Allied Health to offer new concentration in pre-speech-language pathology

Augusta University’s College of Allied Health Sciences will begin offering a new pre-speech-language pathology concentration as part of the existing Bachelor of Science in Health Services starting this fall.

The pre-SLP concentration is a new pathway for AU students to obtain the six courses required for application to the new Master of Health Science in Speech-Language Pathology program, which is also on target to start this fall.

The pre-SLP concentration, which collaborates with the College of Education and Human Development, the Katherine Reese Pamplin College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences, James M. Hull College of Business and The Graduate School, will require 124 credit hours and provide students with the pre-SLP leveling courses in preparation for graduate study in speech-language pathology.

The courses will focus on the introductory courses relating to communication sciences and disorders, as well as audiology, anatomy of speech and hearing mechanisms, and the scientific bases of the SLP profession. They will also include the required six prerequisite courses for application to the Speech-Language Pathology program, according to program director Kitty Hernlen, EdD, and Joann Denemark.

“The BSHS-SLP concentration strategically enhances potential access to the MHS-SLP for the native AU student population,” said CAHS Dean Lester Pretlow, PhD. “All health science professional programs require that applicants complete specific courses as prerequisites to admission. The MHS-SLP is no exception. The BSHS-SLP will provide the prerequisite courses for AU graduates to apply for the MHS-SLP. Our goal is to ensure that AU students have the opportunity to matriculate in the MHS-SLP as graduate students.”

There is currently a high demand for SLP associates nationwide, due to a critical shortage of certified SLPs. According to national employment trends data, the growth and workforce increase from 2020-30 was projected to increase by 42%. The projected annual number of job openings available in Georgia is around 400.

“The health services management has been around since 2017, and we’ve had more than 150 graduates so far,” said Hernlen. “By adding this concentration, it’s a win-win for everyone involved. If students take the prerequisite courses for the classes related to the major, then they come out with all the required courses to apply for the master’s program. If they take the elective course, they can then become certified SLP associates in Georgia, which will allow them to get jobs in public schools throughout the entire state.”

To become an SLP associate, participation in a school-based internship for one semester, which includes a total of 100 hours of direct service under the supervision of a certified SLP, is required for certification.

Enrollment trends over the past three years for degrees in communication sciences and disorders or education with a major in SLP have averaged 150 or higher at the University of Georgia (286), Georgia Southern University and Valdosta State University (183), and the University of West Georgia (150).

Denemark noted the Georgia Professional Standards Commission recently passed 505-2-.151 allowing SLP associates to work in Georgia school systems, which are in desperate need of SLP assistance. The new concentration will lead to employment as a school-based speech-language associate in Georgia.

Hernlen is excited about collaborating with Denemark, Afua Agyapong, PhD, and Tiffany Prescott, PhD, in helping prepare students while growing and molding it into a thriving program.

“To be able to work with partners like the faculty in SLP, it’s an opportunity to grow our program, and the concentration can serve as a goal for other concentrations that might be available out there,” Hernlen said. “It’s going to be more of an interprofessional education while being able to partner and share resources instead of working by yourself.

“As a respiratory therapist, I knew what speech-language pathologists did to a degree, but I had no idea what courses they took or what their curriculum was,” she continued. “So being able to be with them on the planning committees and to plan out the program has opened my eyes, and I’m hoping it will start leading to more interprofessional education among students.”