Communication Sciences and Disorders - Summer 2023 Newsletter

Undergraduate CSD Program News

Class of 2023 CSD Graduates

Congratulations to the CSD seniors for graduating with the Class of 2023! All four will be continuing their studies at Thiel College and starting the MS-SLP program in June. Following Grand Rounds presentations, Special Departmental Honors were given on April 27^th. The Dr. Sonya Wilt Outstanding Undergraduate Student Award was given to Jordan Zee and the Dr. Nancy Antonino Outstanding Undergraduate Clinician Award was given to Rebekah Ladaika.

MS-SLP Program News

Soon to Achieve Full Accreditation Status

Thank you to all who participated in the site visit from The Council on Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology (CAA) on March 13-14th. We received a very positive exit report from the site visit team. They noted that the Thiel SLP program demonstrated evidence to support compliance for all the accreditation standards. The site visitors also commended our program for its innovation, rigor, and personalized support for each student. The final accreditation decision will be announced in August, but the successful site visit was a huge step toward full accreditation.

Graduating Cohort 3

The current graduate class ended their busy spring semester with Residency Week back on campus where they participated in Voice and AAC labs, Praxis preparation, Grand Rounds and Capstone Presentations, and class professional photos.

After completing their summer externships, our third cohort of 17 students will return to campus the last week of July for residency week and complete their research, grand rounds and portfolio presentations. On July 27^th, they will attend Professional Development Day and graduate in a commencement ceremony in the Lutheran Heritage Room followed by a reception in the Glen Johnson Center.

Welcoming Cohort 4

On June 1^st, Thiel will welcome a new cohort of 22 students to the program. The goal was to have at least 16 students and we are excited that we have exceeded this goal!

Included in this cohort are four Theil undergraduates from the Class of 2023 and a Thiel Post-Baccalaureate student, Ariel Farren. The new graduate students are coming from the states of Pennsylvania, Ohio, Maryland, Florida, Texas and California.

Academic News

Quota Club Scholarship Awarded to Thiel Graduate Student

The Quota Club of Hermitage is a non-profit organization which is dedicated to making a difference in the local community. One of the programs that they support is Hearing Aid Refurbishment for any age group that needs hearing aid assistance. In addition to this mission, they continue to offer scholarships that recognize outstanding graduate students committed to pursuing a speech language pathology or audiology degree and or high school seniors and college students with educationally significant hearing loss. Quota’s $1,000 individual scholarships helps Mercer County residents that are in graduate school, college or trade school with their tuition. This year the scholarship was awarded to Thiel College graduate student Maegn Holbrook who stood out by being the candidate that best exemplifies the mission of the Quota Club. Maegn was honored at the Quota Club meeting at the Avalon Country Club – Buhl Park on May 10.

Innovation Grant Enables Advanced Skills Training

Professor Kobak was granted an award from President Traverso’s special Innovation Fund to purchase the Phacon Throat Assist simulation training model for the SLP department. The model offers realistic simulation because it consists of very detailed anatomical structures and landmarks including the oral cavity, nasal cavity, velum, epiglottis, larynx, vocal folds, esophagus, and stomach. The model has already been used in the undergraduate anatomy and physiology of the speech mechanism course and the graduate voice lab. Having training in endoscopy for voice and swallowing assessment and treatment will provide a competitive advantage to the Thiel SLP program. Being exposed to these procedures and developing a baseline level of skill will make graduates from the Thiel program competitive in the job market and develop confidence to pursue advanced endoscopy training.

NSSLHA News

Bleacher Buddies

For the second time, NSSLHA hosted members of the St. Paul’s Community to a Thiel sporting event. On April 1st, nine NSSHLA members and their advisor, Dr. Jeanette Benigas attended the Men's Volleyball game in the Beeghly Gymnasium. After enjoying a catered lunch, the Bleacher Buddies cheered the Tomcats on for a win over St. Vincent College!

PSHA Conference and Awards

Members of NSSLHA and their advisor attended the Pennsylvania Speech and hearing Association conference in April in King of Prussia. Students attended continuing education sessions and visited tables in the exhibition hall to learn about current evaluation and treatment approaches and products. During the conference, the Thiel NSSLHA chapter was awarded the Most Impactful DEI Focused Advocacy Award for their active participation in a webinar about how to best advocate for issues persons who are transgender. Additionally, the chapter was one of twenty-two chapters nationwide that received a Gold Honors Award for their community outreach and legislative advocacy efforts and projects.

Clinical News

Thiel Center for Speech Language Services

The Center is currently accepting new clients for the summer session which will be held June 12th through August 7th.

At the Center for Speech-Language Services, highly trained student clinicians under the supervision of CSD/SLP faculty provide a wide range of pediatric and adult assessment and intervention services, individual and group treatment sessions, and support groups for both clients and their families. The Center for Speech-Language Services is a free community resource for individuals with communication needs and their families while providing Thiel Communication Sciences and Disorders/Speech-Language Pathology students experiential learning opportunities to gain important knowledge on evidence-based practice across the speech-language pathology scope of practice, lifespan, and with diverse populations.

The Center provides a unique opportunity for students enrolled in Thiel's Communication Sciences and Disorders and Speech-Language Pathology programs to fulfill clinical practicum hours while gaining incredible hands-on experience, all while staying on campus! This experience prepares them to enter the workforce as speech-language pathologists immediately upon graduate program completion.

If interested in services, please contact Julie Kobak at jkobak@thiel.edu or call 724-589-2020.

The Thiel College Adult Neurology Network

A new clinical program will be launched this summer called The Thiel College Adult Neurology Network (TCANN). The program, funded by a Tomcat Way Grant, is directed by Dr. Jeanette Benigas and is intended for people living with acquired neurological diseases such as aphasia, Parkinson’s disease, and dementia. It will provide structured group sessions to facilitate functional communication skills and compensatory strategies through activities that are enriching, engaging, and meaningful. Recognizing a duty not only to serve people with these conditions, the mission of the program is to provide clinical training for the next generation of speech-language pathologists as well as students in related majors and to foster potential opportunities for research.

TCANN group sessions will be held at St. Paul's Senior Living Community on Tuesday mornings. They are facilitated by students pursing undergraduate and graduate degrees in Communication Sciences and Disorders and Speech-Language Pathology and are supervised by a licensed and certified speech-language pathologist. For additional information or to enroll, contact Jeanette Benigas at  jbenigas@thiel.edu.