Graduate Travel
Professional Travel Grants for Graduate Students
2017 Speech-Language- Hearing Association of Virginia Convention
7 years
On March 23-25th I had the pleasure of attending the 2017 Speech-Language- Hearing Association of Virginia Convention in Richmond, Virginia. This was my second year attending the conference. I was able to attend various sessions that helped to increase my knowledge of assessing and treating children and adults with various disabilities. I learned about various intervention techniques specific to different populations, and I am eager to implement these techniques in my therapy sessions. I was also able to network with various companies all over the state of Virginia by visiting the different exhibits. I will be graduating in August and I found it to be very beneficial to talk to several employees and employers about their companies. I also attended a Student Social to learn more about preparing to interview for jobs and what to expect. I found this to be very beneficial as well, and I feel that I am better prepared to begin the process of job searching. Overall, attending this conference was a very rewarding experience and I am eager to attend the conference again next year.
SHAV 2017
7 years
Last week I had the privilege of attending the Speech and Hearing Association of Virginia’s annual conference in Richmond, VA. During this conference, I had the opportunity to attend sessions with topics such as dementia, NICU feeding therapy, alcoholism and dysphagia, oral care, and more. It was educational and fascinating. I learned so many new things that will help me as I begin my career in this field. I am excited to implement techniques and methods I learned to use when treating individuals with language, speech, cognitive and swallowing disorders. In addition to attending sessions, I was able to meet other professionals in the field, ask them questions, and take advice for my future career. I am very grateful to Longwood for allowing me this opportunity, it was an unforgettable experience and I learned so much!
SHAV Conference 2017
7 years
This past weekend, at the annual Speech Hearing Association of Virginia (SHAV) Conference in Richmond, I had the privilege of networking with professionals and attending multiple sessions relevant to my career interests. It was inspiring and exciting to be surrounded by so many energized people who share the same interests I do and it was nice to be able to see my old Longwood professors and Longwood Alumni. The session I enjoyed the most was about integrating Augmentative and Alternative Communication with children who have Apraxia of Speech. I plan to use this new knowledge to help my clients. I look forward to meeting up with my peers and other professionals again at the SHAV conference next year!
SHAV Conference 2017
7 years
This past weekend I had the opportunity to attend my third annual Speech-Hearing-Association of Virginia (SHAV) conference held in Richmond, Virginia. During the conference, I attended several sessions focusing on augmentative and alternative communication, early language development, fluency, and autism. These sessions provided me with new knowledge, ideas, and insights into the careers of speech-language pathology and audiology. Between sessions, I networked with a variety of speech-language pathologists and graduate students from across Virginia. I was also able to attend the silent auction to benefit the Communication Disorders Foundation, where I won some materials that I look forward to using in my speech therapy sessions. I’m very thankful to have been able to attend this year’s conference and I plan to use the knowledge gained for years to come!
Virginia State Reading Conference
7 years
On March 16th and 17th 2017 I attended the 50th annual VSRA conference. This event took place in the downtown historic Roanoake Hotel. The day began with breakfast and our first session with Dr. Steven Layne. His session was called “In Defence of Reading-Aloud” What an amazing way to start the day! He spoke about the importance of reading exciting and influential texts out loud to students. I have always been in favor of reading aloud but his session defined the importance and bought me back to what being read a dramatic reading really felt like. I told my fellow classmates that his session alone would have been worth the trip. The rest of the day was just as great and flew by with multiple professional developments. I attended 4 more 60 minute sessions, where I learned about some of the best ways to work with student who test low in comprehension, new ideas for daily 5, growing great writers and more about concept of word. Two of the 4 sessions were presented by my Reading and Literacy professors. Watching them present publically at the VSRA conference was such a treat. I am very greatful to Longwood University for providing me with the funds and insight to attend such a fantastic event. I am also very thankful to attend a school that is so focused on furthering our education through authentic experiences such as state reading conferences. Thank you.
2017 Speech-Language- Hearing Association of Virginia Convention
7 years
On March 23-25th, I was able to attend my second Speech-Language- Hearing Association of Virginia Convention this year in Richmond, Virginia! I attended sessions that provided me with several resources and references that will be useful to me as an upcoming graduate. During the conference, I broadened my knowledge of assessment and intervention methods for children with autism spectrum disorder. I learned about several apps that can be downloaded with a variety of purposes that will be helpful when working with children and adults. There were several companies and school systems at the conference that are currently looking to hire speech-language pathologists. I signed up to receive information from various schools and other facilities to learn more about their job opportunities. I also met representatives from various companies that assist the speech-language pathologist locate jobs and find contacts with schools, home health care, skilled nursing facilities, and other settings. I was able to network with individuals in the field of speech-language pathology. During the conference, I collected information packets on various types of pediatric and adult hearing aids. These brochures and packets will be helpful resources for me in the school system since there are not always audiologists on staff.
SHAV Conference 2017
7 years
On March 23-25th, I had the opportunity to attend the Speech-Language-Hearing Association of Virginia (SHAV) Conference for the third time. I look forward to meeting up with peers, networking with other speech-language pathologists, and learning new information each year. This time, I attended a variety of sessions about managing a school case-load, early intervention, pediatric and adult dysphagia, writing, Autism Spectrum Disorder, and fluency. I attended four session by Vivian Sisskin about making a differential diagnosis for stuttering versus other types of disfluencies, as well as an up-and-coming approach to treating stuttering called Avoidance Reduction Therapy. I liked attending this year more than previous years because, now that I am finally in my externships and looking for a job, I can directly relate what I am learning in these sessions to my clients.
SHAV Conference 2017
7 years
Me (on the right) and my graduate student friends at the SHAV conference.
On March 23rd,24th, and 25th, I had opportunity to go to the Speech and Hearing Association of Virginia conference thanks to a generous contribution from the CGPS. While at the conference, I learned a diverse array of information pertaining to the field of speech-language pathology about topics including, desensitization to stuttering, the use of applied behavior analysis in autism, the classification of speech errors in articulation and phonology, the language of poverty, and the use of different viscosities in barium swallow studies. My favorite presentation was about how stuttering can be better treated by using techniques to decrease fear and anxiety. I appreciated how the presenter Vivian Sisskin, used videos to show the incredible progress her clients made in a very short amount of time. As I am interested in working in the school system with K-3rd grade, I know this information will be beneficial for me as a practicing clinician when treating children who stutter. I am excited to attend the next SHAV conference in Williamsburg, VA and learn more about the field of speech-language pathology!
My First VSRA Conference
7 years
From Left to Right: McKenzie Melton (Blogger), Christina Kline, Emily Pleasants, Georgia Skipper
This past weekend, on March 17, 2017, I attended my first VSRA conference thanks to the travel grant that was given to me by Longwood’s College of Graduate and Professional Studies.Our first session was with Steven Layne, who spoke to all attending about how important solid read alouds are for students of all ages. His powerful and moving example on how to truly engage students in a text was a model for all professionals in that room. I was then able to attend three concurrent sessions: the first having to do with station activities and ideas for primary grades, the second having to do with how to bring technology into the classroom, and finally, how to connect dance and other art forms to writing. I enjoyed my final concurrent session the most; I enjoyed hearing about the event that she and a local dance teacher held for their community and talking with other professionals about how something similar could be brought to the classroom. I believe every student has a passion and strength, and sometimes those do not include oral presentations. Giving students the option to show their mastery of the content through art forms will engage and build a positive self-efficacy into students who are not really understood in the typical classroom setting. I could not be more excited to use all of the skills and practices I learned during VSRA in my future classroom, and I plan on attending the conference every year from now on!
VSRA Conference
7 years
I attended the Virginia State Reading Association’s 50th Annual Reading Conference in Roanoke, Virginia. I truly enjoyed every moment of the experience. Being surrounded by that many people who all have an amazing impact on children every day was incredible. The first session that I attended at the conference was entitle In Defense of Read-Aloud by Dr. Steven Layne. This presentation inspired me from the first moment. I hope to teach middle school in the future, so it was important to hear that read-aloud has just as much benefit for these older students as it does for elementary learners. One of the biggest take-aways I had from this presentation was the importance of establishing a hook when reading a book aloud. It is essential to read a higher amount in those first few days until students are begging for you to read; when they reach that point, they are hooked! One of the concurrent sessions I attended was on the topic of grammar with Dr. Keith Polette. This session was a great refresher on a wide variety of grammatical topics such as abstract vs. concrete nouns, the parts of speech, and instructional strategies to utilize when providing this information to students. I have since ordered Dr. Polette’s book, Teaching Grammar Through Writing, and plan to incorporate many of these ideas into my classroom. I also attended a session on incorporating technology into the classroom, specifically literature circles. In this session, I learned about the SAMR model of incorporating technology in the classroom. The last session I attended was centered on the Virginia Reader’s Choice texts selected for middle and high school readers this year. This was an incredible session to attend because it gave me a great list of texts to start with when recommending books to my students int the future! I truly enjoyed every aspect of this conference and plan to attend next year’s as well! I am so thankful for this opportunity that the Graduate Travel Grant has given me.