Sisterhood at Work: Alumna OT Speaks

Smiling affably and gesturing for emphasis, occupational therapist Jacqueline Carr highlighted her career for students at her alma mater, the Academy of the Holy Angels.

This special presentation, which was arranged by the AHA Office of Academic and College Counseling, is one of many ways the Academy’s sisterhood supports young women.

Students instantly connected with the 2004 AHA graduate and former dance team member, who emphasized the importance of pursuing a career while also including time for loved ones and avocations.

“I wanted to be in health care,” Carr said, sharing the story of a family friend who sustained a brain injury after a fall. While visiting her friend in the hospital, Carr saw something that changed her life.

“I saw a person giving OT,” she said of the person who helped her friend try to stand and squeeze a ball to build strength. “I saw them working together and thought, ‘I can do that.’”

An OT, she explained, helps patients who have experienced injuries and/or surgeries to get back to the functions they need to live their everyday lives as independently as possible.

Carr put her newly discovered interest into practice by shadowing a local health professional.

“You can do that,” she advised the students. “You can be an aide, and see if you like it.”

Eventually, Carr studied at Sacred Heart, where she earned her degrees and lent her talents to the university’s dance team. She continues to dance and teach other dancers.

“Make your choices with flexibility, and keep your hobbies in your life,” she told the Angels.

She noted that careers in health care allow people to work part time or on a per diem basis. Since Carr began working as an OT, she has assisted numerous clients at Kessler Rehabilitation and special education students from various schools. Today, she is an adviser to other OTs who work in her local public school system.

Carr noted that go-to tool is her planner/calendar. She writes down all of her tasks and checks them off as she completes them.

“The day can seem overwhelming, but if you plot out jobs in order and piece out your responsibilities, you will see where you have time to get things done,” Carr shared.

The students peppered Carr with insightful questions, including whether the classes she took at AHA had helped her. Carr explained that she found AHA’s anatomy class especially interesting and helpful.

One student asked about compensation. Carr pointed out that salaries increase as an individual gains experience and moves to different positions or different parts of the country. She pointed out that the cost of living can change dramatically from region to another.

“Be mindful of what you want,” Carr said.

Founded by the School Sisters of Notre Dame in 1879, the Academy of the Holy Angels is the oldest private girls’ school in Bergen County. While AHA is steeped in Catholic tradition, this prestigious school serves young women from many cultural and religious backgrounds. AHA’s current leaders continue to further the SSND mission to provide each student with the tools she needs to reach the fullness of her potential—spiritually, intellectually, socially, and physically, by offering a first-rate education in a nurturing environment where equal importance is placed on academic excellence, character development, moral integrity, and service to others.