Today we’d like to introduce you to Lisa Jacovsky

Hi Lisa , it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?

I started working in daycares from the time I was 19 years old. I moved my way up from part-time to full-time assistant to lead to director of a daycare. There was a time when I thought I would never be able to start my career and leave daycare. Because of this feeling of being stuck, I decided to work on my master’s degree. That is how I found applied behavior analysis. I continued to apply for jobs and used what I learned in my master’s to obtain my first job in the field in 2014. It became easier to go to work. It was not hard to wake up on a Monday and go to work anymore. I thought this was my career for life because of how much I loved it. After a year I realized I was not happy at the company I was working for but I decided to not let this stop me. I found another company but after four years of working as a behaviorist in residential group homes with adults, I became burnt out. I decided to work with kids doing in-home ABA. Working with adults I learned so much about the field, about ABA and mental health. It set the groundwork for where I am now. Working with children through in-home ABA I learned quickly I cannot be an assistant for long. I was working on passing the Board Certified Behavior Analyst certification. I did not pass and decided in 2017 to apply for the PhD in ABA as a way to help me pass. This program did so much more for me than I wanted it to. I never did pass but I was trained so well in research and how to be professional through this program. After a year in a half of doing in-home ABA, I switched to early intervention. I realized very quickly how stressful it was and how it was the same as in-home ABA just a different age group. I would spend 3 years in early intervention before being given my dream job: a chance to teach at the college level. This position changed my life and I am forever grateful for the chance I was given. I taught one class first and then from then on I taught three and continued in early intervention for another year. I was then given the chance to leave early intervention and work as a behaviorist in a school for the first time. At that time I had left my PhD program after realizing I no longer wanted to be in ABA. I decided to work on a second master’s degree with the full intention of obtaining my license in school psychology. I love teaching at the college level though that was hard with working in a school. After a year I was given an ultimatum to either choose teaching or the school. The school did not know I had gotten a job with Southern New Hampshire University, another dream, to teach online. Or that I had gotten an assistant faculty position with Strayer University. I had the full intention of staying in the school and making extra money but I was given the chance to leave on good terms and teach full time. I took it. I finally achieved my dream of teaching full-time. I had also begun my PsyD in school psychology and want to use it to teach master’s and doctorate level courses, including school psychology with consulting on the side. I pushed and tried everything I could in the field to see what I liked and enjoyed. Whenever I was unhappy I moved on or went back to school to further my learning. Every step I took brought me to where I am now. Being in the field of ABA influenced my award-winning children’s books. My No Limits with lisa jacovsky podcast gave me a foundation for teaching my two favorite courses: abnormal psychology and social research methods. It’s been a long road of 10 years but I am so proud of my journey and even more so where I am. When my students ask me how I did it, I always answer that I didn’t give up. I kept pushing, kept trying, and didn’t take no for an answer. If a school rejected me I applied again or self-published my books. Now I am the author of 9 award-winning books, one award-winning podcast, and a thriving career as a professor with students that made me cry three different days during finals. I am so thankful for the hard times because they not only made me stronger, but they made me keep pushing. I am working at three schools I would love to stay with for the rest of my career. And there is no end in sight for publishing books or my podcast. I am thankful for my career and where I am today and proud of the person I have become and the positive changes I am making in this world.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?

No, it has not been a smooth road. I’ve had to work with controlling and jealous supervisors in multiple companies. There have been other coworkers that were favored and I did not receive the support I needed which led me to be burnt out or just frustrated. Working in early intervention is a service fee. This means if you don’t have the session you do not get paid. Working in a field like that full-time is very difficult. There were too many days I would walk up to a house and no one would answer. Then I would call, and if they answered or responded, their response would often be “Oh I forgot to tell you..”. This meant not only did I not get paid but I also had an hour or more to kill. I went from salaried to fee for service starting with in-home ABA (which did not cancel as much) which was very difficult. I also had to work for multiple companies with in-home ABA and early intervention. This was due to how long it could take to receive a client and to stay full-time, I needed clients fast. With early intervention, it is family training and many families did not understand or maybe did not care about that. This means I am there to train the family, not provide 1:1 therapy. Many families wanted to sit on the couch and watch. Or they did not listen when I explained what I was doing and would not work on the techniques outside of the session. The work is based on the family and how much work they put into their child; not the early intervention therapist. When families did not understand this it made things a lot more difficult. Also, early intervention sessions are a lot of work. There is a lot of chasing the client and it is more play therapy than people realize. It can be exhausting and a very long day. There is a lot of pushback in this field which can make trying to train families or even work with the clients difficult too.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?

I am a full-time professor of psychology. I specialize in psychology and have been fortunate enough to teach a variety of different courses between an award-winning community college and SNHU online. I specialize in teaching research and abnormal psychology which is a mix of mental health and behavior. I am most known for my research course at UCNJ. It is the “dreaded” research course but at the end of it, the students always say they enjoyed it and some even say it was easy. I think what sets me apart is I don’t like to lecture. If I get bored with lectures then I don’t want to do that to the students. I also don’t believe in quizzes. I feel that’s just memorizing and regurgitating information. I do applied assignments that we go over after which start very interesting discussions.
I am also known for my award-winning children’s book series. These series are different in that they portray autism in a different view. I also have one book that is narrated by an individual with autism. And a series about cats with special needs.
I think I am most known for wanting to make a change through my work and inspire others. I think I am most proud of the students who come up to me and say I want to go into psychology because of you. And the parents that come up to me and say you helped me understand my child through your books.

Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?

Growing up I think I was always the quiet girl that was friends with everyone. I was that person that was dependable and loyal. I was kind and always there for my friends. I always had an interest in writing and have been writing short stories since I was seven years old. I always hated public speaking and still get anxious speaking in class but I think it would be a surprise to my younger self that I do record and live interviews and live book readings. I was also always the smart girl and I don’t think anyone is surprised I am working on my doctorate. I think I was always the quiet leader. The one that would step up when needed. I always loved animals growing up as well and I don’t think it is a surprise half my book series are about animals too. I always loved kids and always wanted to help others. i think my jobs as a professor and author suit my personality from when I was a kid to now.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: lisajayauthor
• Facebook: booksbylisajacovsky
• Other: tiktok – lisajayauthor