American Speech-Language-Hearing Association Review

The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) is a professional association for speech language pathologists, audiologists and speech, language and hearing scientists in the United States and internationally. It has more than 197,856 users and affiliates. ASHA was founded in 1925 as the American Academy of Speech Correction. The current name was adopted in 1978.

The mission of ASHA is to promote interests and provide high-quality services to professionals in the field of audiology, speech therapy and speech and hearing science, and also to speak for people with disabilities.

The Association’s national office is located at 2200 Research Boulevard, Rockville, Maryland. The organization also has an office on Capitol Hill.

Arlene Pietranton is the executive director of the association.

All information about Speech-Language-Hearing issues on the website is divided into 4 sections: Audiologists, Speech-Language Path, Students, and Faculty

Special interest groups

ASHA sponsors Special Interest Groups (SIGs) within the organization as a means of promoting the community and training in more specialized topics. SIGs include:

• Language learning and education;
• Neurogenic diseases;
• Swallowing (dysphagia);
• Cultural and linguistic diversity;
• Voice disorder;
• Fluency disorder;
• Hearing impairment in childhood;
• Craniofacial and palatopharyngeal disorders;
• Hearing disorder: research and diagnosis;
• Auditory rehabilitation and its instrumentation;
• Audiology and public health;
• Higher education issues;
• Management and control;
• Enhancing and alternative ways of communication;
• Gerontology;
• School-based questions;
• Global challenges in communication science and related disorders;
• Telepractice;
• Speech science.

Certification

ASHA offers the possibility to verify the status of an individual’s Certificate of Clinical Competence in Audiology (CCC-A) or Speech-Language Pathology (CCC-SLP). The association has been certifying professionals since 1952. Being “certified” is very important as such certification means a nationally-recognized professional level of excellence in the field of Audiology or Speech-Language Pathology. Those who have ASHA certification meet academic and professional standards, have the knowledge, skills, and experience to provide high-quality clinical services.

Publications

ASHAWire is the online home for ASHA journals, The ASHA Leader, and Perspectives of the ASHA Special Interest Groups. It is a fully interconnected network of useful articles. You can also use it to browse the most recent and trending research.

ASHA Journals include «American Journal of Audiology», «American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology», «Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research», «Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools», «The ASHA Leader», «ASHA Leader Live», «Perspectives Cover», «CRED Library», «Figshare Data Portal», and «ASHA Author Services Portal».

Conferences and events

The upcoming events organized by ASHA include:

• The ASHA Convention (November 21–23, 2019, Orlando, Florida);
• Schools Connect, Health Care Connect, Private Practice Connect (Three specialized SLP conferences, one location, July 19–21, 2019, Chicago, Illinois);
• Cancer Care: Enhancing Communication, Swallowing, and Quality of Life (August 7–19, 2019, Online Conference for SLPs);
• Audiology 2019: Cochlear Implants (September 11–23, 2019, Online Conference);
• Innovative Methods for Preschool Assessment, Collaboration, and Treatment (October 16–28, 2019, Online Conference);
• Birth to Three: Working Together to Serve Children and Their Families (December 4–16, 2019, Online Conference).