About Maria Steffen OTR/L

Maria has been an occupational therapist since the fall of 2021, after graduating with a Master of Occupational Therapy degree at Colorado State University. Before returning to school to obtain this degree, Maria had previously earned a Bachelor of Science Nursing degree at Illinois State University and a Master of Applied Family and Child Studies degree at Northern Illinois University, before discovering the diverse and transformative field of occupational therapy. Her first job as an occupational therapist was at Easterseals Crossroads in Indianapolis, IN, where she gained valuable experience as a pediatric OT in school and outpatient settings. 

She transitioned to working at Moving On in the summer of 2022, as it had been a long-term dream of hers to learn more about how to work with and make a difference for children who have experienced trauma. Maria has always had a passion for working with children and their families, and she has had various work and volunteer experiences that have allowed her to work with children of all ages over the years. Some of these include working as an infant/toddler teacher in a daycare, an assistant teacher in a preschool classroom, a houseparent in a residential group home setting for adolescents and teens, a summer camp counselor for school aged children, and a child life volunteer in various pediatric units in hospitals. She earned a Trauma Counseling Certificate from the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee’s School of Continuing Education in June of 2023. 

Maria commutes to and from Moving On from a suburb of Chicago where she grew up. She is happy to be living closer to her family again since moving back to the Midwest from Colorado and especially loves being able to spend more time with her 5 young nieces and nephews, who are growing up quickly. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time in nature, traveling, painting, trying new recipes, jogging,

 going to the movies, serving at her church, spending time with friends, and cuddling with her cat. She also enjoys trying new and different foods every so often, especially desserts, with her favorite being a tie between a slice of chocolate flavored cheesecake

 or a bowl of chocolate peanut butter ice cream with whipped cream on top.