has already been invited to interview at multiple programs en route to making decisions this Spring.

Zuri got accepted into the MS/OTD program at UIC. Zuri describes, "The mentorship experience I had within my honors college capstone project drew me to pursue a doctoral degree, as this helped me to understand the differences between the PhD and OTD paths. I am choosing the OTD as my advanced degree because it will help me to be situated in clinical practice but have the advanced knowledge and skills that I need to be recruited into research teams that build new evidence around how to do inclusive OT practice."

Vivian was recently named the "2021 Clinician of the Year" at Easterseals Academy Chicago. This award was voted on by administrators, clinicians, teachers, and staff members at Easterseals. Vivian completed her Level II fieldwork at Easterseals as an occupational therapy student, continued her involvement as a part-time employee during her OTD program, and joined the clinical team full-time in Fall 2020. She shares, "This award means so much to me as it was voted on by my colleagues. I am honored to have the opportunity to be a research-engaged practitioner through my work at both Easterseals and CPERL."

Congratulations to Julia, Zuri, and Vivian on achieving new professional heights for this valuable career trajectory in our profession.