Augmentative-Alternative Communication (AAC) Concentration

[MassSLPwannabe]

Anyone know of programs that have an AAC focus ? For example, I know the University of Akron has an AAC concentration, and you receive a certificate of AAC training . Just looking for similar programs ?

 

Thanks!

[samiamslp]

8 hours ago, MassSLPwannabe said:

Anyone know of programs that have an AAC focus ? For example, I know the University of Akron has an AAC concentration, and you receive a certificate of AAC training . Just looking for similar programs ?

 

Thanks!

That sounds amazing! Google tends to be your best friend with this stuff?

A quick search gave me these programs (blurbs following).

North Carolina Central University: "In addition to receiving top scores for Praxis exam pass rates, employment rates among recent graduates and on-time completion rates, we love North Carolina Central University because it’s home to a fully accredited clinic: the NCCU Speech and Hearing Clinic. Communications disorder graduate students here enjoy a variety of opportunities for specialized experience through the Assistive Technology for Infants and Preschoolers Program, the Augmentative and Alternative Communication Assessment and Consultation Clinic, and the Bilingual Clinic." 

Louisiana State University- Baton Rouge: "At LSU, SLP grad students get an unrivaled learning experience through flipped classrooms, simulated learning, interprofessional clinics, and will soon also get first hand exposure to telepractice. Students here learn to work with eye-tracking equipment, video stroboscopy, and state of the art augmentative and alternative communication devices. In fact, just last year the department invested $82,000 to update it’s ACC equipment. LSU grad students routinely present original research at state and national conferences and have a track record for taking home awards and scholarships. This program has it all."

San Francisco State University: "The purpose of Project Building Bridges is to prepare 60 fully credentialed Speech Language Pathologists to work effectively with culturally and linguistically diverse children with significant disabilities and augmentative communication needs, ages birth to 21. Project scholars will complete a Master’s degree in Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences in a two-year time frame, with a concentration in AAC and a focus on cultural and linguistic diversity. Scholar competencies to be acquired include: (a) culturally responsive AAC assessment; (b) culturally responsive AAC intervention; (c) collaborative teaming; and (d) development of AAC applications to support the language and literacy skills of culturally and linguistically diverse children and youth....The project will use evidence-based curricula and pedagogy carefully coordinated with substantial, mentored field experiences. The M.S. concentration in AAC will include: 1) two graduate seminars in AAC assessment and intervention; 2) an on campus clinic with a focus on diversity; 3) a one-week summer camp for children who use AAC; and 4) a school internship in a high need community agency or school serving children with AAC needs. 

Penn State University: "The AAC community at Penn State is one of the largest AAC-focused efforts in the world, with a wide range of  research activities, coursework,  and clinical experiences. Students at Penn State have the opportunity to: • participate in graduate level coursework on  AAC taught by nationally recognized faculty, •  assist in research projects designed to improve the lives of individuals with complex communication needs, and • provide clinical services to  individuals with complex communication needs  in clinical and community settings. Penn State students also have participated in our Global AAC Initiative, and worked with AAC teams in Mexico, South Africa, Eastern Europe, India, and China."

Nova Southeastern: not a blurb, but they have Carole Zangari (author of prAACticalAAC.org) as a faculty member (!!!!) and she is AMAZING with all things AAC. And she runs a lab there. i don't know much about the program, but if I met her, I'd be seriously star-struck?.

Temple University: Has its Institute on Disabilities, which hosts this amazing program during the summer for teens(?) using AAC. "Augmentative Communication and Empowerment Supports, or "ACES," is a program for young adults who use communication technology (speech generating devices or "SGD") transitioning from school to work, to help develop and refine their communication, including computer access and use for daily living/job skills." They stay on campus and I'm pretty sure the CSD students are the volunteers. In general, Temple has the Pennsylvania’s Initiative on Assistive Technology (PIAT), which provides training, AAC evaluations, device demonstrations, and AT consultations led by the CSD department. If I remember correctly, there is a specialty clinic that you can do as a grad student specifically in AAC, plus faculty are involved in AAC research. 

Some programs have AAC certification listed as for practicing SLPs, so I don't know if you'd be able to be certified as a grad student, but it would be worth a shot to ask the program directly. See the University of Memphis as an example.

Certain programs, like the University of Iowa and George Washington University, require you to have rotations in a variety of subfields of SLP, and the AAC track is one of those rotations. Other programs just have faculty members who are doing exceptional research about AAC (the three that I looked at are at Northeastern University, Temple University, Emerson University, and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee), so if there is a researcher who you know of from articles or whatever else who specializes in AAC, it would be great to see if they are doing research through a university, and if you would then be able to do research with that professor. If you're part of ASHA, you can check out who is writing and publishing in the AAC SIG. (I did that with literacy, the area I want to concentrate in, and now some of the people I've looked up to as top scholars in my area will be my professors in the fall... I'm seriously still swooning.?) A lot of the program websites are not the best and most up-to-date, so researching specific people in the field can be really helpful, and can lead you back to the school they work at and the programs they have at that grad school. 

Editing to add this reddit link I just found with additional programs to add to this list. Worth checking out. 

Best of luck on your search!

 

Edited April 19, 2019 by samiamslp

[SpeechGal1234]

One of the best placements is at Boston Children's Hospital at the AAC center. All of the Boston schools offer placements there. It is a fantastic placement, 6 months (which is long for a placement!), and all AAC. I know MGH IHP offers an autism concentration, which is related to AAC but not exactly AAC. BU offers multiple AAC electives that could be good on a resume, as well. 

[MassSLPwannabe]

On ‎4‎/‎22‎/‎2019 at 7:44 PM, SpeechGal1234 said:

One of the best placements is at Boston Children's Hospital at the AAC center. All of the Boston schools offer placements there. It is a fantastic placement, 6 months (which is long for a placement!), and all AAC. I know MGH IHP offers an autism concentration, which is related to AAC but not exactly AAC. BU offers multiple AAC electives that could be good on a resume, as well. 

 I live in Boston area so that would be great if I got to stay local! All the Boston programs are so pricey tho ?

[MassSLPwannabe]

On ‎4‎/‎19‎/‎2019 at 5:20 PM, samiamslp said:

That sounds amazing! Google tends to be your best friend with this stuff?

A quick search gave me these programs (blurbs following).

North Carolina Central University: "In addition to receiving top scores for Praxis exam pass rates, employment rates among recent graduates and on-time completion rates, we love North Carolina Central University because it’s home to a fully accredited clinic: the NCCU Speech and Hearing Clinic. Communications disorder graduate students here enjoy a variety of opportunities for specialized experience through the Assistive Technology for Infants and Preschoolers Program, the Augmentative and Alternative Communication Assessment and Consultation Clinic, and the Bilingual Clinic." 

Louisiana State University- Baton Rouge: "At LSU, SLP grad students get an unrivaled learning experience through flipped classrooms, simulated learning, interprofessional clinics, and will soon also get first hand exposure to telepractice. Students here learn to work with eye-tracking equipment, video stroboscopy, and state of the art augmentative and alternative communication devices. In fact, just last year the department invested $82,000 to update it’s ACC equipment. LSU grad students routinely present original research at state and national conferences and have a track record for taking home awards and scholarships. This program has it all."

San Francisco State University: "The purpose of Project Building Bridges is to prepare 60 fully credentialed Speech Language Pathologists to work effectively with culturally and linguistically diverse children with significant disabilities and augmentative communication needs, ages birth to 21. Project scholars will complete a Master’s degree in Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences in a two-year time frame, with a concentration in AAC and a focus on cultural and linguistic diversity. Scholar competencies to be acquired include: (a) culturally responsive AAC assessment; (b) culturally responsive AAC intervention; (c) collaborative teaming; and (d) development of AAC applications to support the language and literacy skills of culturally and linguistically diverse children and youth....The project will use evidence-based curricula and pedagogy carefully coordinated with substantial, mentored field experiences. The M.S. concentration in AAC will include: 1) two graduate seminars in AAC assessment and intervention; 2) an on campus clinic with a focus on diversity; 3) a one-week summer camp for children who use AAC; and 4) a school internship in a high need community agency or school serving children with AAC needs. 

Penn State University: "The AAC community at Penn State is one of the largest AAC-focused efforts in the world, with a wide range of  research activities, coursework,  and clinical experiences. Students at Penn State have the opportunity to: • participate in graduate level coursework on  AAC taught by nationally recognized faculty, •  assist in research projects designed to improve the lives of individuals with complex communication needs, and • provide clinical services to  individuals with complex communication needs  in clinical and community settings. Penn State students also have participated in our Global AAC Initiative, and worked with AAC teams in Mexico, South Africa, Eastern Europe, India, and China."

Nova Southeastern: not a blurb, but they have Carole Zangari (author of prAACticalAAC.org) as a faculty member (!!!!) and she is AMAZING with all things AAC. And she runs a lab there. i don't know much about the program, but if I met her, I'd be seriously star-struck?.

Temple University: Has its Institute on Disabilities, which hosts this amazing program during the summer for teens(?) using AAC. "Augmentative Communication and Empowerment Supports, or "ACES," is a program for young adults who use communication technology (speech generating devices or "SGD") transitioning from school to work, to help develop and refine their communication, including computer access and use for daily living/job skills." They stay on campus and I'm pretty sure the CSD students are the volunteers. In general, Temple has the Pennsylvania’s Initiative on Assistive Technology (PIAT), which provides training, AAC evaluations, device demonstrations, and AT consultations led by the CSD department. If I remember correctly, there is a specialty clinic that you can do as a grad student specifically in AAC, plus faculty are involved in AAC research. 

Some programs have AAC certification listed as for practicing SLPs, so I don't know if you'd be able to be certified as a grad student, but it would be worth a shot to ask the program directly. See the University of Memphis as an example.

Certain programs, like the University of Iowa and George Washington University, require you to have rotations in a variety of subfields of SLP, and the AAC track is one of those rotations. Other programs just have faculty members who are doing exceptional research about AAC (the three that I looked at are at Northeastern University, Temple University, Emerson University, and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee), so if there is a researcher who you know of from articles or whatever else who specializes in AAC, it would be great to see if they are doing research through a university, and if you would then be able to do research with that professor. If you're part of ASHA, you can check out who is writing and publishing in the AAC SIG. (I did that with literacy, the area I want to concentrate in, and now some of the people I've looked up to as top scholars in my area will be my professors in the fall... I'm seriously still swooning.?) A lot of the program websites are not the best and most up-to-date, so researching specific people in the field can be really helpful, and can lead you back to the school they work at and the programs they have at that grad school. 

Editing to add this reddit link I just found with additional programs to add to this list. Worth checking out. 

Best of luck on your search!

 

Thank you!!!

[SpeechGal1234]

On 4/24/2019 at 3:13 PM, MassSLPwannabe said:

 I live in Boston area so that would be great if I got to stay local! All the Boston programs are so pricey tho ?

Yes, they are very pricey. I know NOVA has a strong AAC focus. Janice Light is also a big name in the AAC field, and she is at FSU.