JMU CSD Undergraduate Advising

  ATTENTION: As of September 2021, this blog is updated only intermittently  as CSD Advising for current students is now on Canvas. If you are a current JMU CSD student, please check your CSD Undergrad Advising Canvas site for the most up-to-date CSD Advising information and resources. If you are a prospective student, please check the JMU CSD website at  https://csd.jmu.edu/undergrad/index.html for curriculum information, the CSD advising form, and FAQs. For questions/inquiries about the JMU CSD Undergraduate program, please email csdug@jmu.edu .  

Hello everyone! My name is Copelyn Kelly, and I am the CSD Undergraduate Peer Advisor for the 2021-22 school year! I am a double duke and so excited to be back at JMU for my first year in the SLP Master's program! As the Undergraduate Peer Advisor, I am a resource for questions involving the major, graduate school applications, and other CSD-related questions. Below is the email that you can reach me as the peer advisor. I will also be holding office hours, with both in-person and virtual options, and I have listed the days, times, and locations of those below.  Email: csdug@jmu.edu Office Hours: Tuesday/ Thursday: 10-11 AM in HBS 1017 Wednesday: 2-3 PM  (Virtual- on Webex)

Photo by Jeremy Thomas on Unsplash   Hello everyone! Welcome to the Fall 2021 semester! Some exciting updates and changes are coming to CSD Advising very soon, so please stay tuned. Office hours are being updated at this time, and as always, if you have any questions, be sure to check all of your resources first. The CSD general inquiry account is csdug@jmu.edu, and if you have specific needs/questions, please reach out to your advisor. Hope your semester has been off to a great start!   Attention SENIORS: The CSD letters of recommendation process is currently undergoing updates, and the new process will be posted by October 1st, 2021. All students seeking letters of recommendation in Fall 2021 should check back and follow the updated process.  

  Please consider participating in the 2 nd Annual Virtual 5K to benefit the ASHA Foundation. CSD will be participating on August 28 th , time and place to be determined. Select our JMU CSD Program team when you register. It’s a walk/run/or something in between event.       https://runsignup.com/Race/MD/Rockville/ASHFoundation5kVirtualWalkRun    

 Hello Everyone! Harrisonburg City Public Schools is hiring SLPs for next school year and because of the huge demand, they are considering SLPAs as well!  If you just graduated and are taking a year off before graduate school, stay in Harrisonburg because this would be a great opportunity for you. As the SLPA, you work under a certified SLP at one of Harrisonburg City's schools, and the requirements can be found on the Graduate School and Future Choices tab here on the blog. If you are interested or have any questions please contact the head SLP  Karen Lindberg at   klindberg@harrisonburg.k12.va.us  and Gail Schnider at  gschnider@harrisonburg.k12.va.us   

Ole School Alumni Group has 2 scholarships available for 2 African-American students: 1 incoming student and a current student at JMU. ·        Application is due on Monday 5/31. ·        Website: oleschoolalumnigroup.com which has a link to their scholarship application. ·        Contact info for Ole School Alumni Group: o    Nora Crouch - sndcrouch@yahoo.com o    Charles May - thecage2@aol.com  

Congratulations on finishing the 2020-2021 academic year! Have a safe and wonderful summer and take time to rejuvenate. Questions/Advising needs? Remember to check through JMU resources, including the CSD Major Planning Tools at https://jmucsdundergraduateadvising.blogspot.com/2020/12/csd-major-planning-tools-updated.html . All peer advising sessions are also available on the blog! The best way to get in touch with your advisor or a faculty member during the summer is through email. Please be mindful that faculty members have varied schedules during the summer and follow the university holiday schedule. Please e-mail and plan for extra time to receive a response.  Take care, and see you in the fall!

Good morning everyone, I hope you have enjoyed learning from our graduate students this past semester and maybe you have a new found appreciation for how different we all truly are.  This week will be the last week I am holding office hours 11:00am-12:00pm on Monday and Tuesday.  Here is a last short blurb about myself, as many of you have heard about what I did at JMU.                                                                   I knew that I wanted to be an SLP when I was 12. My youngest cousin was born bilaterally deaf and received cochlear implants at 11 months. His family decided not to use ASL after he picked up verbal language, but I continued to find all aspects of total communication fascinating. Since then, speech pathology has been my passion; however, in undergrad I had a job in a special education room and it completely rocked my world. It was a Deaf Plus classroom where all the kids were Deaf and had co-occurring disabilities like ASD or ID. Their teacher was dually

Good morning!! See below about an awesome opportunity to work as a camp counselor this summer  Hello Communication Sciences and Disorders Department:    I hope all is well and that you guys are having a good semester.  I would like to take a moment to introduce myself.  My name is Whitney Civitts and I am the Assistant Camp Director at Camp Easterseals.  Camp Easterseals is an overnight camp that serves both children and adults with disabilities.  We offer our campers and staff an unique, fun, and supportive camp experience.  Many of our staff have called their time at Camp Easterseals a “Life Changing” experience.     We are currently hiring staff to join us for Summer 2021. (Per the Governor’s recent executive orders Overnight Summer Camps can open and operate starting May 1 st ) We like to reach out to majors that we have had former staff and volunteers study to see if you could share our information with your students to see if anyone is interested.     I have attached to this emai

One of our last Graduate Student Spotlights is Ali! Ali gives great advice about choosing a profession that can be helpful to anyone, but especially the underclassmen here.   I entered JMU unsure of the academic path I would need to take to merge my dual passions of caring and advocating for people. I remember talking with a mentor freshman year, verbalizing my dilemma, ultimately unsure of which major I should pursue. She patiently sat with me, sifted through my thoughts, and steered me towards areas that complemented my passions. She works within a school system, and through her connection I was able to observe the SLP from her district. Through this experience I was able to first envision my passions merge as I discovered the profession of speech-language pathology. Specifically, I witnessed the empathy and feverous advocacy required of this SLP to ensure her student’s communication needs were met both inside and outside the classroom. Since, I have been inspired by the demand for

 Good morning!  This week I will continue to have office hours from 11:00-12:00pm on Monday and Tuesday. Please email me with any questions!! SENIORS- See below for a message about the University of DC extending their application deadline for graduate school!!  As many of the competitive programs in communication science and disorders, are wrapping up their 2020-21 admission cycles, the University of the District of Columbia's Speech-Language Pathology Program extends a warm invitation to apply for the 2021-22 academic year through  May 15, 2021 . In the heart of Washington, DC, we represent a culturally-affirming and community-oriented graduate SLP program with a generalist clinical focus. We also offer opportunities for specialization in multilingualism, voice, transgendered voice, and early literacy. Through a holistic admissions process, we are excited to engage individuals who share our values in amplifying minoritized voices through inclusive excellence.  If you know of a tal

  Once again we have a Graduate Student Spotlight for Audiology!!! Noelle is a first year AuD student. Hi everyone! My name is Noelle Steele and I am from Pottsville, Pennsylvania. I am a first-year graduate student in JMU’s Doctor of Audiology program. I graduated from Marywood University in May of 2020 with my B.S. in Communication Sciences and Disorders. My journey to graduate school is a bit unique because I finished my undergraduate degree in just three years. I started in a 5-year speech pathology program (3 + 2 program) and decided to opt out of my master’s in speech pathology to pursue audiology instead. During my undergraduate career, I spent my time assisting and teaching in daycares both on campus and at home. This allowed me to work very closely with children and thus, I learned how to quickly build rapport with them. I worked as an early learner instructor for preschool age children at Kumon Math and Reading Center in Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania, which is an after-school e

 Good morning!! This week I have notes about office hours. I will not be holding office hours tomorrow (4/13) from 11-12pm due to a doctors appointment, and instead, I will be available on WebEx from 2:30-3:30pm. Come by if you have questions about scheduling or classes. Seniors, this is the last week to come talk about graduate school decisions! I will still be available on Thursday 4/15 from 3:00-4:00pm   Monday 11:00-12:00pm Tuesday 2:30-3:30pm Thursday 3:00-4:00pm 

  Dear CSD students! Please see below an opportunity to get involved in the College’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion efforts.     Hi all! My name is Kim, and I'm a senior Social Work student. I was recently tasked to work with the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) team of CHBS and to reach out to the racially diverse students and briefly talk about your experience attending a predominantly white institution. I have created a Google Form with five questions, and I would appreciate any feedback that you would like to give. Your contact information will remain confidential.    I am also willing to briefly meet via Zoom for anyone that would like to have a more in-depth conversation regarding the Google Form or if you have other concerns/feedback that aren’t mentioned on the form. My email address is  diggskm@dukes.jmu.edu , so feel free to directly reach out to me to schedule a Zoom meeting. Given the recurring events of acts of violence towards people of color, the DEI team is

This week's graduate student spotlight is on Ana! She brings up a great point about applications- Always remember that you are more than just numbers on a test.  Hi everyone! I am from Richmond, VA, attended UVA for undergrad, and majored in Communication Sciences and Disorders there. I was lucky in that I knew I wanted to major in CSD when I got to UVA and luckily grew to love it even more throughout undergrad. I found it really helpful during the summers to try to find shadowing experiences to get a better idea of different settings I might want to work in as well as having some sort of hands-on experience before entering grad school. One of my shadowing experiences was with an SLP in early intervention, just for a week, but I loved it and hope to one day work in early intervention. I am also interested in various other pediatric settings such as hospital outpatient clinics and schools. In applying to grad school, what really drew me to JMU was the amazing reputation it has arou

  Dear CSD Sophomores,   Earlier this month you received a reminder about the CSD progression standard:  CSD207, CSD208, and CSD209 require a letter grade of C or better  to move on to the upper level CSD coursework. This is a follow-up on this requirement.  Please take some time to reflect on your work and your progress.  Please reach out to your advisors now if you have any concerns about meeting the progression standard.  Remember that the faculty's commitment is to support you toward a successful undergraduate career for your career aspirations, and there are university resources available to you as well (University Career Center  https://www.jmu.edu/career/ ).   Wishing you well!   Undergraduate B.A./B.S. Program in CSD *See office hours and peer advising hours at  http://jmucsdundergraduateadvising.blogspot.com/p/office-hours.html .

Our weekly spotlight for the week is Hannah! Not only did Hannah come from a different university but she is also not from Virginia. She took a gap year and is a first generation college student . Hi everyone! I am Hannah Delgado, a first year graduate student in JMU's SLP program. I am originally from Louisiana, where I completed my undergraduate degree in Speech Language Pathology at Louisiana Tech University. I am also first-generation student! I decided to pursue a gap year before applying to graduate school and am so grateful for the experiences that led me here. After graduating in 2019, I traveled and worked as a Chapter Consultant for Phi Mu Fraternity. This experience exposed me to a variety of individuals and helped me to further my professional skills greatly. I knew I wanted to become an SLP, but a gap year experience solidified that decision and I was able to gather more information about SLP programs across the US. Through this process, I encountered JMU and was quick

 Weekly Updates 3/29  Juniors Thank you to all of the juniors who attended the information session last week. Below is the recording of my power point and it will also be linked on your blog page. Feel free to stop by my office hours if you have more questions! Seniors  Due to a change in my clinic schedule, I will not be hosting office hours on the Thursdays April 1st and April 22nd. Please come to my office hours on Mondays and Tuesdays those weeks if you need to discuss graduate school.  Scholarship Opportunity  Robin C McKay Memorial Scholarship is for Juniors and applications are due April 5th .  This is not a need-based scholarship but, rather, is awarded to a well-rounded and academically proficient student studying speech-language pathology. Be an undergraduate student in Communication Sciences and Disorders working toward a career in speech-language pathology Be well-rounded and academically proficient Have a minimum GPA in the major of 3.25   >>     Apply through the JM

  JMU S tudent Academy of Audiology  is hosting Trivia Night on Thursday, March 25 (TONIGHT) at 8pm. You can participate individually or in a team of up to 4 people, the cost is $5 a person. The trivia questions are family friendly, so feel free to play with your family and friends (one category is even "Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader?"). There are prizes for the winning team! If you would like to participate, email  jmusaa540@gmail.com  and we will provide the Zoom login and information on how to pay for the event.

This week we have another Double Duke! Rylie shares her interests in the SLP field and how she found this career. She reminds us that the realm of speech-language pathology is much more than what meets the eye!! Hello! My name is Rylie Smith and am a double duke! In undergrad I originally started out as a nursing major but quickly decided that was not the field for me. This decision came with a lot of confusion, as I did not know what I wanted a career in. I eventually came to know about speech-language pathology when my mom mentioned it to me. At first, I was hesitant to look into the field because I thought all SLPs did was treat articulation (the initial reaction of most people). I eventually decided to look into the field and found that there is so much that SLPs do! What really sparked my interest was adult language and cognition, specifically in veterans with aphasia and TBI. After graduate school, I hope to work with these individuals to give them a way to communicate and parti

  Happy Monday Everyone! **Just a reminder that today is the first Junior Session from 11-12pm and I will not be holding my regular office hours. If you are from another class and need me please email or attend tomorrow! The following are updates and resources for the week: Job Opportunity  Dr. DePaolis shared the following job opportunity potentially for graduating seniors.  Job Announcement: Research Coordinator University of Chicago TMW Center for Early Learning + Public Health Director: Dr. Dana Suskind   We are seeking a Research Coordinator to work on a project that aims to create the next iteration of a tool, the Scale of Parent/Provider Expectations And Knowledge (SPEAK), that has been developed and validated at the TMW Center for Early Learning + Public Health. The SPEAK is a clinical and research tool that fills a critical, previously unmet need in the early childhood field. Given the pivotal role that parents and caregivers play in shaping young children’s cognitive and lang

Seniors, It's graduate school decision time! Instead of hosting another Senior Session, I will add another hour of office hours each week through April so that there is more time for your individual questions. If you want to ask my opinion about schools, have questions about assistantship applications, or what to base your decision off of come see me. I can answer general questions for multiple people at once or utilize the waiting room for personal questions.  Moving forward I will be available on WebEx @  https://jmu.webex.com/meet/mondsccl  Monday 11:00-12:00pm Tuesdays 11:00-12:00pm Thursdays 3:00-4:00pm In addition to an extra hour each week, I encourage you to re-watch some portions of the Senior Session from the fall(it was recorded and posted on the senior page of the blog!). This can offer insight to what you should consider when picking your graduate school.