January 2014 Clinician of the Month

January 9, 2014 BY Kira Wright, CCC-SLP

In our tradition of honoring a clinician each month who exemplifies one of the core values of our organization, we have chosen to recognize Frank Bender for demonstrating our core value of “Work-Life Balance.” Congratulations, Frank! Your Starbucks card is in the mail!

Although Frank has worked with THF in the past, he was back anew this fall after several years spent completing coursework for a PhD in Educational Policy at the University of Oregon. This year, Frank joins THF-ers Lori Pastoor and Desiree Gray part-time in covering a large and diverse caseload in Salem, while also writing his PhD dissertation “The effects of teacher instructional language on student listening comprehension skills.”

Writing and research requires great discipline and we applaud his efforts at finding this balance. Frank brings experience, perspective, and knowledge to the team at Chavez, and we hope his time in the classroom and speech room brings meaning and urgency to his writing! Frank is a talented clinician and well-known speaker on ELL issues, whose thoughts and analysis on special education are valuable and so needed in the world of educational policy today.

Thank you, Frank, for striving to balance work and life! Congratulations on being our January 2014 THF Clinician of the Month!