Career in Control: Jennifer Carlson Blood Finds Niche in Dental Accounting

Written by Doug Goodnough

Jennifer Carlson Blood, ’07, was part of a seven-player recruiting class for Hillsdale College women’s basketball heading into the 2003-2004 season. The Chargers were coming off back-to-back NCAA Division II playoff appearances under then-Head Coach Claudette Charney and needed an infusion of talent.

Although Blood’s freshman season had Hillsdale take a step back in the win column, the final three seasons were winning ones for the Chargers. And just as important, six of Blood’s teammates from that class remain close nearly two decades later. However, when Blood arrived on Hillsdale’s campus as a freshman from Clarkston, Michigan, she wasn’t sure she was going to stay.

“When I first got to Hillsdale, I thought I had to come home immediately,” she said. “I’m more of a homebody. But once the season started, I became close with the girls on the team. That’s what it’s all about—the friendships that I made at Hillsdale. To this day, all six of us keep in touch. And that just means the world.”

A slick shooting guard who also could run the offense, Blood paired with teammate Jodi Haines to take care of Hillsdale’s ballhandling duties. In fact, Blood was a second team All-Great Lakes Conference selection her junior and senior years and is in Hillsdale’s top 10 in career steals (171) and 3-pointers made (183).

“Even through high school, I was always kind of the point guard/leader on the court, which I liked,” Blood said. “I guess I had good basketball smarts, where I was able to read the court, read the defense, read an offense, and make those decisions as a player. I always enjoyed being able to be somewhat in control.”

Since graduating from Hillsdale with an accounting degree, Blood remains in control of her career. She entered the field of dental accounting, working for more than a decade for other companies. In 2018, she founded her own company, Jennifer Blood CPA PC, which continues to serve the accounting needs of dental practices. She said the move allowed for more of a work/life balance, especially now that her three sons, ages 10, 7, and 6, are becoming more active.

“Accounting is accounting, but I tell everyone this: if you’re going to go into accounting, find a niche,” Blood said of her career strategy. “So my niche is dental, and you just learn all the ins and outs of running a practice.”

She runs most of her business out of her Clarkston home and has a couple of part-time employees to help manage her clients. And the transition could not have gone better, she said.

“I mainly did it because I have three little boys at home, and I wanted more time with them,” Blood said of starting her own business. “I grew as I wanted to, mainly from referrals, and kept growing year over year from where I started. And now I’m able to make my own hours. I work when I want to work, go where I want to go, and I can be mom to my three little boys first.”

Although her basketball playing days are over, Blood has kept her hand in the game. She coached junior high basketball at a local private school for a time, and most recently is helping coach her oldest son’s team.

“I’ve kept basketball in my life for sure, and I enjoy it,” she said.

Blood and her husband, David, said they enjoy taking family trips up north to Torch Lake, and “we like to get at least two family vacations in at a beach area, whether it’s Hilton Head Island or Florida, our two hot spots.”

She said she looks forward to returning to Hillsdale’s campus for the Alumni Day basketball game from time to time and thinks the current Chargers are headed in the right direction.

“She’s done a phenomenal job of keeping the alumni in touch (with the program),” Blood said of Hillsdale Head Coach Brianna Brennan. “Playing at Hillsdale was definitely fun. I enjoyed it, and I miss it.”

Doug Goodnough, ’90, is Hillsdale’s director of Alumni Marketing. He enjoys connecting with fellow alumni in new and wonderful ways.

Published in October 2024