Keri Donovan, left, NeArc residential supervisor, with Julie Parisi, after Parisi received a continuing education scholarship.
When Julie Parisi thinks about her role at Northeast Arc, one word comes to mind: Family.
“It’s become my entire life now,” said Parisi, who serves as a program director on the residential team. “My favorite part is spending time with the individuals. They’re part of my family. They’ll go to my kids’ school plays and dance recitals, and cookouts with us. I genuinely love them so much and love spending time with them. They bring all the joy to the job.”
Parisi has been with Northeast Arc for 14 years, having started as a per-diem direct support professional. She then worked overnight shifts at Magnolia House, a residential home for young women in Gloucester, and later became assistant director of the Beverly House. Since 2018, she has been at the Cape Ann Community Residence, a house in Gloucester with four residents. She serves as director not only of that residential program, but of the per-diem program as well.
“I spend half of my time at the house and half of my time at the office doing paperwork and training,” she said. “I try to train my staff in the approach that I took — it’s not a job, it’s a career, and you can move up.”
Parisi recently received a continuing education scholarship from the Association of Developmental Disability Providers, which she can use to pursue additional education opportunities. She just earned her associate’s degree in developmental disabilities and is planning to go for her bachelor’s in nonprofit management or human resources management.
Parisi says a career in healthcare was actually a pivot from her original plans, but it put her in the right place.
“I originally had a degree in business management,” she said. “But then my grandmother had a stroke, and as I’d be sitting with her in the hospital, a CNA [certified nursing assistant] would come in and sing to her. I wanted to be that person, to go in and take care of someone else’s grandmother when they needed it most.”
Before joining Northeast Arc, Parisi worked as a CNA in a nursing home and hospital.
In addition to her daily responsibilities, Parisi is also certified as an end-of-life doula and is a Dementia Friends Champion. As such, she is qualified to facilitate training to help people better understand dementia and the small things they can do to make a difference for people living with it. She will be presenting a national webinar on dementia in populations with intellectual and developmental disabilities for the National Task Group on Intellectual Disabilities and Dementia Practices.
Parisi’s husband, Jared, also works for Northeast Arc as the assistant director of the Gloucester men’s residence. The couple has two children, the oldest of whom is studying to go into the healthcare field as well.