I attended Purdue University where I earned a Bachelor of Science – With Distinction in Speech Pathology.  I then went to graduate school at Vanderbilt University where I received my Master of Science, also in Speech Pathology. After graduation, I worked at the Vanderbilt Bill Wilkerson Center in Nashville, Tennessee.  While there, I specialized in aural habilitation therapy with children who are deaf or hard of hearing.  I especially enjoyed working with children that had recently received cochlear implants.  Although I was a member of the Aural Habilitation Team, I saw children with a wide range of delays and disorders.  These included children with articulation disorders, expressive and receptive language disorders, autism, Down’s syndrome, craniofacial disorders and other developmental disorders.  I also educated and counseled families on the characteristics of their child’s particular disorder and enabled them to create a language rich environment in their home. 

I left the Bill Wilkerson Center in 2002 to pursue a different passion – motherhood.  My husband and I have three beautiful children and I had the privilege of staying home with them in their younger years.  

While I certainly enjoyed my time with my children at home, I began to miss working as a speech therapist.  I love developing relationships with my clients and their families.  I began seeing clients privately in a variety of settings when my youngest entered preschool.  I also contracted with Sumner County Schools to provide services and evaluations in a variety of schools in the county.  While providing these contract services, a job for a full time speech therapist at HB Williams Elementary opened up.  I happily accepted this job because my two youngest students attended school there.  I have been there since 2014. 

I believe that creating a family centered approach is crucial in a child’s success, and my experience as a mother helps me have a better understanding of how this works.  I would be delighted to speak with you and answer any questions you might have about your child’s speech and language development.