All Together Now is our theme this year and it is with that in mind that we’re starting a new series today. We’ll highlight the community partners that share our commitment to improving outcomes for kids and who themselves Put Kids First in their work. We’ve asked Claudia Meyer, Clinical Professor at Portland State University, to get the ball rolling by sharing a little bit about the collaboration between her organization and the clinic. – kcb
The best collaborations are bound by a strong common mission.
The Oregon Scottish Rite Speech and Language Charity is a 501(c)(3) public charity that was created over 36 years ago by the Oregon Scottish Rite members. Its purpose is to provide young Oregon children who struggle with a multitude of communication issues the opportunity to overcome their communication challenges. Over the past 36 years, The Oregon Scottish Rite Speech and Language Charity has evolved from a small number of clinics to a vibrant network of collaborations with Oregon university programs in speech-language pathology and selected non-profits affiliated with the universities. The Speech and Hearing Sciences Program at PSU (SPHR) is one such program. We are dedicated to providing free speech and language therapy to adults and children while simultaneously training the next generation of speech-language pathologists.
The Oregon Scottish Rite Speech and Language Charity, SPHR, and the Hello Clinic have just completed their second year of a partnership centered around providing therapeutic camps for children. Kids learn best when they are engaged with each other and having a great time playing, laughing, and working hard on their speech and language. What better environment to work on communication goals, then camp!
Our partnership provides the Oregon Scottish Rite, the PSU SPHR program, and the Hello Clinic an opportunity to strengthen their reach to children with communication challenges. It also allows speech-language pathology graduate students to broaden their clinical experience under the supervision of seasoned clinicians.
The Hello Clinic and PSU are honored to work closely with the Oregon Scottish Rite Speech and Language Charity to provide Oregon kids excellent speech and language services while engaged in camps.