CSULB SLP Department

🌟On April 17, our first-year graduate student,🎉 Tiffany Manuma 🎉, attended the Coastal CAPTAIN Cadre Conference in Irvine, CA — a collaborative event dedicated to promoting evidence-based practices that support individuals with autism across home, school, and community settings. 🌟 📚As a Project CARE Scholar, Tiffany co-presented with Dr. Belinda Daughrity on the role of exercise and movement in supporting regulation for individuals with autism. She also connected with families to share information about our CSULB clinic services and community resources. 🗣🌟 Thank you to Tiffany and the CARE team for their dedication to supporting the autistic community! 💙 #Beach #CSULBSLP #CSULB #StudentExcellence #futureslps #GoBeach #speech

🎓🌟 Celebrating Excellence – CSULB SLP Class of 2026 🌊💛 We are proud to recognize the outstanding achievements of our graduating students featured in this year’s commencement awards booklet. Your dedication, hard work, and passion for the field continue to inspire our entire community! 👏💬 We are so proud of each and every one of you as you take this next step in your journey. Congratulations, Class of 2026 , your future in speech-language pathology is bright! 🎉💛 #CSULB #CSULBSLP #ClassOf2026 #SLPGraduation #StudentExcellence #FutureSLPs #GoBeach 🌊🎓

🎉🗣Shout out to Drs. Shriya Basu and Margaret Vento-Wilson, and undergraduate student Dilenia Herrera for presenting their work during the CHHS Week of RSCA! 🎉🗣 Kudos to Dr. Daughrity and graduate student Cindy Garcia, who coordinated and led the Interdisciplinary Autism Symposium, bringing together students and professionals to discuss best practices for supporting autistic individuals. 🌟🫂 Also, thanks to NSSLHA, SLP students, and faculty who attended and supported the event! 🦈🌟

🦈🌟CSULB’s SLP Department & Speech and Language Clinic is proud to have participated in the Celebration of the Young Child event hosted by the City of Long Beach. ☺️🌟 🌟Thank you to Professor Tydor, Dr. Lei Sun, and Dr. Belinda Daughrity for their support, along with Project CARE Scholar Jonathan Park . This event was led by Dr. Connie Yu, with a group of first-year graduate students who volunteered on Saturday (4/25/26) to conduct free speech screenings and provide resources on speech and language development for parents and caregivers. 🗣 Dr. Yu also had the opportunity to reconnect with community partners and promote our wonderful pro bono clinic. 🫂 🌟The SLP Department is incredibly proud of our graduate student volunteers for supporting our community. We appreciate Dr. Yu and our students’ time and dedication to helping parents and caregivers through sharing information, offering valuable resources, and promoting our amazing clinic.🌟 #gobeach #slp #CSULB #Speech #LB #Grad #Language #Community

🎉🌟The CSULB SLP Department is very proud of our undergraduate students who established a chapter of National Alzheimer’s Buddies at CSULB! 🎉🎊 National Alzheimer’s Buddies (NAB) 💜 is a national non-profit organization that pairs college students with nursing home residents in the intermediate-to-late stages of Alzheimer’s disease to help combat social isolation. 🫂💜 🏆Ava Casas is the President of CSULB NAB and worked to bring a chapter to CSULB in Spring 2026 after feeling inspired to build a community of fellow students who are passionate about providing companionship to memory-care residents and giving back to the Long Beach community. 🦈🌟 Student volunteers attend one-hour shifts once a week at Mom and Dad’s Homes, which are memory care facilities in Lakewood and Long Beach. 🏠💜 They lead the activities such as making flower bouquets, bookmarks, bracelets, as well as coloring, sensory activities, and sharing stories and poems. 💐🎨🖌 🌟The CSULB NAB board currently consists of Speech-Language Pathology undergraduate students Ava Casas, Gavynne Alcantara, Mary Vu, Zophia Saban-Hardwick, Kenzie Chu, and Emily Cano 🗣🗨 .However, general members also come from nursing, psychology, health science, and other majors, and students from any major are welcome to join! 🧠👥 🎉The SLP Department is proud of our students who actively support the community and demonstrate our commitment and passion for people who have communication difficulties due to various neurological conditions. 🧠🌟 Long Beach Current Newspaper recently wrote and published an article about the CSULB Chapter of National Alzheimer's Buddies, please check it out: 📰🦈/news/2026/03/30/new-club-connects-student-volunteers-with-alzheimers-patients/

🌟We had a successful Day at the Beach for our SLP FTFY, transfer, and admitted graduate students.🌟 ⭐With the support of student volunteers ⭐, NSSLHA officers, faculty members, and Lisa Fish from CHHS Advising, we came together to provide information, answer questions, and offer tours across two locations—the KIN Courtyard and the LAB building.🦈 We held a total of 10 department/clinic tours at the LAB building between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. It was definitely a busy day, but also rewarding to see admitted students leave with smiles, excitement, and appreciation for the information we shared.🎉😄 🗣🌟A big shout-out to all our amazing student volunteers—we would not have been able to host such a successful event without your help: Kirsten Roeder, Sabrina Hajeid, Caroline Lomeli, Brianne Yim, Ximena Avalos, Lee Barreto, Emma Torres 🗣🌟Also, thank you to our incredible NSSLHA officers for sharing our wonderful student club: Uly Sinaga, Ashley Nguyen, Renee Hau And last but not least, our supportive faculty members💛: Drs. Margaret Vento-Wilson, Salim Alani, Shriya Basu, and Lei Sun The SLP team rocks! 🦈🌟Thank you to our student volunteers and faculty for making our DATB a successful and memorable event! 🎊

🌟🎉 CSULB at the 2026 California Speech Language Hearing Association Convention (CSHA)!🌊💛 CSULB was proudly represented at this year’s convention with an incredible showing from our students and faculty! 👏📚 From competing in the CSHA Knowledge Bowl 🧠✨ to presenting research and clinical work at the convention 🎤💬, our Beach community showed up with excellence, passion, and pride. A special congratulations to our outstanding student award recipients: 🏆 Kareesha de Visser— recipient of the CSHA Michele Linares Diversity and Inclusion Student Award 🏆 Kirsten Roeder — recipient of the CSHA District 6 Outstanding Student Award 🏆 Deirdre Cunningham — recipient of the SPG Therapy & Education Student CSHA Scholarship We are so proud of our students and faculty for representing CSULB with leadership, scholarship, and heart. 💛🌊 Go Beach! #CSULB #CSULBSLP #CSHA2026 #GoBeach #SLPCommunity #FutureSLPs #BeachPride #SpeechLanguagePathology #StudentExcellence 🎉👏

🌟SLP undergrad students volunteered at a free Ceramics Therapeutic Exploration Session for neurodiverse individuals! 🎨✨ Peer 1 on 1’s Beach Cities Branch collaborated with Tia Santana, Assistant Professor of Art in the Ceramics Department at CSULB, to host this special event on March 7, 2026. With over 20 years of experience in community-based clay programs that integrate art and healing, Professor Santana led a thoughtful, hands-on experience. The event was hosted by Dr. Mao, Communications Professor at CSULB. Five of our SLP undergraduates — Emily Valle, Ximena Avalos, Shelsey Hernandez, Kyla Lusk, and Kirsten Roeder — assisted with event setup and were paired one-on-one with participants and their families. They supported pottery wheel activities and encouraged creative expression through clay exploration and hand-building. 🖌️🌟 Events like this provide meaningful opportunities for SLP students to support communication, sensory exploration, and community engagement in an inclusive, creative environment. 💛 #SLPStudents #FutureSLPs #CommunityEngagement #Neurodiversity #CSULB #Peer1on1 #ArtAndHealing

📢 Spread the word! Do you know an adult who needs speech-language therapy following a stroke, TBI, or brain injury? The CSULB Speech and Language Clinic is now accepting new neurogenic applicants interested in receiving services. To apply, simply scan the QR code to complete the adult questionnaire on our website. For more information, please contact us at [email protected] or 562.985.4583. #CSULB #SpeechTherapy #NeuroRehab #GoBeach

🎉 SLP Student Advocacy Day – 3/5 🎉 On March 5th, our SLP graduate and undergraduate students came together for a meaningful and inspiring Advocacy Day! 💬📢 Students learned about the importance of advocacy for our profession and explored ways to actively support ASHA advocacy efforts. From understanding policy impact to discovering how to make their voices heard, it was a powerful day of learning and leadership. Of course, great conversations were fueled by delicious pizza, buffalo wings, and snacks 🍕🍗 — plus plenty of time to connect and mingle with fellow future SLPs! A huge THANK YOU to so many students who participated in “Write Your Legislators: Ensure Higher Federal Loan Limits for CSD Students.” Your voices matter and your advocacy makes a difference! And congratulations to our 6 raffle prize winners! 🎁👏 We are so proud of our students for stepping up, speaking out, and supporting the future of our profession. A huge THANK YOU to so many students who participated in “Write Your Legislators: Ensure Higher Federal Loan Limits for CSD Students.” Your voices matter, and your advocacy makes a difference!

🎉Congratulations to Carlie Parsons on her successful Master’s Thesis Defense on February 27, 2026! 🎓 🌟Carlie defended her thesis titled: “Exploring Pre-Service Special Education Teachers’ Training on Collaboration with Speech-Language Pathologists and Augmentative and Alternative Communication.” Her work highlights the critical importance of interdisciplinary collaboration and strengthening preparation for future special educators working alongside SLPs to support students who use AAC. This research makes a meaningful contribution to improving inclusive practices and communication access in our schools. We are incredibly proud of your hard work, dedication, and scholarly achievement, Carlie! 👏📚 #MastersDefense #FutureLeaders #SpecialEducation #SpeechLanguagePathology #AAC #ResearchMatters

🌟 Student Spotlight: Lucy Carvalho🌊💛 Please join us in celebrating Lucy Carvalho, second-year graduate student (Class of 2026), whose leadership and advocacy are making a national impact in the field of speech-language pathology! 👏💬 Lucy has held several national leadership roles with National NSSLHA, including: ✨ California SLP Student State Officer (2022–2023) ✨ Vice President for SSOs, Western Region (2024–2026) ✨ Student Representative for the ASHA Committee of Ambassadors (2024–2026) ✨ Student Advocate for ASHA Capitol Hill Day (2025) She has also presented advocacy sessions at the California Speech-Language-Hearing Association and the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, with another presentation already scheduled for 2026. 🎤📚 Through her advocacy work on Capitol Hill, Lucy contributed to discussions that led Jim Costa to co-sponsor the Medicare Audiology Access Improvement Act — demonstrating the powerful role student voices play in shaping policy. 🏛️✨ 💬 Lucy reflects: “National NSSLHA leadership has allowed me to grow as a leader and deepen my passion for speech-language pathology. I’ve learned that leadership isn’t about being the loudest in the room, but about listening intentionally and creating space for others to be heard. Participating in ASHA Capitol Hill Day taught me firsthand that even as students, our voices have a strong influence… These experiences have inspired me to approach my future career with both compassion and advocacy.” We are incredibly proud of you, Lucy, and the impact you continue to make at CSULB and beyond! 💛🌊 #CSULB #CSULBSLP #StudentSpotlight #NSSLHA #SLPAdvocacy #FutureSLP #LeadershipInSLP #GoBeach #BeachPride 💬👏