Northwestern University Speech-Language Pathology

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Northwestern University Speech-Language Pathology

Obtain an entry-level master's degree to become a SLP in our MS SLL program. Licensed SLPs can earn t

The Masters program in Speech, Language, and Learning (SLL) combines coursework with clinical observation, research and practice to prepare students to diagnose and treat speech, swallowing and language disorders in children and adults. The Doctor of Speech-Language Pathology (SLPD) is a clinical doctorate degree for practicing SLP's and is offered in a hybrid format. The curriculum focuses on lea

dership, policy, organizational behavior, and operations, in addition to clinical research methods, dissemination and implementation science, and clinical specialization.

04/08/2026

Meet Shulunda (Shulie) Gibson, MA, CCC-SLP - a voice-specialized speech-language pathologist and Voice, Performance, and Communication Strategist based in Houston, Texas 🎤✨

With 24 years of experience, Shulie is the founder of The Speech & Voice Care Center and the creator of Vocalii - The Voice Intelligence Coach™. She also serves as a Senior Learning Consultant at Oracle, where she designs and delivers training in voice-heavy professional environments. Her work centers on adults - executives, speakers, and high-performing professionals - helping them strengthen, protect, and reclaim their voices through evidence-based technique and sustainable behavior change.

Her culminating project, “Developing Vocal Intelligence: A Behaviorally Engineered Framework for Occupational Vocal Burnout Prevention,” introduces a Vocal Intelligence framework that integrates behavior design and just-in-time adaptive interventions (JITAI) to build consistent vocal health habits. By translating voice therapy principles into scalable, app-enabled prevention strategies, her work supports better adherence, carryover, and long-term vocal resilience for professional voice users.

Reflecting on her time in the SLPD program at Northwestern University, Shulie shared that her favorite part has been the camaraderie - being in community with brilliant clinicians who challenge, encourage, and grow alongside one another.

Post-SLPD, she plans to continue building at the intersection of voice, leadership, and digital health - scaling prevention-focused vocal wellness solutions through coaching, training, and technology.

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04/06/2026

Meet Archana Ramanujam — a Speech-Language Pathologist and Senior Clinical Manager based in Naperville, IL, with 14 years of experience across outpatient clinics and school settings 🌟

Archana currently serves at Expressable, an outpatient telehealth company expanding access to pediatric speech therapy services. In her leadership role, she focuses on supporting clinicians while ensuring high-quality, accessible care for families.

Her culminating project, “From Expectations to Expertise: A Clinical Competency Framework for SLPs,” introduces a structured framework designed to bring clarity, guidance, and consistency to professional growth in speech-language pathology. By strengthening how we define and develop clinical competence, her work supports stronger clinicians — and ultimately, better patient care.

Reflecting on her time in the SLPD program at Northwestern University, Archana shared that the program challenged her to rethink supervision, mentorship, and professional development in a more intentional way. She also deepened her understanding of process improvement and change management, seeing firsthand how business and leadership principles can meaningfully enhance clinical care.

After graduation, Archana plans to continue advancing in clinical leadership by building systems that support clinician growth and elevate the quality of care across settings.

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04/03/2026

Meet Ana Buettner - a Speech-Language Pathologist from Buffalo, NY, and a proud member of the SLPD Class of 2026 🤍

Ana is the Owner and Lead Speech-Language Pathologist at Inclusive Speech & Language Services, a private practice serving children and families across Western New York. She brings experience from a variety of settings in Buffalo and Washington, D.C., including private practice, early intervention, skilled nursing facilities, hospitals, and a Deaf school. Her clinical passions include working with the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (DHH) population and supporting communication through AAC.

Her culminating project, Language Foundation Assessment for American Sign Language (LFA-ASL), is a diagnostic assessment tool designed for Deaf and Hard of Hearing children from birth to six years. The LFA-ASL evaluates developmental ASL milestones and helps identify potential language delays and sign language disorders - supporting equitable, evidence-based clinical decision-making.

Reflecting on her time in the SLPD program at Northwestern University, Ana shared that she has loved learning from incredible colleagues and mentors. The program empowered her to grow her skills and contribute to advancing the field of speech-language pathology as a whole.

Post-SLPD, Ana plans to continue expanding her practice while piloting and refining the LFA-ASL to ensure it is reliable, equitable, and clinically meaningful for Deaf and Hard of Hearing children.

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04/02/2026

Meet Holly K. Mangus - a Senior SLP based in Fairport, NY, with 7 years of experience in Early Intervention and preschool services 💜

Holly works at Therapeutic Link For Children, where she not only serves young children and families but also supervises CF-SLPs and graduate students. Her passion for systems-level change and early access to services led to her culminating project, “Building Access, Use, and Impact: A Team-Based Assistive Technology Curriculum for Early Intervention (Birth–3 Years Old).”

Her curriculum addresses the under-identification and inconsistent implementation of assistive technology (AT) in Early Intervention by introducing a coordinated, team-based model grounded in the principle ACCESS → USE → IMPACT. The goal: strengthen provider knowledge, enhance interdisciplinary collaboration, empower families, and promote meaningful long-term outcomes for children.

Reflecting on her time in the SLPD program at Northwestern University, Holly shared that from the very first day of orientation, she knew she was exactly where she was meant to be. The program, faculty, and friendships she built gave her the confidence and motivation to pursue more in this profession than she ever imagined.

Connect with Holly on Instagram

Photo Cred: Purple Photo Group

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03/30/2026

🚨 We interrupt our SLPD Countdown to Graduation broadcast for some exciting news…

Later this week, we are thrilled to welcome our admitted MS in Speech, Language, and Learning students to campus for Preview Day! 💜

Preview Day is a chance for admitted applicants to meet current students and faculty, explore campus, and learn more about what it’s like to be part of the MS SLL community.

📅 Preview Day: Friday, April 3
(Admitted applicants only)

We can’t wait to meet everyone and share what makes the SLL program so special!

03/27/2026

Meet Lauren Armstrong — a school-based SLP in Westchester County, NY, who has been serving elementary students for 15 years 🍎

Lauren works with students in grades K–5, supporting oral language, speech production, literacy, executive functioning, and social communication. Her passion for understanding how students learn led to her culminating project, “Metacognition: The Language of Learning — A Brain-Based Tutorial for School-Based SLP Success.”

Her project is a practical tutorial designed to help school-based SLPs speak the language of metacognition — both internally, to design intervention aligned with the brain science of learning, and externally, to help students carry over the skills they’re building in therapy.

Reflecting on her time in the SLPD program at Northwestern University, Lauren shared that her favorite part has been gaining the perspective and skills to think critically about challenges. “You don’t know what you don’t know,” she noted — and she’s in awe of all she’s learned and continues to learn. She credits the faculty, colleagues, and intentionally crafted curriculum as truly unmatched.

Post-graduation, Lauren looks forward to sharing her tutorial and building a collegial circle for school-based SLPs in her area to dive into the brain science of learning and enhance service delivery for all learners.

Connect with Lauren on Instagram

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03/25/2026

Meet Catherine Scott — a speech-language pathologist with 23 years of experience serving pediatric populations in both school-based and private practice settings.

Based in northern Arizona, Catherine currently works for the Clarkdale-Jerome School District, a small rural K–8 public school district, where she serves in dual roles as both the SLP and a part-time middle school special education teacher. In the coming year, she’ll transition into part-time SLP work while stepping into the special education director role — all while launching her own private practice.

Her culminating project, Ocotillo Horizons Learning Alliance, PLLC, is a comprehensive business plan to establish a professional limited liability company providing speech, language, literacy, and academic services to students utilizing Arizona Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) funds. This project lays the foundation for serving Arizona’s growing homeschool and microschool community through her new practice, Ocotillo Horizons Learning Alliance, PLLC.

Reflecting on her time in the SLPD program at Northwestern University, Catherine shared that she has loved every minute — from the rigor of the coursework to the relationships built with a talented and passionate cohort. She credits the program’s emphasis on critical thinking, the Science of Teaching and Learning, process improvement, business development, and policy writing as directly shaping her next career steps.

You can connect with Catherine at:
Instagram:
Facebook: Ocotillo Horizons Learning Alliance, PLLC
LinkedIn: Catherine Scott

Photo Cred: Purple Photo Group

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03/23/2026

Meet Destiny Johnson, SLPD, CCC-SLP - a bilingual speech-language pathologist based in Southern California and the CEO & Founder of Multimodal Communication Speech Clinic P.C.

Destiny specializes in early intervention and school-based services, with a focus on comprehensive bilingual speech and language evaluations to support culturally and linguistically diverse children. Her work centers equity, access, and culturally responsive practice.

Her culminating project, “A Narrative-Based Mediated Learning Experience (MLE) Procedure Manual for Dynamic Assessment,” is a structured manual designed to guide SLPs in embedding Mediated Learning Experience (MLE) principles into narrative-based dynamic assessment - offering clinicians a practical, research-informed framework they can immediately apply.

Reflecting on her time in the SLPD program at Northwestern University, Destiny shared that her favorite part was the support to truly be herself and think creatively. Faculty fostered innovation while building a strong sense of teamwork, and the friendships and professional relationships she built along the way made all the difference — “We truly got through this together.”

Connect with Destiny on Instagram

Photo Cred: Kenisha Gill ()

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03/19/2026

Meet Erin Hurst - a pediatric speech pathologist in South Carolina who has been practicing for 9 years and currently serves children and families at Prisma Health 💙

Her culminating project, “Clinician Burnout: A Daunting Reality in the Field of Speech Language Pathology,” explored the current state of burnout in our field and led to the development of a practical toolkit to help clinicians better identify and mitigate burnout across clinical settings. Erin’s work shines a light on an issue so many SLPs face - and offers tangible steps toward change.

Reflecting on her time in the SLPD program at Northwestern University, Erin shared that the program broadened her perspective on the field and exposed her to new areas of speech-language pathology. She especially appreciated the intentional focus on real-world application and the encouragement to think expansively about future possibilities within the profession.

We’re so proud of the impact Erin is making - both for the children she serves and for clinicians across the field.

Photo Cred: Purple Photo Group

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03/16/2026

Meet Julie Harmon - a school-based SLP in Illinois who’s been supporting students and their families through the IEP process since 2004 💛

Her culminating project, “Norbridge: Strengthening Family–School Collaboration in the IEP Process,” was inspired by what she’s seen firsthand in schools: families wanting to stay involved, but not always having clear communication or access to information between IEP meetings. Norbridge is all about making that collaboration more consistent, transparent, and meaningful throughout the year.

Reflecting on her time in the SLPD program at Northwestern University, Julie shared that what she valued most was the focus on real systems and real challenges in schools - and the relationships she built with Cohort 8 along the way. The program gave her space to dig into processes, identify gaps, and design practical solutions that truly support families and teams.

After graduation, Julie plans to continue her work in public schools while growing Norbridge as a tool to strengthen family–school partnerships in special education.

Connect with Julie on Instagram .app

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03/12/2026

We’re kicking off our Countdown to Graduation by highlighting clinical doctorate students and the work that has been accomplished throughout this journey!
Stay tuned. 👀

03/09/2026

Daylight Saving Time begins March 8 - and while we may lose an hour of sleep, it’s also a great opportunity to reset as we move through the quarter. Here are a few ways to stay focused and energized.

Address

2240 Campus Drive
Evanston, IL
60208

Website

http://www.slpd.northwestern.edu/, http://www.linktr.ee/NUaudslp

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