Penn State Communication Sciences and Disorders

05/28/2026

Meet Addison Agnew, a fourth-year student majoring in communication sciences and disorders, with minors in human development and family studies and special education. During the spring semester of her second year, Addison studied abroad at the University of Melbourne in Australia.

Addison's study abroad journey started during New Student Orientation when she attended a session on different ways students can get involved at Penn State. She always had an interest in traveling internationally, so studying abroad immediately caught her attention.

"I always wanted to visit Australia, and spending an entire semester there felt like the perfect opportunity to finally pursue that goal," Addison said. "I thought I would see everything I wanted and that it would be a one-time experience, but I was wrong. I ended up falling in love with Australia and everything it had to offer."

Addison said her experience studying abroad taught her so much about herself, and she would encourage any student who is considering studying abroad to pursue it in some way.

"There are so many benefits to studying abroad, both personally and academically," Addison said. "This experience pushed me outside of my comfort zone in many ways and helped me grow into a more culturally aware individual. I gained confidence and became more independent, and created lifelong memories that I will always carry with me."

Penn State College of Health and Human Development

05/12/2026

In addition to the official Penn State commencement ceremony, our Master's graduates participated in a pinning ceremony, marking their transition from students to clinical practitioners. The ceremony was held in a hybrid Zoom and in-person format, inviting families and friends to join in the occasion. Congrats to the Master's class of 2026!

05/11/2026

05/11/2026

Safe travels to the CSD 499 class as they embark on a 10-day trip to the Netherlands to gain a deeper understanding of communication disorders and Deaf culture in a global context.

05/08/2026

Kristina Exton will serve as the Penn State Communication Sciences and Disorders student marshal for spring 2026 commencement. She served as vice president for AYUDA and worked as an undergraduate researcher with the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center on Augmentative and Alternative Communication. Congrats, Kristina!

Learn more: https://www.psu.edu/news/students/story/college-health-and-human-development-names-2026-program-marshals

Penn State College of Health and Human Development

04/20/2026

Meet Sarah Jacobs, a third-year student majoring in communication sciences and disorders with a minor in American Sign Language. During her time at Penn State, Sarah has worked on the SPEAK OUT!® Therapy Program, supporting both the clinical and research sides of the program.

The SPEAK OUT!® Therapy Program is designed to help people with Parkinson’s disease and related disorders regain and retain their speech and swallowing capabilities.

Sarah said this experience has made her more confident when taking initiative and problem-solving independently — skills that will be essential for her future career as a speech-language pathologist.

“Through my work with SPEAK OUT!®, I’ve gained experience organizing and analyzing participant data, which has shown me how important accurate data collection is for tracking treatment outcomes. It has also allowed me to apply what I am learning in the classroom to a real-world therapy program. I’ve gained confidence communicating and collaborating with faculty and professionals in the field and feel more comfortable contributing ideas and asking for feedback. These skills will be invaluable as I continue my journey to become a speech-language pathologist.”

Penn State College of Health and Human Development

04/13/2026

Coming up this weekend!

Join us for our next session in the CSD Connections: Bridging Science and Service series.

Saturday, Apr. 18 | 1-3 p.m. | Penn State University Park or Online

"The Developing Brain: Implications for Speech-Language Pathologists" will discuss how advances in cognitive science and neuroscience have led to an explosion of information about brain development and neural/information processing related to cognition and language learning and use.

This 2-hour presentation will focus on aspects of this information that are relevant to the practice of speech-language pathology including typical and atypical brain development and the therapeutic implications of brain plasticity.

Advanced registration is required. ASHA CEUs available: 0.2.
https://forms.office.com/pages/responsepage.aspx?id=RY30fNs9iUOpwcEVUm61Lhharmnl35FDtbE3xyvtta9UQllGNUM0UDJSVUkwSU9OUkZUWkJEUkhaTC4u&route=shorturl

04/10/2026

Kathryn Drager will be presenting at the ISAAC International Forum on October 19 at 10:15 a.m. in Zagreb, Croatia before the ATAAC Conference.

Kathryn Drager, Ph.D., CCC-SLP, is a Professor at the Penn State Communication Sciences and Disorders Department. Her research centers on AAC, with a particular emphasis on supporting young children, beginning communicators, and children with autism as they develop foundational communication skills.

Dr. Drager’s workshop is titled “Working Toward UNITY: Principles for Advancing Communication Access for Children with Disabilities” and will offer a comprehensive discussion of considerations for equitable access to AAC for children with significant disabilities.

04/09/2026

Recently, our faculty and students traveled to the Poconos to present at the Pennsylvania Speech Language Hearing Association PSHA Convention. We are especially proud of our 5 Ph.D. students, 6 master's students, and 8 undergrads who were able to share the research projects they are working on. A special shout-out to undergrad Vivienne Booz, who received meritorious poster recognition!

04/01/2026

We are excited to welcome Terra Ingram to the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders! Terra will be the Assistant to the Department Head and Administrative Support Manager for the department. In this role, she will provide strategic and operational oversight of the department’s administrative functions and supervise a team of full-time staff, manage office operations, oversee confidential budgets and personnel documentation, coordinate faculty recruitment activities, and support departmental research and academic programs.

Outside of work, Terra serves as a Board Member for the Centre County United Way and is the chair of their funds distribution committee. She enjoys reading (all types of books and always looking for recommendations!), learning (a total PBS nerd), and, because of her lifelong work in the food service industry, she enjoys cooking and trying new foods.