ASHA Voices

Jessica Cortez discusses her work delivering services to people who have experienced a traumatic brain injury (TBI) and are involved with the justice system in various capacities, including incarceration. A speech-language pathologist and founder of The Loom Connection, a private practice in Fort Collins, Colorado, Cortez shares the story behind her work, the connection between TBIs and the justic...

Speech-language pathologist Hallie Sherman shares three ideas for making sessions with students in grades 4–12 more enjoyable and engaging. The SLP behind the “Speech Time Fun” blog provides practical examples and describes why she started rethinking her approach to working with older students. Transcript Learn More: Steps to Support Older Students’ Reading Comprehension How a Snack Cart Boosts Co...

Speech-language pathologist Letizia Hendrickson joins the podcast for a conversation on how SLPs can support executive functioning skills through service delivery. Hendrickson brings a neuroaffirming approach to her work with clients, which often focuses on ADHD. She shares what she’s learned about helping clients accomplish tasks and meet their goals. Hendrickson is neurodivergent herself, and sh...

Hear from Ryan McCreery and John Lee, two researchers working toward intercepting hearing loss early. Both will present on their work at the 2026 ASHA Research Symposium on Hearing, to be held at the ASHA Convention and streamed online. First, hear McCreery of Boys Town National Research Hospital talk about his research on intervention for children with mild hearing loss. Then, Lee of Regeneron Ph...

Just ahead of Balance Awareness Week, two University of Michigan researchers discuss their work on assessing infant vestibular systems. The audiologists address the questions they hope to answer, such as, what is the vestibular system’s critical period of development? They also describe how they developed a new rotational chair—designed specifically for infants—and the interdisciplinary collaborat...

Just ahead of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, we’re bringing you a conversation with speech-language pathologist Kristin Szymanek, director of rehabilitation at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. Through her “Pediatric Oncology SLP” account on Instagram, Szymanek often shares information on topics like pediatric feeding and palliative care. In this conversation, Szymane...

Although a patient’s communication and swallowing goals may change as they progress through their cancer treatment, today’s podcast guests say the speech-language pathologist’s presence can be one of the most consistent aspects of a patient’s journey. When SLP Keely Bill identified patients who needed head and neck cancer services in the region where she worked—hours away from the large academic m...

As children with congenital heart disease (CHD) begin living longer lives, today’s guests say there is a growing need for speech-language pathologists and interdisciplinary collaborators to work with these patients. SLP Nashifa Momin and pediatric nurse practitioner Nicole Coolidge join the podcast to discuss their work delivering services to young patients with complex CHD-related needs at Childr...

Speech-language pathologist Lesley Sylvan (Montclair State University) joins the podcast for a conversation on multi-tiered systems of support, or MTSS. It’s a subject she’s passionate about; she has centered her career and research on the educational framework. Sylvan shares how MTSS includes a focus on prevention, proactive instruction, and increasingly targeted support for those students who ne...

Speech-language pathologist Amy L. Donaldson returns to the podcast with two fellow members of Portland State University’s Autism and Social Communication Lab, SLP Brandon Eddy and AAC research lead Alyssa Hillary Zisk. When Donaldson was most recently on the podcast, she spoke about normalizing and destigmatizing AAC use. In this episode, Donaldson, Eddy, and Zisk continue with a conversation on...

Speech-language pathologist Sandra Hogsed is changing the way Erlanger Western Carolina Hospital is screening for and addressing delirium. In 2020, she saw patients entering the critical access hospital who were developing delirium. Soon after, she dedicated herself to gaining a greater understanding of the condition and how to recognize it. She shares what delirium looks like in its varying forms...

Just ahead of the 2026 Special Olympics USA Games in Minnesota, we discuss hearing health care for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, or IDD. Along with competing in events like track and field, swimming, and basketball, many athletes work with volunteers to receive hearing screenings, among other types of health screenings through attending Special Olympics Healthy Athletes®...

Speech-language pathologist Iván Campos joins the podcast to discuss multilingual assessment and intervention in the schools. Campos brings stories from his time delivering school services to students speaking Mayan languages, and he shares what he learned from that. In our conversation, he talks about dynamic assessment, collaborating with interpreters, and what the concept of translanguaging mea...

As the professional world grows increasingly mobile, hear how the Audiology & Speech-Language Pathology Interstate Compact is making it easier for CSD professionals to deliver services across state lines. Guests discuss how the compact works, who may benefit from it, how it creates greater access to services, and the story behind what they did to make it happen. Learn More: The Audiology &...

From comfort feeding to communication access, two SLPs discuss the important ways speech-language pathologists deliver services as part of palliative care teams. Sharing personal and professional stories, Brittany Horvath and Marissa James address informed consent, how SLPs can integrate themselves into palliative care teams, and more. Learn More: Dysphagia Management: Strengthening Skills, Overco...

Speech-language pathologist Claudio Milstein joins the podcast to discuss inducible laryngeal obstruction (ILO), an often misdiagnosed condition that can leave patients feeling shortness of breath. Milstein breaks down the roles of interprofessional collaboration and differential diagnosis in service delivery. Plus, he shares the story behind the new global community he’s cofounded to bring togeth...

Speech-language pathologist Jessica Donaldson explains how the neurodiversity-affirming approach of her multidisciplinary clinic, Autism Specialists, strives to create a sense of belonging, acceptance, and accessibility for autistic clients. She describes how and why she created a social group for her clients that’s directed by their interests and goals. Donaldson, the sibling of an autistic adult...

Hear ASHA members discuss how school-based audiologists and speech-language pathologists advocate for themselves, the professions, and the people they serve. On the podcast, guests share stories of what successful advocacy looks like and give a behind-the-scenes look at the work they do. All three guests are members of the ASHA Teacher Union Member Advisory Group and recently published new resourc...

SLP Stephanie Boron joins the podcast for a conversation on how she seeks and creates neurodiversity-affirming spaces through her work as a clinician, clinical instructor, and faculty member at Northwestern University. Boron describes herself as AuDHD—autistic and ADHD. On the podcast, she shares what neurodiversity-affirming spaces can look like and why they matter to clients. Learn More: ASHA Vo...

For young patients with TBIs and their families, challenges persist after hospital discharge. On the podcast, guests discuss how they address barriers associated with this transition. We’ll hear perspectives from both sides of that transition: Taryn Townsend at Texas Children’s Hospital, and Melaney Grenz, who worked for nearly three decades in the schools and as part of the Oregon TBI team. Grenz...

Three SLPs discuss multilingual service delivery in light of “translanguaging,” a concept that’s been gaining attention recently. “Translanguaging” refers to the way a speaker, often multilingual, may incorporate the “entirety of their linguistic repertoire,” possibly pulling from two or more named languages. Guests share what translanguaging sounds like, how it differs from code-switching, and wh...

Audiologist Marcia Dewey started Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin’s Tinnitus and Hyperacusis Program in 2011. Nearly 15 years later, she joins the ASHA Voices podcast to discuss the program’s origins and how chronic pain rehabilitation techniques have transformed her practice. Learn More: ASHA: Tinnitus ASHA Voices: From Surf Rocker to Research Audiologist, Jim Henry Knows Tinnitus...

When a child leaves the NICU, families and caregivers may face what’s called a “services cliff”—a point where it can be confusing or difficult to find needed services without the structure of a health care center. Hear from Sara Circelli and SLP Tiffany Elliott about their work to reshape that transition where they live and work. They share how they address barriers to services through the hospita...

Learn where to find the ASHA Leader's most popular stories from 2025, and revisit past episodes of the ASHA Voices podcast, in this short episode. Plus, we invite you to share what subjects you would like to hear discussed on ASHA Voices in 2026. Transcript ASHA Leader Highlights: Articles and Podcasts SLPs Read, Shared, and Listened the Most to in 2025 Articles and Podcasts Audiologists Read, Sha...

When people acquire a brain injury, it can lead to difficulty with communication, including the language disorder aphasia. Hear SLPs share how they use podcasting as a tool to work with people with aphasia, helping them create, host, and produce their own ongoing shows. A panel of SLPs—including Tom Sather of the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, Melissa Richman of the Stroke Comeback Center in...