Our mission is to train excellent clinician-scholars who will work to maximize life participation for all people with communication and swallowing disorders. A speech-language pathologist functions as a scholar, communicator, collaborator, clinician, professional, advocate, and leader. We provide our graduate students with opportunities to develop knowledge and skills in each of these roles.

The Speech Language Pathology Program is committed to providing excellent and innovative educational opportunities for its students. We value critical thinking, respect, honesty, integrity, self-directed learning, and integrated academic and clinical education. Our program is deeply connected with the broader community of speech-language pathologists and other healthcare professionals, patients and their families, and other stakeholders. We value these community relationships and the perspectives of all members of the healthcare team.

The values of our program are exemplified through our goal to prepare speech-language pathologists who:

• Communicate effectively and respectfully with clients, families, other providers, community organizations, and colleagues;
• Have “deep” knowledge of the discipline and understand the impact of contextual factors on clinical practice;
• Can think critically and problem-solve creatively;
• Are reflective practitioners;
• Advocate for the role of SLP and for the needs of clients and families/caregivers;
• Are flexible and adaptable in a changing health and education context;
• Engage in evidence-informed practice;
• Learn to grow as leaders in consultation, collaboration, education, and clinical practice;
• Approach clinical practice and their role with the spirit of curiosity and inquiry; and
• Are life-long learners.