The department is proud to congratulate the second-year Doctor of Physical Therapy students, Simone Norman, Lauren Struble, and Brittany Law, who were selected for this year’s INSPIRE Training grant. The Interdisciplinary Related Services Personnel Preparation for Early Childhood (INSPIRE) program draws applications from DPT students interested in treating children who have significant or multiple disabilities after graduation. The scholarship also covers one full year of tuition for each student.
Get to know the our new INSPIRE Scholars!
Simone Norman
What motivated you to apply for the INSPIRE grant?
Growing up and having a little cousin who was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy was intimidating at first since he couldn’t walk or talk, so it was hard to communicate with him. But as I spent time with him, I learned that it was such a blessing to have him in my life even if it was just for a short number of years. His name was T.I, and he was the sweetest little cousin who always had a smile on his face. Unfortunately, he passed due to an unknown cause. The family filed and won a malpractice lawsuit against his doctor for negligence. It was a sad and confusing experience for all of us, since we felt that it could have been prevented. That was the moment when I knew that I wanted to specifically become an early intervention Physical Therapist. I remember how the PT would come to his house to help him stretch out his fingers that would always be balled up and help uncross his legs that would get stiff in his wheelchair. It was such a mesmerizing experience! Now, I want nothing more than to be educated on how to help families and children like my little cousin.
Have you worked with children (with or without disabilities) before? Tell us about your experience.
I have a lot of experience working with children with and without disabilities. In high school, I was a after school care counselor at an elementary school where I also helped tutor the students. I was a part of an organization called Best Buddies in high school where I had the awesome opportunity of working with and hanging out with the students at my school with physical and mental disabilities. During my gap year before entering the PT program, I was a substitute teacher for elementary through high school. I also did some of my volunteer hours at an outpatient physical therapy clinic.
How did you become interested in pediatric physical therapy?
I have always had a natural gift of working with children. That combined with my experience has led me to pursue a career in pediatric physical therapy.
What are some of your expectations about the program, and in what ways do you think it will prepare you for your desired career path?
I was most excited to learn about interdisciplinary collaboration, and how to work with Occupational and Speech therapists. This is something that will be beneficial to know how to do regardless of the physical therapy setting! This program also prepared me to be able to build individualized care plans for the child and the child’s family to help meet the needs of that family. This coincides with the everyday responsibilities of a physical therapist; in that we are responsible for being able to properly evaluate and customize a plan of care for each individual patient.
Lauren Struble
What motivated you to apply for the INSPIRE grant?
I was motivated to apply for the INSPIRE program to receive additional training and experience in working with children with high intensity needs and their families.
Have you worked with children (with or without disabilities) before? Tell us about your experience.
What draws me to kids is their ability to be so carefree. I am passionate about working with kids with disabilities because I want help kids have the physical capabilities to be a free and happy-go-lucky.
How did you become interested in pediatric physical therapy?
I became interested in pediatric physical therapy when I was working as a rehab aide and a nanny. I realized then that I loved working with kids more than anything and wanted to combine my passion of physical therapy and working with kids.
What are some of your expectations about the program, and in what ways do you think it will prepare you for your desired career path?
Some of the expectations include taking additional course work, attending seminars and workshops, and completing a clinical experience in an early intervention setting. Post-graduation, it is a requirement to work in early intervention for a least 2 years within 7 years of graduation. I think having this additional education and experience that is not a standard part of the DPT curriculum will assist me in getting a job as an early interventionist as an entry level physical therapist.
Brittany Law
What motivated you to apply for the INSPIRE grant?
I often think about the honor clinicians have in serving patients during life’s most exciting and trying times. A healthcare provider’s impact is felt for years, and early intervention therapists work during the most vital time of a child’s growth and development. This critical time is so valuable in the improvement of a child’s health and well-being for the future. This INSPIRE grant, at the University of Florida is unique, and a wonderful way to receive mentoring and interdisciplinary training on how to work with children with high intensity needs and best support the child and their family.
Have you worked with children (with or without disabilities) before? Tell us about your experience.
From adolescence to adulthood, I have continued to participate in various volunteer opportunities working with children through mentorship, sports, and recreation events. It was during my undergraduate career at Georgia Southern University, I began to learn and work with children with disabilities through adaptive physical activity course work, pediatric cerebral palsy research, and volunteer at Camp RAD (Recreation for Adolescents with Disabilities). In addition, I was able to work intermittently with pediatric patients as a physical therapy technician at Accel Physical Therapy in Georgia prior to attending graduate school.
How did you become interested in pediatric physical therapy?
I believe every child deserves care, compassion, opportunity to grow, and the chance to accomplish their dreams. My previous experiences cultivated my passion to help these children and families meet individualized goals and improve quality of life. Seeing the positive impact therapy can have on individuals motivates me to continually pursue opportunities in this field. I look forward to providing best evidence-based care while promoting confidence, independence, adaptivity, diversity, and inclusiveness during clinical practice.
What are some of your expectations about the program, and in what ways do you think it will prepare you for your desired career path?
Coming into this program I expected to learn how to provide interdisciplinary services to children with high intensity needs and their families. It has exceeded my expectations through learning various coaching, evaluation, and treatment techniques I will be able to use in the future. It has been an invaluable learning experience to work alongside occupational therapy and speech language pathology students and faculty. I feel I will be able to build on this experience to continue to use effective communication and collaboration as I prepare to work on an interdisciplinary team during my career.
I am grateful for this learning and mentorship opportunity. I look forward to providing quality care through determination, passion, and understanding for this patient population, remembering the honor and privilege it is to be their clinician.