Executive Board
Jenna is the Supervisor of Child Life and Creative Arts Therapy at Nemours Children’s Hospital in Orlando. Jenna has her Bachelor’s from UCF and her Master’s from Nova Southeastern and has come full circle to be an adjunct professor at UCF for the child life course! Her favorite part about being a CCLS is meeting kids where they’re at and helping them overcome big hurdles they think they can’t (this is also her fave part of being a supervisor!) She loves helping others grow and develop into the best versions of themselves. Jenna values the importance of self-care, so during her free time, she refills her cup by binge-watching reality TV, boating, kayaking, or hiking with her dogs and husband!
Allison is a CCLS in the NICU at Winnie Palmer Hospital and the adult ICU at Orlando Regional Medical Center in Orlando Florida. Before transitioning to this role, she spent the last eight years in the Emergency Department at Arnold Palmer. Allison has been a part of the planning committee for the last few years and is excited to be on the Executive Board serving in this new role with FACLP. When she is not working you can find her running or at Disney!
Sarah is a Certified Child Life Specialist at Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital, where she has worked for over 4 years in the cardiac unit. She is a Sunflower Award and Patient First Award Winner. Sarah also holds leadership positions on various committees within her department such as bereavement, staffing, and animal-assisted therapy. She is a proud handler of JDCH’s facility dog, Freedom, and loves utilizing him to meet therapeutic goals with her patients. Her favorite moments as a child life specialist are providing procedure preparation and witnessing her patients have their “ah-ha” moment once all of their worries, questions, and misconceptions have been addressed. In her free time, Sarah enjoys running, playing pickleball, and spending time with loved ones. Sarah is a dedicated member of FACLP and has been selected as a presenter for the past 3 years. Additionally, she is serving on the hospitality committee for this year’s 2022 conference. Her colleagues would describe her as passionate, bubbly, and innovative.
For the past 24 years as a Certified Child Life Specialist, Susan has worked in different capacities serving children and families across the state of Florida. As a graduate of Florida State University, she has worked as an in-patient CCLS at Wolfson Children’s Hospital and served as a leader in four different not-for-profit organizations, including Give Kids the World, Deliver the Dream, the American Cancer Society, and Camp Boggy Creek. Currently, as the Director of Development and Outreach at Camp Boggy Creek, Susan uses her skills and talents to help create awareness about Camp, develop new relationships, and support the mission in serving children with serious illness. She has volunteered with FACLP in many different roles – as a committee member, speaker, and now Treasurer. In her free time, she loves to travel, spend time with her family, and just be a mom to her two boys.
Sarah is a Certified Child Life Specialist and Primary Facility Dog Handler at Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida! Sarah graduated from the University of Central Florida and then earned her Master’s from Nova Southeastern University. She completed her internship at Golisano and was hired full-time following the completion of her internship. Sarah has worked at Golisano for 5 years, initially as the child life specialist in pre-op/OR and now as the child life specialist on the Hematology/Oncology unit. Working as a CCLS in the Hematology/Oncology department, she covers both the inpatient unit as well as the outpatient clinic and infusion area. Her facility dog, Lemon, works alongside her throughout the hospital to help patients accomplish their goals, as well as provide an alternate focus during procedures. Sarah has served on the planning committee for the past two years for FACLP and is now the current Webmaster & Social Media Coordinator.
Taylor has been a CCLS for over six years and has worked with many populations including PICU, burn, trauma surg, and hem/onc. She was also fortunate enough to be a facility dog handler while working in Florida! Taylor has been a part of FACLP for many years but has been the Development & Sponsorships Coordinator for the past two years. While she loved working in the hospital setting, she left the “traditional” field of child life and now works at the Iowa Donor Network as a Family Advocate in Des Moines, Iowa. She is still able to use her child life skills supporting families through the organ donation process by creating memory-making items, creating child-friendly grief resources, running support groups, and continuing to assess the level of support each family may need after their loved one’s death. In her free time, she loves to go on walks with her two pups, read, and binge reality tv!
Carly has the privilege of serving as this year’s FACLP Past President. Carly works as the Manager of Stewardship and Research at the Memorial and Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital Foundations. She previously worked as a CCLS at Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital in the PICU. She earned a Bachelor of Science from the University of Central Florida and a Master of Science from East Carolina University, and completed her child life internship at UCLA Mattel Children’s Hospital. She is also a child life adjunct instructor at Nova Southeastern University. In her free time, she enjoys working out, cooking, and spending time outside with her dog Lucky!
Callista is a recent UCF graduate. For as long as she can remember, she has been passionate about pediatrics, and she instantly fell in love once she discovered the world of Child Life. She wanted to make sure everyone knew about the magic that comes from Child Life and began spreading awareness around her community. Having the privilege of working with students in this profession is something she is so grateful for.
(If you are a student and have any questions about our organization or opportunities for student involvement, please email Callista.)
