Morgan's poster was entitled "Efficacy of Color and Spatial Cues for Augmentive and Alternative Communication Boards" and described the outcomes of a research investigation she conducted for her master's thesis.

Her study examined how preschool-age children identify emotion pictures and whether two types of visual cues, color cues and spatial cues, help to increase accuracy and/or rate of picture identification. The study looked further at whether teaching children the cues could have an immediate effect on their accuracy or response time.

Currently, speech-language pathologists commonly use color and/or spatial cues on augmentative and alternative (AAC) communication boards and devices, which are used with children who cannot communicate effectively using speech alone. However, there is inconsistent evidence supporting the use of these visual cues. Forty-four children who were typically developing participated in the study.

Results revealed that the addition of the visual cues did not increase children's accuracy for locating emotion icons or significantly decrease their response time. In addition, the teaching episode was not sufficient to result in statistically significant changes in accuracy or response time. The findings indicate that we should question the usefulness of these types of visual cues on AAC devices.

Morgan's faculty advisor was Lisa Hammett Price, associate professor in Speech-Language Pathology.

Klein presented on March 22, 2013, in Westminster, Md. Her morning session was entitled “Making the Common Core Standards Work for Speech, Language, and Literacy Development."

Her afternoon session was titled “Jump in the Sandbox: Building Your Teacher Toolbox with Games and Other Fun Strategies.” 

Klein provides practical sessions with hands-on activities so that participants leave knowing how to incorporate new evidence and methods into their instruction.

Her talk was entitled “Do We (Teachers of the Deaf/Educational Audiologists) Matter?” She focused on the need for these groups of professionals to become aware of and utilize self-advocacy skills to increase awareness of the need for their services in the school setting.

Her project will allow the audiology clinic in the Speech-Language Pathology program to obtain equipment to perform auditory evoked potentials, otoacoustic emission testing, and sound-level readings. These non-invasive and objective test measurements allow audiologists to test hearing thresholds in difficult-to-test patients (e.g., very young children, mentally challenged persons, malingerers) and in patients suspected of neurological and developmental disorders (e.g., acoustic tumors, multiple sclerosis, learning disorders, autism).

The equipment will be used for teaching, clinical, and research purposes. They will allow Richburg to present hands-on demonstrations in classes and hearing clinics, and to evaluate adults and children from the community who need neurodiagnostic auditory testing. In addition, this equipment will open doors to research studies with the pediatric populations, including those who may have central auditory processing disorders or autism spectrum disorders.

The acquisition of this equipment will further the mission of the IUP Speech, Language, and Hearing Clinic and the Special Education Department.

Doctoral students Susan Griffith and Mariha Shields (Curriculum and Instruction) as well as master’s degree student (Special Education) Brianne Buchan Reynolds, were essential to the completion of this publication.

This project emerged as a result of conversations with Donna Wandry, professor in special education at West Chester University and internationally known expert in the transition to post-secondary adult life for students with disabilities. Wandry, Michael Weymeyer, and many others, both at CEC and in the field of transition, updated the woefully out-of-date CEC curriculum that was last published in 1995. Creating the teacher’s guide was one of the last phases of the new curriculum.

The Teacher’s Guide will be part of the online Life Centered Education curriculum and assessment system itself, but it will also be available in hard copy. It will be a useful resource to those helping students with disabilities transition to post-secondary education and training, vocation and career, and adult living after high school. The guide is intended for additional support and learning in various settings, including the classroom, community, as well as in the home.

The Teacher's Guide can be found on page 30 of the CEC catalog of publications.

The article, “A Computer-Based Readability Analysis of Questionnaires for Listening Difficulties Associated with Possible (Central) Auditory Processing Disorders,” is coauthored by Samuel Atcherson, Cynthia Richburg, Richard Zraick, and Cassandra George (an alumnus of the IUP Speech Pathology program).

The article reports on a descriptive study of the readability of eight questionnaires for (central) auditory processing disorders. The authors found good agreement across readability measures revealing reading levels between eighth and tenth grades. They concluded that clinicians should consider the literacy levels of adults responding to these questionnaires to ensure accurate results. This study adds to the research base on the appropriateness of assessment measures used to diagnose (central) auditory processing disorders.

The article can be found at the LSHSS website.

The following presentations were conducted by IUP faculty and others:

Jill Brady:

• “Working with English Language Learners: The Use of Syntactic Priming”
• with Karen Stein: “The Role of Literacy Bags in a University Clinic”
• with Tomoko Oda, Kyla Nuske and Ikuko Kurasawa: “Environmental Factors and L2 Acquisition: The Case of Japanese Adolescents”

Lori Lombard with alumnus Hanna Gratzmiller:

• “A Comparison of Laryngeal Diadochokinetic Tasks”

Shari Robertson with Brianna Robertson:

• “Readers: Laying a Strong Foundation”
• “Difficult People: Working with You is Killing Me!”
• “Readers: Focus on Vocabulary”

Craig Coleman with alumnus Mary Weidner:

• “Children’s Stories in Stuttering Treatment”

Cynthia McCormick Richburg:

• “Classroom acoustics from a public health perspective”
• with D.F. Smiley: “Collaborating for Excellence: SLPs and AUDs Working Together in Schools”
• Panel presentation with McDaniel, M., Gagne, J-P, Anderson-Gosselin, P., & Anderson, K.: “What’s Noise Got to do With It?”

The ASHA Convention is the premier annual event for speech-language pathologists, audiologists, and speech, language, and hearing scientists. Bringing together more than 12,000 attendees, the annual convention provides a once-a-year opportunity to learn about the latest evidence-based research in our clinical profession. Our faculty strive to contribute to this effort by presenting research results and clinical tutorials for participants.

Anne Popovich is an alumnus of our undergraduate and master’s degree programs, and her mother is fighting lung cancer. NSSLHA will be selling flowers for Valentine’s Day this week to help raise funds for treatment. Carnations will be on sale in the HUB food court on Wednesday, February 13, from 12:30–6:30 p.m. and on Thursday, February 14, from 10:30–6:30.

We hope the IUP community will help us support a family in need!

Department of Special Education and Clinical Services 

There are three walk-in clinics scheduled during the Spring 2013 semester. The dates and times are posted on the Speech, Language, and Hearing Clinic website, along with directions about where to go and what to bring with you. Please put these dates on your calendar so that you can get these screenings completed!

The workshop was coordinated by the ARC of Indiana County. Eighty-seven individuals from the community participated in the workshop and represented a variety of backgrounds, including law enforcement, medical personnel/health care workers, agency staff members, fire fighters, and educators.

Hill presented on emergency preparedness for individuals who are deaf or have a hearing loss. This presentation is an important service to our community, ensuring that first responders are equipped to help all people in the event of a major emergency.

Richburg presented a talk on central auditory processing disorders entitled “(C)APD: Topics of Interest for SLPs and AUDs.” Her talk covered issues with the term (C)APD and ideas for management of the disorder. She emphasized a focus on the auditory deficits and functional behaviors, rather than on labels or profiles, and she stressed the importance of a multidisciplinary approach to treatment.

Presentations at state association conventions are important because they bring up-to-date, evidence-based information to practicing speech-language pathologists and audiologists.

The second annual Confections for a Cause event took place in the Science and Discovery Center behind Stouffer Hall on Monday, September 17, 2012. The IUP university community was invited to fill a plate of confections for a $5 suggested donation. Once again, the event was a huge success. With the help of the IUP community, we raised close to $1,000.

The sweet treats were prepared and donated by the faculty, staff, and students of the Special Education and Clinical Services Department and others in the College of Education and Educational Technology. Sally Lipsky donated jewelry and various items given as door prizes. Heidi McClure sold greeting cards that she designed, with all proceeds going to the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition.

Help for the event was provided by the IUP chapters of the National Student Speech-Language-Hearing Association and the Future Educators of Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students.

This year, the department added a basket raffle. The following people won baskets:

• Gardening Basket – Jenny Faught
• Bath Basket – Lorie McDowell
• Movie Night Basket – Cristy Cook
• Chefs Basket – Karen Stein

The money raised will go to the Sandy Rollman Ovarian Cancer Foundation, which seeks to find an early detection test for ovarian cancer and to find improved treatments for the disease. It also develops educational programs to increase awareness of the disease. Anyone wishing to contribute can make donations through the foundation’s website.

The article, “Is Speed of Stimulus Categorization Slower in Stuttering Speakers? A Cognitive Event-Related Potential Study,” and appeared in the Asia Pacific Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing (volume 15, number 3, pp. 211-229).

Abstract

Auditory P300 event-related potentials were obtained to determine processing speeds in individuals who stutter compared to individuals who do not. The findings suggest that stuttering might involve “subtle cognitive deficits related to speed of information processing.”

The article is coauthored with Michael Blomgren, Sara Rhodehouse, and Sean Redmond of the University of Utah.

Their article, “Special Educators’ Perspectives on the Services and Benefits of Educational Audiologists,” is available in the November 2012 issue of Communication Disorders Quarterly (Vol. 34, issue 1, p. 17-28).

The event will take place in the new Science Discovery and Learning Center behind Stouffer Hall from 10:00 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. (or until all the treats are gone). For the best selection, come early!

The Special Education and Clinical Services Department began this event to raise awareness of ovarian cancer and to raise funds to support the research efforts of the Sandy Rollman Ovarian Cancer Foundation.

You can still donate baked goods to help make this event a success. Anyone interested in providing baked goods can contact Vickie at 357-2450 or Celia at 357-2451, or bring your donation to the Department of Special Education (203 Davis Hall) on the morning of the event.

Thanks for helping us make this event a big success!

The CAA is the professional accrediting body for university programs that prepare speech-language pathologists and audiologists to work in various settings, including hospitals, schools, rehabilitation centers, and clinics.

The IUP Speech-Language Pathology program first received accreditation in 1991. The current reaccreditation will last through May 2020.

Our master’s degree program completion rate has been 97 percent in the last three years, with 94 percent of our students passing their national exam on the first attempt, and 100 percent finding employment after graduation.

There are three walk-in clinics scheduled during the Fall 2012 semester. The dates and times are posted on the Speech, Language, and Hearing Clinic website, along with directions about where to go and what to bring with you. Please put these dates on your calendar so that you can get these screenings completed!

The event will take place in the new Science Discovery and Learning Center behind Stouffer Hall. Please mark your calendars, and plan to come buy some treats.

Also, please help us make this event even bigger than last year by donating baked goods for the event. Anyone interested in providing baked goods can contact Vickie at 357-2450 or Celia at 357-2451 by Monday, September 10.

The IUP community helped us raise $1,250 last year, and we look forward to another successful event in 2012!

Lisa Hammett Price

The article is titled “A Comparison of Preschool Teachers’ Talk During Storybook and Information Book Read-Alouds.” It describes a quantitative investigation of the level of cognitive demand used by teachers during classroom read-alouds in preschool.

Results revealed that compared to storybook reading, information book reading provided greater opportunities for labeling, describing, and making comparisons, judgments, and text-to-life connections.

The genre of the book influenced teachers’ talk without requiring any training, and therefore manipulation of genre has potential to alter the talk that occurs during the activity.

Price coauthored the article with Barbara Bradley, associate professor in the Department of Curriculum and Teaching at the University of Kansas, who collected these data, and Jana Smith, a school-based speech-language pathologist who worked on the research team.

The article can be accessed in the latest issue of the journal.

The event will take place on Monday, September 17, 2012, in the new Science Discovery and Learning Center behind Stouffer Hall. Please mark your calendars, and plan to come buy some treats. All money raised will support the research efforts of the Sandy Rollman Ovarian Cancer Foundation. In 2011, we raised over $1,250. Help us surpass that amount this year!

Anyone interested in donating baked goods for the event can contact Vickie at 357-2450 or Celia at 357-2451 by Monday, September 10.

Robertson has been elected to the position of vice president for Academic Affairs in Speech-Language Pathology. In this role, she will help advance undergradaute and graduate education in speech-language pathology, work to ensure that the needs of academic programs are met, and help encourage and promote doctoral studies in speech-language pathology. She will serve a three-year term of service to ASHA, which is the national professional organization and certifying body for speech-language pathologists and audiologists across the country.

These workshops will take place June 4–8, 2012, in New Orleans, and they will provide critical information on literacy to teachers, parents, and speech-language pathologists in Louisiana.

Fifteen students attended, some volunteering to help with registration. The following faculty and students were involved in presentations or leadership roles:

• Craig Coleman, M.A., BRS-FD; Sara MacIntyre, B.A.
  Presentation: “Stuttering Treatment: Targeting Goals that Make a Difference”
  Craig Coleman is PSHA president-elect
• Hanna Gratzmiller, B.S. (current graduate student); Lori Lombard (faculty advisor)
  Poster presentation: “A Comparison of Laryngeal Diadochokinetic Tasks”
• Lisa Hammett Price
  Presentation: “Interacting with Children: Clinical Skills for New SLP’s”
• Cynthia McCormick Richburg
  Presentation: “(Central) Auditory Processing Disorders: From Identification to Management”
• David Stein
  Presentation: “Don’t Let History Repeat: Anonymous Tales From the License Board”
  Served as the vice chair for a meeting of the Board of Examiners in Speech-Language and Hearing
• Karen Goltz Stein: PSHA president
  Presided over the annual business meeting and awards luncheon. Continues to serve as past-president over the next year

In her presentation, “Addressing Syntax in Adult ELL Clients: A Syntactic Priming Approach,” Brady described her pilot study on the use of syntactic priming to elicit certain grammatical structures in adults who are native speakers of Japanese or Mandarin Chinese.

The study continues Brady's line of cross-linguistic research on possible learning mechanisms for adults who are English language learners.

The ASHA conference is the premier annual professional education event for speech-language pathologists; audiologists; and speech, language, and hearing scientists, drawing over 12,000 professionals and presenting the latest evidence-based research in the field.

Both presentations were co-authored with Barbara Bradley, associate professor in curriculum and teaching at the University of Kansas.

The talks were entitled “Engaging Pre-Kindergarten Children in Repeated Readings of Thematically Related Books” and “Pre-Kindergarten Teachers’ Preferences when Choosing Information Books.”

The first was the result of a qualitative investigation of two excellent preschool teachers to analyze how they integrated three books into a thematic unit on frogs. The books included one information book, one storybook, and one hybrid book that mixed information and story features.

The second talk included results from thirty-two teachers who completed a survey about their preferences regarding two themed sets of information books. Price and Bradley analyzed teachers’ preferences to reveal the types of information books they believed were most appropriate for read-alouds in the classroom.

The results of these two studies will help preschool directors choose books that teachers are more likely to read, help them integrate them into the curriculum, and inform teacher professional development that can support teachers to integrate information books into their classrooms.

Richburg co-wrote the textbook with Donna Fisher Smiley, also an audiologist and coordinator for the Educational Audiology/Speech Pathology Resources for Schools (EARS) Program at Arkansas Children’s Hospital. The textbook takes readers through the history of audiology in the schools and teaches the core concepts needed to serve students who are deaf and hard-of-hearing in the school environment.

Topics include classroom acoustics, hearing screening programs, diagnostic evaluation protocols, hearing aid and FM system procedures, and classroom amplification. Anyone who will serve in an educational audiology position will benefit from this text.

The textbook is published by Plural Publishing. You can find School-Based Audiology on their website.

Anyone interested can find the job description on the Employment at IUP website.

In honor of National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month, the Special Education and Clinical Services Department hosted an event to raise money to support the research efforts of the Sandy Rollman Ovarian Cancer Foundation.

The first annual Confections for a Cause event took place in Davis Hall on Monday, September 19, 2011. Everyone in the College of Education and Educational Technology was invited to fill a plate of confections for a $5 suggested donation.

The sweet treats provided were prepared and donated by the faculty, staff, and students of the Special Education and Clinical Services Department. Support was also provided by the IUP chapter of the National Student Speech-Language-Hearing Association (NSSLHA). Aramark donated coffee for the event.

The event was a huge success and raised over $1,250. This money is being donated to the Sandy Rollman Ovarian Cancer Foundation, which seeks to find an early detection test for ovarian cancer and to find improved treatments for the disease.

It also develops educational programs to increase awareness of the disease. Anyone wishing to contribute can make donations through the foundation’s website.

The following faculty members have been involved:

• Annah Hill – instructor in the Deaf Education program
• David Lorenzi – assistant professor in the Health and Physical Education Department and director of SNAP
• Cynthia Richburg – associate professor of audiology in the Speech-Language Pathology program
• David Stein - professor in the Speech-Language Pathology program

The SNAP program offers a variety of physical education activities for clients with varying degrees of disabilities. Student volunteers learn to provide support and fun for clients. For clients who use sign language to communicate, volunteers come from the Deaf Education program. The clients also often receive speech and hearing screenings or treatment through the Speech, Language, and Hearing Clinic. Students across each program gain experience with clients while also providing a needed service to the community.

Anyone interested in SNAP can call 724-357-2774. Registration for the program is ongoing.

Anyone interested in diagnostic or treatment services offered by the Speech, Language, and Hearing clinic can call 724-357-2451. Services are offered during IUP’s Fall, Spring, and Summer semesters.

The textbook is entitled Spoken Communication for Students Who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing: A Multidisciplinary Approach.

This edition represents a massive revision, with over half the content being new. It includes updated information to keep up with advances in cochlear implants and new instructional strategies. It includes specific strategies for eliciting speech sounds and new suggestions for working with older students. The book represents current best practices, promoting a multidisciplinary team approach to fostering spoken communication skills in this population.

During the revision process, Klein also gave her students a unique learning experience. Students and faculty in the Deaf Education program worked closely with Dr. Klein to review the drafts of her chapters prior to submission. Students learned about the publication process; the roles of authors, reviewers, and editors; and gained insight into the time and dedication that it takes to write a textbook.

The book can be found at the Butte Publications website.

Their article, “Educational Audiologists: Their Access, Benefit, and Collaborative Assistance to Speech-Language Pathologists in Schools,” is being published in the October 2011 edition of Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools (LSHSS: Vol. 42, p. 444-460).

LSHSS is a journal of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) and is distributed internationally. The abstract can be accessed through the LSHSS website.

During the Fall 2011 semester, students can come to Davis Hall, Room 263, during scheduled walk-in clinics to complete this screening.

No appointment is necessary, but please bring your I-Card and know your advisor’s name.

See this semester’s dates posted on the Speech, Language, and Hearing Clinic website.

The presenters and their topics included:

• Erin Keller, 2010 alumna, with faculty members David Stein and Karen Stein: “School’s Out—Now About That Clinical Fellowship”
• Craig Coleman (adjunct faculty member): “Telepractice 101 for Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists” and “Treating Children Who Stutter: Goals and Activities”
• David Stein (professor): “Sharing Your Answers from the License Renewals—Any New Questions?”
• Anne Rhoades and Kayla Kirkpatrick, second-year master’s degree students, with faculty member Lori Lombard: “Acoustic and Physiologic Voice Characteristics of Patients with Thyroid Disease”
• Karen Cuddeback, 2010 alumna, with faculty member David Stein: “Factors Speech-Language Pathologists Use to Determine Discharge Placement from Neurologic Rehabilitation”

The award, Honors of the Pennsylvania Speech-Language-Hearing Association, recognizes Stein’s devotion to his career as a speech-language pathologist as a clinician, mentor, professor, administrator, and colleague. He has served PSHA in many ways over the past thirty-four years, including time served on the executive board, various PSHA committees, and as president of the association.

Stein was chosen because of his extensive and varied experience and his involvement at the local, state, and national levels. The award also recognizes him as a source of inspiration and leadership to both students and colleagues, and as a dedicated professional to the education of future audiologists and speech-language pathologists.

The department is now sharing the following note of thanks from the Sitosky family to the IUP community:

We, the Sitosky family, would like to express our gratitude for all the support you have given us. The gifts, visits, and prayers have served to strengthen us as we assist Jenna in her recovery. Jenna has always been proud to be part of the IUP community. Your concern and generosity demonstrate how wonderful the IUP community really is.

Jenna is continuing to recover, and we know that the road will be long and difficult. We also know that Jenna is a strong, motivated young lady; and with the support system of family, friends, school, and community, she will be able to maximize her recovery. We believe that prayer has kept Jenna with us, and we thank you from the bottom of our hearts for each and every prayer that has been offered up for her.

Our sincere thanks,

Dave, Janet, Luke, Derek, and Lauren Sitosky

Update on Jenna’s Recovery

We brought Jenna home from HealthSouth Harmarville on Friday, February 4, 2011.

She is doing outpatient rehab at IRMC four days a week. Physically, she is getting much stronger. Cognitively, she is recovering much more slowly since she is battling aphasia. Aphasia is a disorder in the use of language; that is, the way we express or comprehend ideas through words.

We are optimistic that, through speech therapy and continued prayers, Jenna will overcome this obstacle.

During the Spring 2011 semester, students can come to Davis Hall, Room 263, during scheduled walk-in clinics to complete this screening.

No appointment is necessary, but please bring your I-Card and know your advisor’s name.

See this semester's dates posted on the Speech, Language, and Hearing Clinic website.

Over twenty-five undergraduate and graduate students attended the convention. In addition to being very involved in the planning of the convention, IUP faculty and students conducted the following presentations:

• Dr. Jill Brady: “Cross-Linguistics Inference in English Language Learners from Various L1 Backgrounds”
• Dr. Lori Lombard with two graduate students, Kayla Kirkpatrick and Anne Rhoades, and local ENT Bosco Noronha: “Voice Symptoms in Patients with Thyroid Disease”
• Dr. Lisa Hammett Price with alumnus Seana Hollingsworth: “Parent-Preschooler Discourse During Storybook and Expository Book Sharing”
• Dr. Cynthia McCormick Richburg and Dr. Lisa Hammett Price: “Managing Auditory Processing Disorders in School-Age Children”
• Dr. Shari Robertson (who also served as the conference cochair for Speech-Language Pathology): “Leading in a Diverse World: Skills and Strategies” and “Through the Leadership Lens: Visions for Excellence and Change”
• Mrs. Karen Stein: Represented Pennsylvania on the Council for State Association Presidents as president-elect of the Pennsylvania Speech-Language-Hearing Association

She is currently in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at Conemaugh Memorial Medical Center in Johnstown.

The IUP Chapter of the National Student Speech Language and Hearing Association (NSSLHA) and the Special Education and Clinical Services Department are accepting monetary or gift card donations that will be given to Jenna's family to assist with their needs during this tragedy.

If you would like to make a donation, please send to:

Department of Special Education and Clinical Services
Speech, Language, and Hearing Clinic
Davis Hall, Room 263
570 South Eleventh Street
Indiana, PA 15705-1050

Please make checks payable to: IUP NSSLHA
Write on the memo line of your check: Donation for Jenna Sitosky

Any donation is greatly appreciated and will be accepted until Friday, December 17.

Those who missed the interview can listen to the KDKA Morning Show podcast, “Yinz Proud of Speaking Pittsburghese?” or follow the link on the IUP Magazine website feature on the Robinsons from June 2010: “Diphthongs and Dahntahn.”

To here the interview, click the download button on the KDKA site.

The convention will attract approximately 15,000 speech pathologists and audiologists from all over the country and internationally to present and attend sessions.

The following IUP faculty members are serving in these capacities:

Co-Chair of the 2010 Convention:

• Shari Robertson is the speech-language pathology co-chair of the 2010 convention, serving along with Anthony Cacace from Wayne State University, who is co-chair for audiology.

Topic Chairs

These faculty members coordinated the review of all submitted proposals within their topic area:

• Lori Lombard – Topic chair for Voice and Alaryngeal Speech
• David Stein – Topic chair for Adult Language
• Craig Coleman – Topic chair for Business, Management, and Professional Issues

Topic Committee Members

These faculty members were on topic committees and reviewed submitted proposals:

• Karen Stein – Committee member for Business, Management, and Professional Issues
• Cynthia McCormick-Richburg – Committee member for Business, Management, and Professional Issues
• Jill Brady – Committee member for Language and Learning in School Age Children and Adolescents

With a specialty in child language and literacy, Robertson's two presentations were entitled “The Best of Both Worlds: Meeting Oral and Written Therapy Goals Using Children’s Literature” and “Read With Me: Stress-Free Strategies for Building Language and Pre-Literacy.”

The group presented several popular songs in sign language for the enjoyment of the children and parents present.

SignIn’ is available for performances for schools and community agencies. Contact Rich Nowell at rich.nowell@iup.edu.

Department of Special Education and Clinical Services

The Robertsons will discuss with morning news hosts Larry Richert and John Shumway their research on dialects in the Western Pennsylvania region (“Convergence and Divergence Trends of the Western Pennsylvania Dialect”).

A feature about their work was published in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review on October 24, 2010: “Pittsburghese a Source of Pride for 'Yinzers'.”

The mother-daughter team’s research project was also the subject of an IUP Magazine website feature in June 2010: “Diphthongs and Dahntahn.”

Anyone interested can find the job description on the Employment at IUP website.

They were interviewed regarding clinical management of children with central auditory processing disorders.

Her talk, “The Best of Both Worlds: Meeting Language Goals Using Children’s Literature,” provided information on the language-literacy hierarchy and how to design therapy to meet oral and written language goals within the context of quality children’s literature.

In their presentation, “Management Strategies Following a Diagnosis of Central Auditory Processing Disorder,” they provided practical methods for dealing with (C)APD in the classroom and home settings, and strategies for remediating the symptoms in speech-language therapy.

They will perform two shows in the Zink Hall Dance Studio:

• Saturday, April 17, 7:00 p.m.
• Sunday, April 18, at 2:00 p.m.

Department of Special Education and Clinical Services

This accreditation is a highly valued achievement in the field of deafness. Only thirty-five of the nearly seventy programs in deaf education in the country have earned CED accreditation.

There are currently forty-seven students seeking a major degree in Deaf Education and numerous students seeking a minor. The students have multiple practicum opportunities starting in their sophomore year, and the depth and breadth of practicum experiences was one of the features that was lauded by CED during their review. Also notable are the two student groups—Sign In, which is a sign language performance group, and FEDHHS, the Future Educators of Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Students.

IUP is the only school in the state to offer an undergraduate degree in deaf education, and it has a 100 percent placement rate for its graduates.

Hill; Ms. Stefanie Fitzpatrick, alumnus and current teacher for Scranton School for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Children; and Ms. Elizabeth Proctor, current EDHL senior, each spoke about their experiences as undergraduate students in the IUP-EDHL program and what has motivated them to pursue doctoral degrees in the field.

Prior to that, he resigned from the Executive Board of the Pennsylvania Speech-Language-Hearing Association, because by law he cannot hold a position on the Board of Examiners while holding his position as past president of the state professional association.

The group sold cookies and hot chocolate to raise money to support the Western Pennsylvania School for the Deaf and the DePaul School for Hearing and Speech in Pittsburgh, and they sold T-shirts to benefit the Ngala School for the Deaf in Kenya, their new international partnership. T-shirts will be on-sale at the Sign In (a sign language performance group) performance in April, and donations are always welcome.

The Future Educators of Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students is the student organization for the Education of Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing program in the Department of Special Education and Clinical Services.

Dr. Klein fully digitized all of the organization’s publications and recently began posting all of the organization’s communications to a new wiki.

Anyone interested can find the job description on the IUP employment page.

Anyone interested can find the job description on the IUP employment page.

No appointment is necessary, but please bring your I-Card and know your advisor’s name.

See this semester's dates posted on the Speech, Language, and Hearing Clinic website.

She served as board chair from 2005 to 2008 and lectured annually at the Pennsylvania Speech-Language-Hearing Association conferences to inform state licensees regarding the new Pennsylvania Continuing Education requirements and Practice Act rules and regulations. She worked with state professional organizations to make the newly proposed licensure act consistent with professional practice standards.

Stein will rotate off the board in February 2010.

Her paper presentation, “A Qualitative Analysis of Preschool Teachers’ Talk during Book Sharing with Storybooks and Expository Books,” was coauthored with Barbara Bradley, assistant professor at the University of Kansas.

Price also served as a discussant and participated in a daily study group entitled “Approaches to Video Data Analysis: Exploring New Methods and Directions for Reading Research.”

NRC is a professional organization for individuals who share an interest in research and the dissemination of information about literacy and literacy instruction. It will change its name next year to the Literacy Research Association.

Her poster session was entitled “Syntactic Priming: A Learning Mechanism?”

Syntactic priming occurs when a previously processed syntactic structure facilitates processing of that syntactic structure. Several studies suggest that speakers tend to repeat structures that they have previously used or heard. Evidence also suggests that comprehension of syntactic structures is facilitated when the same structure has been previously encountered and that the influence of syntactic priming may be related to a long-term frequency-based learning mechanism for the comprehension of syntactic structures.

Hollingsworth and Schager presented the following two poster sessions with Dr. Lori Lombard, professor of Speech-Language Pathology, and Dr. Bosco Noronha, an ENT in Indiana, Pa.:

Objective Voice Measures in Patients with Thyroid Disease

This study was designed to identify the changes in vocal function associated with thyroid disease. Patients with thyroid disease and an age- and gender-matched control group were compared on perceptual, acoustic, and physiologic measures of vocal function. Results and clinical implications were discussed.

Perceived Voice and Swallowing Symptoms in Patients with Thyroid Disease

This study identified perceived voice and swallowing symptoms in patients with thyroid disease as compared to normal controls. Results of questionnaire data from the Voice Handicap Index (VHI; Jacobson et al., 1997) and the SWAL-QOL scale (McHorney et al., 2002) were discussed for each cohort. Clinical implications for classification of symptoms and diagnostic potential were also presented.

Handouts for their talks can be obtained on the ASHA 2009 Convention Website.

Department of Special Education and Clinical Services

Robertson was part of a panel of five speakers who provided information about survival strategies in these times of budget shortfalls in a session entitled “Schools Forum 2009: Exploring Collaborative Solutions for School-Based Practice.” Robertson’s portion was entitled “Managing Time and Stress in an Uncertain Economy.”

She also presented a two-hour seminar entitled “Leading Your Business to Success: High Performance Strategies for Leaders” and a co-authored poster, “Convergence & Divergence Trends of the Western Pennsylvania Dialect,” with SLP undergraduate student Brianna Robertson.

Stein was elected to the National Council of State Boards in 2005. She was then elected as president-elect in 2007 and, in that role, served as chair of the 2007 NCSB annual conference. She served as president in 2008. In her role this year as past president, she served as chair of the Elections committee and chair of the Honors committee.

She also played an active role in the planning of the annual NCSB conference, which took place in September 2009 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Among the topics addressed at the conference was how telepractice has changed the healthcare landscape and how states have accomplished the development of telepractice guidelines in the practice act and/or rules and regulations of their licensure law.

We will celebrate our achievements by bringing together past and current faculty, staff, and students from the Speech-Language Pathology Program housed in the College of Education and Educational Technology. Come learn about our new video supervision lab and other exciting improvements to our clinic. Don't miss this opportunity to reunite and reminisce.

Events Schedule

Friday, November 13, 2009

7:00–9:00 p.m. — Reception in the beautiful Breezedale Alumni Center. Hors d’oeuvres will be served.

To RSVP, visit Alumni Connections. There is no charge to attend the reception. Please join us.

Saturday, November 14, 2009

8:45 a.m.–1:00 p.m. — Continuing Education Workshop and Clinic Tour

Two concurrent sessions:

• Session A: “Fostering Abstract Language Abilities in Young Children with Language Disorders” — Presented by Lisa Hammett Price, Ph.D.
• Session B: “What's on the Cutting Edge of Acquired Neurogenic Disorders Seen by SLPs?” — Presented by David Stein, Ph.D.

The charge to attend one of the Continuing Education Workshops is $30. To register, you can download a brochure with a registration form at the Fortieth Anniversary homepage, or you can indicate your workshop preference and send your check or money order (payable to the IUP Speech, Language, and Hearing Clinic) to IUP Speech, Language, and Hearing Clinic, 263 Davis Hall, 570 South 11th Street, Indiana, PA 15705-1050.

Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools is one of four journals published by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association with the purpose of disseminating research and clinical articles that pertain to speech, language, and hearing disorders and differences in children and adolescents. Robertson is among ten associate editors. She will serve a three-year appointment from 2010 to 2012 in the area of child language and literacy.

The Cray Academy Summer Institute provided regular and special educators with the opportunity to attend presentations by invited faculty on a wide range of topics for continuing education or college credit. The Institute draws more than 5000 participants. It is named after the supercomputer builder Seymour Cray, Jr., and sponsored by the Cray Conglomerate.

Robertson presented a two-day workshop entitled “Read with Me: Stress-Free Strategies for Building Language and Literacy” that focused on preschool and school-aged children. The strategies she presented were evidence-based and focused on enhancing children's thinking, reading, and communication skills through individual and group intervention, and supporting and connecting the intervention to classroom achievement.

We will be offering all IUP faculty and staff members a complete hearing evaluation for $20 (typically a $35 fee) to help celebrate our Speech and Hearing Clinic’s fortieth anniversary. This hearing evaluation will include a complete case history, tonal and speech stimuli tests, and counseling regarding your hearing status. Every person evaluated will receive a copy of their audiogram and results.

Appointments will be scheduled on Tuesday afternoons from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. and Friday mornings from 9:00 a.m. to noon. Schedule your appointment today by calling 724-357-2451!

We will celebrate our achievements by bringing together past and current faculty, staff, and students from the Speech-Language Pathology Program housed in the College of Education and Educational Technology. Come learn about our new video supervision lab and other exciting improvements to our clinic. Don't miss this opportunity to reunite and reminisce.

Events Schedule:

Friday, November 13, 2009

7:00–9:00 p.m. — Reception in the beautiful Breezedale Alumni Center. Hors d'oeuvres will be served.

To RSVP, go to Alumni Connections Events and choose the Fortieth Anniversary of the Speech, Language, and Hearing Clinic. There is no charge to attend the reception. Please join us.

Saturday, November 14, 2009

8:45 a.m.–1:00 p.m. — Continuing Education Workshop and Clinic Tour

Two concurrent sessions:

• Session A: “Fostering Abstract Language Abilities in Young Children with Language Disorders” — Presented by Lisa Hammett Price, Ph.D.
• Session B: “What's on the Cutting Edge of Acquired Neurogenic Disorders Seen by SLPs?” — Presented by David Stein, Ph.D.

The charge to attend one of the Continuing Education Workshops is $30. To register, you can download a brochure with a registration form at the Fortieth Anniversary homepage, or you can indicate your workshop preference and send your check or money order (payable to the IUP Speech, Language, and Hearing Clinic) to IUP Speech, Language, and Hearing Clinic, 263 Davis Hall, 570 South 11th Street, Indiana, PA 15705-1050.

The faculty members invited to the conference annually are chosen for their expertise and cutting-edge knowledge of topics or issues for Speech Language Pathologists in school settings. Within the past five years of schools conferences, Robertson has been invited three times.

Robertson’s presentation was titled “Using Children’s Literature to Meet Oral and Written Therapy Goals.” The presentation provided information on how to provide efficient, effective intervention that supports development in oral and written domains for children ages two to twelve.

Dr. Robertson conducted four presentations on the following topics:

• Using Sign to Facilitate Language: Building a Case with Parents
• Got EQ? Increasing Clinical Competence Through Emotional Intelligence
• Counseling in Communicative Disorders: Putting the Person First
• I Used to Have a Handle on Life, But it Broke! (Strategies for Saving Time, Reducing Stress, and Enjoying your Job More!)

On Monday, October 12, 2009, the Future Educators of Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students (FEDHHS) club participated in their first annual Make A Difference Day Language and Literacy activity. FEDHHS invited the Mortar Board and the IUP chapter of the National Student Speech-Hearing-Language Association to help create a traveling loaner library of Language and Literacy bags.

Thirty-five students came to volunteer and created thirty-seven beautiful bags, decorated with a variety of reading themes on the outside, then filled them with books and language and literacy activities for parents. The students had a great time, and the bags will be contributed to the DePaul School for Hearing and Speech. DePaul is a school for deaf children in Pittsburgh.

Department of Special Education and Clinical Services

This task force is charged with reviewing available research evidence, analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of the methods and credibility of the findings, and updating the 1993 position statement to guide clinical practices in the field.

During his time as president, he oversaw the reintroduction of a new licensure act. He worked to begin changes in how the Pennsylvania Department of Education deals with speech-language pathologists—specifically to develop a new Educational Specialist certificate for speech-language pathologists and to accept the ASHA National Exam in speech-language pathology as well as its own Praxis II exam for Instructional I certification. These changes will help more speech-language pathologists be eligible to work in Pennsylvania public schools and remove barriers that keep them from choosing the schools as a work site.

The Chacivity Award is designed to recognize those students who exhibit behavior(s) that are uplifting to the Indiana University of Pennsylvania community. Congratulations to our students for demonstrating chacivity: character, civility, and integrity.

• She received the Sertoma Communication Disorders Scholarship of $1,000 to help cover tuition, books, and supplies. This scholarship is awarded to those with strong academic achievement and personal qualities.
• She received the Gay Keiser Scholarship, a scholarship that honors the memory of Mrs. Gay Keiser, who served at the Capital Area Intermediate Unit for twelve years. Each year, $1,000 is presented to a qualified student enrolled in a full-time master’s degree program in speech/language pathology within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. To be eligible for the scholarship, applicants must be pursuing a career in the schools.
• She received an IUP Graduate Merit Scholarship of $500.

Seana is currently at East Pike Elementary School completing the first of two semester-long externships.

He co-presented with Erin Keller, a current graduate student in Speech-Language Pathology. The title of their talk was “Rehabilitation: Aphasia, Apraxia of Speech, Dysarthria, and Dysphagia.” They presented information on cutting-edge therapeutic techniques for speech-language pathologists in the neurorehabilitation unit.

• Friday, September 18, 2009: 9:00–11:00 a.m.
• Friday, October 23, 2009: 9:00–11:00 a.m.
• Friday, December 4, 2009: 9:00–11:00 a.m.

No appointment is necessary, but please bring your I-Card and know your advisor’s name.

Special Education and Clinical Services

The article is a case report describing the use of an electrotactile vestibular substitution system (ETVSS) to facilitate balance and gait of an individual with bilateral vestibular hypofunction and bilateral transtibial amputation. The sixty-nine-year-old patient had a history of bilateral vestibular hypofunction and bilateral prosthetic legs after bilateral transtibial amputation. An intervention program of sensory substitution using the ETVSS improved outcome measures beyond those previously achieved with vestibular rehabilitation therapy and balance training. The feedback provided by the ETVSS may have facilitated the patient’s ability to use proprioception, thus allowing better balance control.

Robinson, B.S., Cook, J.L, McCormick Richburg, C.& Price, S.E. (2009, Sept.). Use of an electrotactile vestibular substitution system to facilitate balance and gait of an individual with gentamicin-induced bilateral vestibular hypofunction and bilateral transtibial amputation. Journal of Neurologic Physical Therapy (33), 150-159.

View the abstract for this article.

The Educational Resources for Children with Hearing Loss committee works to improve academic outcomes for all deaf and hard-of-hearing children in Pennsylvania. She represents higher education on the committee, and her current work on the committee focuses on increasing the number of students who apply for Deaf Education and Educational Interpreting degree programs in Pennsylvania. She is working with Harrisburg and PaTTAN East to produce recruiting DVDs and print/electronic media.

She is currently retooling UNO’s entire on-line master’s program for deaf education, the only program in deaf education in the state of Louisiana. Klein also continues in her second year as a consultant to the Louisiana Low-Incidence Disabilities Consortium.

This journal is published by the Educational Audiology Association, an international organization of audiologists and related professionals who deliver a full spectrum of hearing services to children. The journal is peer-reviewed and published annually.

The article is entitled “Talk During Book Sharing between Parents and Preschool Children: A Comparison Between Storybook and Expository Book Conditions.” Price, van Kleeck, and Huberty found that expository book sharing was longer in duration and resulted in higher rates of extratextual utterances by both parents and children. Also, during expository book sharing, parents used significantly higher rates of talk that encouraged labeling and more talk at higher levels of cognitive demand. Parents’ utterances were significantly longer and their talk contained significantly greater vocabulary diversity compared to that during storybook sharing. These findings indicate that the genre of book can influence the amount of talk that takes place during book sharing, and it can alter the content, vocabulary diversity, and sentence length of extratextual talk.

Price, L.H., van Kleeck, A., & Huberty, C.J. (2009, April/May/June). Talk During Book Sharing between Parents and Preschool Children: A Comparison between Storybook and Expository Book Conditions. Reading Research Quarterly, 44(2), 171–194.

View an abstract of the article.

This work, based on her dissertation research conducted at the University of Pittsburgh, was an investigation of the potential discourse-level influences on the prediction for upcoming verb subcategorizations—the obligatory and optional upcoming structures associated with the verb. Per-phoneme reading times across the target region were found to be significantly faster following coherent (vs. incoherent) contexts, but syntactic priming did not influence reading times. The publication citation is as follows:

Brady, J. (2009). Inter-sentential Influences on Predicted Verb Subcategorization. Saarbrücken,Germany: VDM Verlag Dr. Müller.

February 15, 9:15 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.

March 28, 9:15 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.

April 25, 9:15 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.

No appointment is necessary, but please bring your I-Card and know your advisor’s name.