Hi! My name is Mary Laurita, and I am an OTD student at Tufts University and have a Bachelor’s degree in Neuroscience and Education from Bowdoin College. The water has always been my happy place. I grew up playing in the waves at the beach with my family and swimming competitively. At Bowdoin, I swam all four years, earning All-American, Scholastic All-American, and All-NESCAC honors, and served as captain my senior year. During my first year of graduate school at Tufts, I helped my team win the NESCAC Championship for the first time in our program’s history, and I competed at the NCAA Championship. 

 

I began swimming with children with developmental differences when I was 12 years old through a recreational program in which volunteers play and swim with children with autism. Initially, I simply loved swimming and enjoyed helping children; however, in witnessing how this program brought such gratification to its participants, their families, and its volunteers, I quickly knew that I aspired to work professionally with children with disabilities, ultimately leading to my interest in OT. While at Bowdoin, I coordinated a similar program that provides children with special needs the opportunity to swim one-on-one with a member of Bowdoin's Swim & Dive Team. Over three years, I grew this program from serving one child to including nearly a dozen pairs of athletes and children. I look forward to working with you and sharing my love of the water to have some safe fun in the pool. :)