HHS Grads Earn Doctorates in
Physical Therapy
Former Huntington High School teammates Jillian Beck and Alyson Steele recently earned doctorates in physical therapy at Stony Brook University.
Dr. Beck is a 2005 Huntington graduate. She went on to star on the Iona College lacrosse team, obtaining an undergraduate degree in 2009. “I decided to become a physical therapist because I played NCAA Division I lacrosse and saw teammates get injured as well as having experienced injuries of my own, which required rehab,” she said. “I did an internship in the athletic training office and fell in love with the environment of helping athletes regain their strength and courage to return to their sport.”
In 64 lacrosse games at Iona, including 52 starts, the Huntington alum notched 57 goals and 29 assists from her attack position. She obtained a BS degree in biology with a pre-physical therapy concentration.
“I decided to apply to physical therapy schools around Long Island so that I would be close to home,” Dr. Beck said. “Stony Brook is a renowned program that has state of the art facilities, excellent passing rates for the national boards and an excellent reputation.”
Dr. Beck is currently working at Island Sports Physical Therapy on Oakwood Road in Huntington, just one mile south of her alma mater. “Island Sports focuses on sports specific training, pediatrics, spinal rehabilitation, orthopedic and sports injuries,” she said.
Dr. Steele graduated with Huntington’s Class of 2006 before heading off to Florida State University, where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in 2010. Focusing on physiology during her time at FSU and being an athlete her entire life led the former Blue Devil star to pursue a career in physical therapy.
“I chose Stony Brook University for its dense neurological physical therapy focus in its curriculum and for its excellent health sciences reputation, as well as its local connections to the Long Island area,” Dr. Steele said. She is currently working for South Shore Neurologic Associates in Patchogue, which specializes in neurological diseases, including Multiple Sclerosis and Parkinson’s, vestibular therapy and chronic pain management.
“I kept in touch with Alyson, even though we parted ways during our undergrad studies,” Dr. Beck said. “When we found out we both got accepted by Stony Brook, it was a non-brainer. It gave me the opportunity to have a study partner and someone to commute with every day.”
The two Huntington grads have been friends since Dr. Steele was in first grade and Dr. Beck was a second grader. “We began playing Cold Spring Harbor/Huntington soccer, where Alyson’s father was our coach and PAL Huntington lacrosse,” Dr. Beck said. The pair co-captained Huntington’s girls’ basketball team during the 2004/05 season.
The former Blue Devil teammates earned their doctorate degrees at Stony Brook by completing a very difficult full-time, three-year program consisting of 141 academic credits.