CSD Outstanding Alumni Award
The CSD Outstanding Alumni Award is given annually to our alumni who have shown outstanding
achievement in the professions of speech-language pathology and audiology. Nomination
letters should detail the nominee's qualifications for the award and include their
curriculum vita. Additional letters of support are optional, but appreciated. Submit
nominations to csd@wichita.edu by October 1.
List of Previous Award Recipients
2005: Nickola Wolf Nelson, PhD
Dr. Nelson was the first recipient of the Department of Communication Sciences and
Disorders Outstanding Alumni Award. She earned her doctorate from WSU in 1973 and
is the Charles Van Riper Professor of Speech Pathology and Audiology and Director
of the Ph.D. in Interdisciplinary Health Studies program at Western Michigan University.
Her presentation entitled Drawing on the Past to Prepare for Future Challenges in Research and Practice was held on April 29, 2005.
Abstract:
Being relevant to the needs of individuals with communication disorders/special needs requires clinicians to plan interventions based on the priorities of clients, their families, and (in the case of school-age children) their teachers. The development of comprehensive models for guiding practice must consider the contextually-related concerns of those most intimately involved, the evidence from research on best practice, and the complex, integrated nature of neurocognitive-psycholinguistic processes.
Additionally, Dr. Nelson presented a continuing education workshop, Language and Literacy Connections: Ten Steps Toward Relevant Intervention for School-Age Children, on April 30, 2005.
Abstract:
Language and literacy development are related reciprocally at the sound, word, sentence, and discourse level. Assessment and intervention practices that draw on these reciprocal relationships are important for meeting the needs of school-age children and adolescents. Ten steps are presented for combining spoken and written language instruction and intervention in inclusive classroom settings.