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Sleep is not a word Jenna Reisert knows. A UCF alumna, Reisert has not taken a break since she first stepped foot on campus, back in 2014. After graduating from the psychology program in three years, an entire year earlier than planned, she embarked on an insane gap year to \u201clive a life less ordinary\u201d before she returns to graduate school next fall.<\/p>\n
A member of the Burnett Honors College (BHC), the Psychology Honor Society, Best Buddies, the American Sign Language Club and the Pre-Occupational Therapy Organization (POTO) while she was a student, Reisert dedicated her time at UCF to laying a sturdy foundation for her future. She used every resource UCF offered to complement her education through internships and volunteer experience.<\/p>\n
\u201cI took a service learning class for credit, and learned about a lot of cool opportunities there,\u201d Reisert said. \u201cUCF has great programs that I was able to take advantage of, and the teachers and advisors I\u2019ve talked with have been incredibly knowledgeable and helpful.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Her three years at school found her as an intern at Freedom Ride, a horse-therapy facility, as a volunteer for Read 2 Succeed for two years through the BHC and as a teacher\u2019s aide in a science museum, where she worked with a young boy with autism. As part of POTO, she participated in Knight-Thon. Through them, she also learned about other work opportunities.<\/p>\n
\u201cJoining the Pre-Occupational Therapy club was so helpful to me, because it introduced me to people who had already gone through the process of finding jobs and internships, and had good advice,\u201d she said. \u201cI ended up volunteering in the therapy department at Nemours Children\u2019s Hospital for a year because of people I met through the club. I found out about CECO through there, as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Conductive Education Center of Orlando (CECO) is an organization that uses the Hungarian method of Conductive Education, a multi-disciplinary approach to education and development, to specialize in helping children and adults with severe motor impairments.<\/p>\n
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\u201cI was paired one-on-one with a young child and worked with them throughout the day,\u201d she said. \u201cIt was the most challenging work I\u2019ve done, but also the most rewarding.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her experiences at UCF helped shape her decision and desire to become an occupational therapist.<\/p>\n
\u201cI originally considered a career in business or finance, because I felt they were good careers,\u201d Reisert said. \u201cLooking at my resume, though, I finally realized that working with children, especially those with special needs, was what I was truly passionate about.\u201d<\/p>\n
Occupational therapy focuses on developing fine motor skills and daily living ability, and can be tailored to whatever a client needs to work on to accomplish their full potential.<\/p>\n
\u201cI definitely think occupational therapy can change people\u2019s lives, and more and more research is constantly coming out which shows how beneficial it can be,\u201d she said. \u201cOne of the best things I feel people are doing with therapy degrees are early intervention programs.\u201d<\/p>\n
Early intervention programs focus on educating families who are having, or just had, a baby with special needs. The programs give information about the child\u2019s disability and what different resources or programs are available for the family.<\/p>\n
\u201cMany parents are overwhelmed when their child is born, and aren\u2019t aware of all the government assistance, community programs and therapy options available,\u201d Reisert said. \u201cEarly intervention ideally helps families learn the facts about a disability, so they can focus on what the child can<\/em> do and accomplish, rather than can\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n Occupational therapy isn\u2019t just for individuals with special needs, though. Adults who have lost their fine motor skills and members of the elderly community also utilize it. Reisert, though, chose the career mostly for her interest in working with kids.<\/p>\n \u201cI really liked the idea of being able to work one-on-one with children, to be able to see them progress during the years and be flexible with what they worked on in sessions,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n To become an occupational therapist, Reisert must attend a graduate program and obtain her master\u2019s degree in the field. But first, she\u2019s spending the year pursuing self-discovery and doing all she can to experience the world before going back to school.<\/p>\n \u201cI just want to see as much of the world and have as many crazy adventures as I can, while I\u2019m fortunate enough to be able to,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Her first adventure was an internship at Island Dolphin Care- a facility that combines dolphin training with recreational and behavioral therapy.<\/p>\n \u201cI had been interested in it for a year, but I didn\u2019t know if I would have the time commitment required,\u201d Reisert said. \u201cSo when I decided to take a year off, it was the first thing I knew I wanted to do.\u201d<\/p>\n While there, Reisert worked directly with clients. She learned a series of behavioral techniques to use with children, and experienced taking observational notes. The facility also had programs working with adults who were stroke victims or veterans. As someone who typically works with children, Reisert used those times to expand her perspective on life.<\/p>\n And of course, there were dolphins. Reisert helped train and take care of the creatures as part of the internship. \u201cOne day, I was able to have my own bucket of fish and my own dolphin, with no trainer behind me helping me,\u201d she said. \u201cI did various signals to keep him entertained and rewarded him with the fish when he did the tasks correctly. My dream when I was younger was to be a dolphin trainer, so it was a surreal experience for me.\u201d<\/p>\n When the internship ended, Reisert found herself traveling to Europe alone for some much-needed time off.<\/p>\n \u201cMost of my life, I\u2019ve made my decisions about what to do next by what would look good on my resume,\u201d she said. \u201cThe idea of traveling somewhere really appealed to me because I would have time to relax and make it all about what I wanted to do. It was easily one of the best decisions I\u2019ve ever made.\u201d<\/p>\n Despite being alone, Reisert used social media to make friends and find events to go to. Her decisions abroad were governed by the motto she has applied in her daily life.<\/p>\n \u201cThe motto I\u2019ve adapted over the past two years is just \u2018to live a life less ordinary,\u2019\u201d she said. \u201cI first heard this quote years ago when Benedict Cumberbatch used it, and it has become my inspiration.\u201d<\/p>\n To Reisert, this quote means saying yes to as many adventure opportunities as possible to help her grow. If she has the choice between an \u2018ordinary\u2019 or traditional path, something she\u2019ll have the chance to do later in life, she wants to choose the \u2018less ordinary.\u2019<\/p>\n \u201cI tend to get caught up in the timing of when I \u2018should\u2019 be doing things: getting a career, settling down in one city, getting married,\u201d Reisert said. \u201cBut I still want to develop as a person before I start the next chapter of my life. I\u2019m still figuring out for myself what my personal goals are, something I\u2019m hoping to get closer to during this year off.\u201d<\/p>\n When she isn\u2019t traveling this year, Reisert will be spending the rest of her time off continuing to work toward her career in occupational therapy.<\/p>\n \u201cI just completed the coursework to be a registered behavior technician,\u201d she said. \u201cHopefully I\u2019m going to pass the couple of tests needed to get board certified, and I can start working right away with kids with special needs.\u201d<\/p>\n She will be applying to graduate schools at the same time, hoping to continue the education path she started at UCF.<\/p>\n \u201cEven though UCF didn\u2019t have an occupational therapy program, the advisors were still helpful and a good resource for finding out about other programs,\u201d Reisert said. \u201cI\u2019m really glad I chose UCF for my undergraduate degree.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Sleep is not a word Jenna Reisert knows. A UCF alumna, Reisert has not taken a break since she first stepped foot on campus, back in 2014. After graduating from the psychology program in three years, an entire year earlier than planned, she embarked on an insane gap year to \u201clive a life less ordinary\u201d […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":53,"featured_media":22758,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[31,38,13,22,28,29],"tags":[169,5365,5375,5364,515,5370,5374,5373,1680,5372,5376,5369,5371,5367,5366,2783,5363,5368,3457,3698],"class_list":["post-22756","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-alumni-news","category-breaking-news","category-news","category-psychology-departments","category-top-news","category-ucf-news","tag-alumna","tag-american-sign-language-club","tag-benedict-cumberbatch","tag-best-buddies","tag-burnett-honors-college","tag-conductive-education-center-of-orlando","tag-europe","tag-gap-year","tag-internship","tag-island-dolphin-care","tag-jenna-reisert","tag-knight-thon","tag-occupational-therapy","tag-poto","tag-pre-occupational-therapy-organization","tag-psychology","tag-psychology-honor-society","tag-read-2-succeed","tag-ucf","tag-undergraduate"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2018\/01\/IMG_3614-1024x756.jpg\")
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