Areas of Interest

Augmentative and Alternative Communication

One of my greatest clinical passions is providing therapeutic services to nonspeaking children. I have gained experience working with this population by using a PECS approach at my school placement as well as administering therapy using high-tech speech generating devices in outpatient therapy. I am committed to advocating for this population and providing them with ways to communicate in daily life. 

Melodic Intonation Therapy

My musical background first made me curious about Melodic Intonation Therapy. I formulated a research proposal during my undergraduate education exploring Melodic Intonation Therapy as an approach for nonfluent aphasia.  I believe that there are many benefits to incorporating music into speech therapy and I hope to use my musical knowledge and background in my career as a speech-language pathologist. 

Fluency Disorders

I first became interested in working with individuals who stutter during my undergraduate voice and fluency course. The more I have learned about people who stutter throughout my education, the more fluency therapy has captivated me. I participated in the fluency clinic module at the Marshall University Speech and Hearing Center and learned about Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and a counseling-based holistic approach to the treatment of fluency disorders from Dr. Jamie Maxwell. These experiences have made me increasingly passionate about helping individuals who stutter in my career as a speech-language pathologist. 

Literacy-based therapy

I value using a literacy-based approach in pediatric therapy. At my school placement, I learned a literacy-based approach to language therapy from Erin Rowe. I have also learned bibliotherapy approaches to fluency therapy from Dr. Jamie Maxwell. Both of these experiences have influenced my passion for incorporating literature into therapy sessions.