Avery Fornaciari is an entry-level third year student in the 2023 cohort of Western New England University’s (WNE) Doctor of Occupational Therapy (OTD) program. Ms. Fornaciari graduated from Southern Connecticut State University in May of 2020 with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and a minor in Social Science and Medicine. In her undergraduate career, Avery Fornaciari was a 4-year division II collegiate swimmer and was a two-time captain. She was awarded Swimmer of the Year by the Northeast-10 conference (2020), the Scholar Athlete Sports Excellence Award (2020), and is a CSCAA All-American (2020). In the summers off from her studies Avery was a head lifeguard in her hometown and taught swim lessons locally. Her passion for water-based activities was multi-faceted then, and has only grown since pursing her degree in Occupational Therapy.

During her time at WNE she has been involved in multiple of her program’s organizations as Co-Chair of Coalition of Occupational Therapy Advocates for Diversity (COTAD) WNE Chapter, Co-Chair of Pre-Occupational Therapy Committee, and Social Media Coordinator for both Interprofessional Student Alliance and Inspired Minds. In addition, she is a Graduate Assistant and a WNE OTD Student Ambassador.

Fornaciari was awarded the WNE OTD Student of the Year Award in May 2022 and the Excellence in Occupational Therapy Fieldwork Education honor in April of 2021. She was additionally inducted as a member of Pi Theta Epsilon for her academic achievement and leadership in 2021. 

To date, Avery is currently working on her Doctoral Capstone, which aims to provide well-rounded water safety education to caregivers. This site was developed to help support this mission and expand the populations this potentially life-saving information can reach.  She is also working on integrating the role of OT in developing swim programs and hopes to see the profession become more involved in community-based athletics. Avery continues to teach lessons and swim herself. In her spare time, she enjoys going out to eat, watching new movies with her family and friends, traveling, and discussing all things OT!