L-R: Robert McKinney, Betty Yu, Damian Huertas and Nidhi Mahendra



Ying-Chiao

Diversity Committee Members 2008-2009:

Nidhi Mahendra (2008-2010) - nidhiaz@yahoo.com

Robert McKinney (2008-2010) - b_mck62@hotmail.com

Betty Yu (2007-2009) - bettyyu@mac.com
Damian Huertas (2008-2010) - sfsudysnomia@yahoo.com
Ying-Chiao Tsao (2008-2010) - ytsao@exchange.fullerton.edu

 

DIVERSITY NEWSLETTER MARCH 2009

DIVERSITY NEWSLETTER MARCH 2008

DIVERSITY NEWSLETTER MARCH 2007

•Who is Who

Mission of the Diversity Committee:

Since its inception, CSHA's Diversity Committee has worked to assist CSHA members in increasing their knowledge and awareness on issues of diversity in the speech, language, and hearing professions.

Newsline:

Current Projects in Progress:

During 2008-2009 the Diversity Issues Committee is working on:

1. Providing input to CSHA on its forthcoming Bilingual/Multilingual Professionals Directory, and to the Speech Language Pathology and Audiology Board (SPLAB) on guidelines for evaluating credentials and language proficiency of SLPs trained outside the United States.

2. Providing input to ASHA’s Office of Multicultural Affairs and its Multicultural Issues Board on changing state regulations in CA regarding evaluation of language proficiency and training/coursework for internationally trained speech language pathologists and audiologists.

3. Providing input to ASHA on its forthcoming document titled Guidance for Identifying and Supporting Students Who Speak English with Nonstandard Dialects or Accents.

4. Presenting a case-based seminar at the April 2009 San Francisco State University (SFSU-NSSLHA) Professional Practices and Practical Strategies in Diverse Settings conference, with examples of best practices and challenges in assessing culturally and linguistically diverse clients.  

5. Preparing one or two case-based publications (or CEU products) on a framework for cultural competence and evidence-based assessment strategies for working with CLD clients.

6. Focusing outreach and dissemination efforts towards students and NSSLHA members in CA training programs in SLP and AUD to evaluate their needs regarding training and mentoring to better serve CLD clients. 

7. Continuing to develop a glossary of most frequently used terms in SLP and their equivalent terms in select non-English languages.

8. Building our webpage and annual newsletter as a useful resource for CSHA members.

Bilingual Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists: Definition

American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, 1989

Speech-language pathologists or audiologists who present themselves as bilingual for the purposes of providing clinical services must be able to speak their primary language and to speak (or sign) at least one other language with native or near-native proficiency in lexicon (vocabulary), semantics (meaning), phonology (pronunciation), morphology/syntax (grammar), and pragmatics (uses) during clinical management.

To provide bilingual assessment and remediation services in the client's language, the bilingual speech-language pathologist or audiologist should possess:

1. ability to describe the process of normal speech and language acquisition for both  bilingual and monolingual individuals and how those processes are manifested in oral (or manually coded) and written language;
2. ability to administer and interpret formal and informal assessment procedures to distinguish between communication differences and communication disorders in oral (or manually coded) and written language;
3. ability to apply intervention strategies for treatment of communication disorders in the client's language; and
4. ability to recognize cultural factors which affect the delivery of speech-language pathology and audiology services to the client's language community.

Facts about English Language Learners in CA Schools

Graphs of English Language Learners in CA Schools

 

Resources and Information:

Academic Programs in Communication Sciences and Disorders in California:

Bilingual SLP and AUD Directory

Search the ASHA database for bilingual speech-language-hearing professionals.

CSHA Position Papers

To read CSHA's position statements regarding issues of diversity.

Issue Documents

Past and present members of the committee have prepared documents addressing areas of diversity, including servicing the early intervention and adult populations, choosing language of intervention, student diversity training, and measuring cultural and linguistic proficiency level in SLPs.

Related Links

Look here for over 40 links to websites relevant to the speech-language-hearing professions that offer information regarding diversity, including information for clients and families in other languages and information for professionals about various cultures and languages.