Lori T Andersen

Lori T. Andersen, EdD, OTR/L, FAOTA, author of "Eleanor Clarke Slagle: Mother of Occupational Therapy" and co-author of "The History of Occupational Therapy: The First Century", received her Bachelor of Science degree from Springfield College in Springfield, Massachusetts, her Master of Science degree in Occupational Therapy from the Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia, and her Doctorate in Education from Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. She is the author of several journal articles, book chapters, online continuing education courses, and presentations related to occupational therapy practice, professional issues, and professional education. In 2003, she was named a Fellow of the American Occupational Therapy Association for her contributions to the profession.

After earning her Masters Degree in Occupational Therapy, she worked in clinical service in rehabilitation hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, and home health, in staff and supervisory roles and as an independent contractor. In 1994, she was invited to join the faculty of a new OT program at Nova Southeastern University (NSU) in South Florida. Since 1994 she has worked in academia at NSU; Florida International University in Miami, FL; Brenau University in Gainesville, Georgia; and at Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers, FL.

Author's Perspectives

My longtime interest in history and genealogy prompted me to pursue writing a book on the history of occupational therapy in time for the Centennial Celebration of the American Occupational Therapy Association in 2017. As a young girl I enjoyed reading biographies and learning about people’s lives so while doing research for the book “The History of Occupational Therapy: The First Century”, I became fascinated by the people that gave the profession of occupational therapy its start and wanted to learn more about them. Mrs. Slagle was the most well-known of the six founders of the American Occupational Therapy Association, but in spite of her high profile, no comprehensive study of her life and activities has been published. In fact, little was known about her early life and information about her professional life is scattered in articles and reports published several years ago. To learn more about Mrs. Slagle’s life, I started to do more in-depth research using academic, archival, and genealogical resources.

For me, this type of research is, in part, about the thrill of the hunt and the joy in finding interesting facts and details and then putting the puzzle pieces together. Part of my research involved travel, something which I also enjoy. My travel included research trips to the Wilma West Library in Bethesda, Maryland where the American Occupational Therapy Association Archives are held and a trip to the Research Library at the Fenimore Art Museum in Cooperstown, New York. The Research Library in Cooperstown holds the John Davenport Clarke (brother of Mrs. Slagle) papers and family photos. Additionally, I took three trips to Delaware County, New York to visit the Village of Hobart and the Hobart Historical Society, the Delaware County Historical Association, and the Delaware County Court House.

At the Hobart Historical Society, I found the handwritten minutes of meetings of the Hobart Woman’s Civic Club which described the meetings in which Mrs. Slagle gave talks about her work. At the Delaware County Historical Society, I found the handwritten minutes of meetings of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) when Mrs. Slagle’s father, William J. Clark, was serving as Acting Adjutant and had recorded the minutes. At the Delaware County Court House in Delhi, I found probate papers and property records. In Hobart, Mrs. Slagle’s hometown, I was able to walk the streets where she walked, and I was able to see the locations where she was born, where she was married, and where she is buried.

As Mrs. Slagle left little in terms of personal papers, much of the information and evidence provided in this book comes from census records, church records, minutes of various associations and organizations, historical accounts in books and atlases, military and veterans' records, government reports, marriage and divorce records, school records, probate papers, telephone and business directories, resumes, letters, old photographs, and other archival records and newspaper articles. Some of these records and documents were obtained through my research trips and some from searches of records available on the Internet.

I learned a great deal about Mrs. Slagle’s personal and professional life and her many contributions to the occupational therapy profession. Mrs. Slagle has always been held in high esteem by those in the occupational therapy profession, including me, but through my research it became very clear why she is so deserving of this admiration and respect. With this book I hope to keep her spirit and memory alive and hope to instill in others a greater understanding and appreciation for all she has done.