Leslie Jackson

Academic appointments:

2012-May 2020 – Chicago State University, Chicago, IL
OT Program Coordinator, OT Department, 2017-May 2020
Assistant Professor, Occupational Therapy Department, 2017- May 2020
Academic Fieldwork Coordinator/Lecturer, 2012-2017

2006-2008 – Howard University, Washington, DC
Adjunct Faculty, Occupational Therapy Department

Other Experience:

2012-2017 – Palos Community Hospital, Palos Heights, IL
Registry Occupational Therapist (acute care)

2006-2011 – Easter Seals, Inc., Chicago IL
SCSEP Quality Compliance Manager, 2010-2011
Family Support Project Coordinator, 2009-2010
Director, Training Modules for Inclusive Child Care (TMICC) Project, 2006-2009

1993-2006 – American Occupational Therapy Association, Bethesda MD
Practice Associate, Practice Department, 1993-2006
Federal Affairs Representative, Federal Affairs Department, 1998- 2006

1990-1993 – University of Illinois @ Chicago, Chicago IL
OT Research Assistant/Project Coordinator

1987-1990 – Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, Chicago IL
Pediatric Occupational Therapist

1984-1987 – LaSalle County Easter Seal Center, Ottawa IL
Lead Occupational Therapist

1982-1984 – LaGrange Area Department of Special Education, LaGrange IL
Itinerant School Occupational Therapist

• American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA)
• Illinois Occupational Therapy Association (ILOTA)
• Iowa Occupational Therapy Association (IOTA)

• Chairperson, AOTA Bylaws, Policies, and Procedures Committee (BPPC)
• Corinthian Baptist Church Board of Trustees: Jan. 2023 - present
• Chicago State University OT Advisory Board: Nov. 2021 - present
• Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center Northwestern Memorial Hospital Patient and Family Advisory Board, Chicago: 2017 - present
• Lane Tech High School Alumni Association Board of Directors, Chicago: Jan. 2020 - Dec. 2022

• Execution Committee (faculty representative): Fall 2022 - present
• CAC: July 2021 - present
• Faculty Affairs Committee: Fall 2022 - present
• Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee: Fall 2021 - present

• Drake University Slay Fellow for Social Justice: Fall 2022 - present
• Dr. Percy L. Julian Award for Community Service, Operation Uplift, Inc. (Maywood, IL): 2020
• AOTA Roster of Fellows: 2009

As an occupational therapist, I am trained to watch and observe people - what they do and how they do it – as I try to discover the why of what they do.  What drives individuals to engage in specific every day activities (what we call “occupations”)? What motivates them to persist in the face of myriad obstacles and struggles? And what are the factors that support and/or hinder successful performance which results in a sense of mastery/competence over their environment and confidence to move forward? These are the questions that drive my efforts as teacher.

I see my role as that of facilitator, to help the learner discover what they do and do not know, why this is important, how it applies to what they need to know and what they need to do, and how to build on it. Being a facilitator implies that I am intentional in what I want my students to know in order to design my courses effectively, including how I will measure student learning and how I teach my courses.

I highly value critical thinking and problem solving. My primary goal for all of my students is that they understand what they are learning and when and how to apply it, rather than focusing on a grade. When students are able to think critically about a given situation to consider all of the options and determine the most appropriate course of action for any client, then I believe I have achieved my goal.

Scholarships for Disadvantaged Students (2020). Health Resources and Services Administration, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Funded for $3 million over five years (Chicago State University).

• Jackson, L. (in process). Common pediatric settings. Manuscript submitted to Jane O’Brien and Heather Kuhaneck’s (Eds), Case-Smith’s Occupational Therapy for Children and Adolescents, 9th edition.
  
  
• Tarfa, A., Kjos, A.L., Williams, R.M., and Jackson, L. (in process). Impact of teaching social determinants of health on PIF in the health professions. Manuscript submitted to the American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education.
  
  
• Jackson, L., Bye, K., Drumm, D., Elizondo, M. & Murphy, J. (2019). Student perspectives on using evidence and occupation-based practice on Level II fieldwork [research abstract]. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 73, Supplement_1, DOI: 10.5014/ajot.2019.73S1-PO2031.
  
  
• Jackson, L. (2019). Best practices in supporting students with a 504 Plan. In G.F. Clark & B.E. Chandler’s (Eds.), Best Practices for Occupational Therapy in Schools (2nd Ed.). Bethesda, MD: AOTA Press.
  
  
• Rioux, J. & Jackson, L. (2019). Best practices in determining a workload approach. In G.F. Clark & B.E. Chandler’s (Eds.), Best Practices for Occupational Therapy in Schools (2nd Ed.). Bethesda, MD: AOTA Press.

• 2023: Discovering the Unexpected Gem of Open Educational Resources (Y. Griffiths & L. Jackson). Poster presentation accepted for AOTA 2023 Inspire Conference in Kansas City.
  
  
• 2019: Student Perspectives on the Use of Evidence and Occupation-Based Practice During Level II Fieldwork (student research group). Poster Presentation at American Occupational Therapy Association 2019 Annual Conference, New Orleans, LA.
  
  
• 2018: Student Perspectives on the Use of Evidence and Occupation-Based Practice During Level II Fieldwork (student research group). Poster Presentation at Illinois Occupational Therapy Association Conference, Naperville, IL.
  
  
• Student Impact on Fieldwork Educator Use of Evidence and Occupation-Based Practice During Level II Fieldwork. Poster Presentation at American Occupational Therapy Association 2018 Annual Conference, Salt Lake City, UT.

• 2022-2023: SoTL on use of telepresence robots in occupational therapy education.
  
  
• 2021-2022: Occupational Therapy Education and Training for In-Home Caregivers. Faculty mentor: Cummings, S., Dmyterko, A., Ehm, J., Merrill, J., & Sutton, D.
  
  
• 2019-2020: Perceived Impact of Anxiety on Occupational Therapy Student Success on Level II Fieldwork (Part 2). Faculty mentor for Bris, A.M., Carter, H., Chaudry, T., Chew, C., Olatunji, O., & Patel, A.
  
  
• 2018-2019: Perceived Impact of Anxiety on Occupational Therapy Student Success on Level II Fieldwork (Part 1). Faculty mentor for Barton, K., Biore, G., Klimova, E., Krause, A., & Munoz, J.
  
  
• 2017-2018: Student Perspectives on the Use of Evidence and Occupation-Based Practice During Level II Fieldwork. Faculty mentor for Bye, K., Drumm, D., Elizondo, E. & Murphy, J.

• Management & administration
• Project and grant management
• Teaching and learning
• Writing for publication
• Grant writing
• Program development
• Community engagement

Widow; 5 children, 8 grandchildren