This department prepares professionals to provide services to individuals with special needs across the lifespan. It maintains a high level of distinction with continuous involvement in critical special education issues, and an integrated academic and clinical orientation in communication sciences.

The communication sciences program prepares students to provide prevention, evaluation and intervention services for clients from birth to adult with speech, language, voice, resonance, swallowing or hearing disorders.

The special education program prepares teachers and teacher-educators, and provides leadership in the field at local, state, national and international levels. Its graduate programs are perennially ranked among the top 20 in the nation by U.S. News and World Report.

Faculty members are leaders in research and practice. They have been awarded millions of dollars in external funding from agencies such as the U.S. Department of Education and the National Institutes of Health. Research topics have included autism spectrum disorders; standards of measurement, treatment and recovery of stuttering in preschool-age children; and development of web-based programs to help undergraduate students, paraprofessionals and mid-career professionals become certified special education teachers.

Faculty often serve on editorial boards and as reviewers of prestigious academic journals such as the Journal of Speech-Language-Hearing Research, Exceptional Children, the American Journal on Mental Retardation, and Education and Treatment of Children. Faculty members are also invited to serve on state councils and committees related to their field.

The primary goal of the department is to educate and prepare professionals who provide services to individuals with special needs across the lifespan.

2 undergraduate degrees, 8 graduate degrees

30 faculty, 12 staff

444 non-degree students

159 undergraduate students

198 graduate students

Communication Sciences

The integrated academic and clinical education offered in the Communication Sciences program prepares students to provide prevention, evaluation, and intervention services for clients from birth to adult with speech, language, voice, resonance, swallowing, or hearing disorders. The program in Speech-Language Pathology is accredited by the Council on Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and approved by the Georgia Department of Education.

Special Education

The special education program prepares highly skilled teachers and teacher-educators, and provides leadership in the field at local, state, national and international levels to assist individuals with disabilities in acquiring greater independence in an increasingly diverse, technological, and literacy-intensive global community.

The Department of Communication Sciences and Special Education faculty rank among the nation’s most productive researchers in their fields. Graduate programs in special education are perennially ranked among the Top 20 in the nation.

Outstanding Undergraduate Programs

Communication Sciences and Disorders offers programs leading to an undergraduate degree in education, which provides the foundation for graduate study in speech-language pathology, audiology, or education of the deaf or hard of hearing.

The undergraduate program in Special Education resides in the Department of Communication Sciences and Special Education (CSSE) within the College of Education (COE) at UGA. The program results in a BS.Ed. in Special Education, with an emphasis in teacher preparation in the areas of moderate and severe developmental disabilities such as intellectual disabilities (mental retardation) and autism.

Upon satisfactory completion of the program-of-study, the Special Education Program recommends to the Georgia Professional Standards Commission that a graduate be awarded a clear renewable teaching (T) certificate in “Special Education Adapted Curriculum -Consultative” (P-12). The state of Georgia awards the certificate to an applicant based upon this recommendation and passing of the appropriate “Georgia Assessments for the Certification of Educators” (GACE) tests.

Innovative Graduate Programs

Master (M.Ed. and M.A.) degrees offered in speech-language pathology combine academic curricula and clinical training to prepare students for the profession of speech-language pathology. The program is accredited by the Council on Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and approved by the Georgia Department of Education. A master’s degree prepares students to practice in a variety of settings including schools, hospitals, rehabilitation facilities, home health and private practice.
Master (M.Ed. and M.A.) degree programs in special education prepare teachers to have advanced competencies in the areas of assessment, positive behavioral supports and specialized instructional methods. Competency in these areas is obtained through didactic and field experiences. Students may major in behavioral disorders, early childhood special education, learning disabilities, or mental retardation. All programs are approved by the Georgia Professional Standards Commission for State Teaching Certification and use the Council for Exceptional Children’s (CEC) standards for special education teachers.

The educational specialist program in special education is a post master degree program. It provides a competency based approach to advanced study for those preparing for leadership positions in applied settings. Although the EDS degree may become the final degree for many individuals, obtaining this degree does not preclude the EDS graduate from later becoming a candidate for the Ph.D. degree. Coursework and resident credit used to satisfy the EDS degree, however, cannot be used to satisfy the requirements of a doctoral degree. Students may seek certification in behavior disorders, learning disabilities, mental retardation, special education administration, or early childhood special education.

The educational specialist degree in speech-language pathology culminates in a T-6 teaching certificate in speech-language pathology.

The doctoral program in special education is available to a limited number of students who show promise of becoming leaders in the field of special education. It emphasizes a competency-based approach that is product-based. Doctoral students are prepared for college instruction, research, and school and/or clinical practice. Programs are planned to develop a mastery of the comprehensive field of each profession respectively and to encourage a breadth of understanding of related disciplines.

Speech and Hearing Clinic

The department maintains the on-campus University of Georgia Speech and Hearing Clinic as its primary teaching and research clinical facility.

Expert, professional, comprehensive services are available through the clinic for prevention, assessment, and treatment of speech, language, swallowing, and hearing disorders. Services for individuals from infancy to geriatrics are provided by student clinicians earning a master’s degree in speech-language pathology under the supervision of licensed and certified audiologists and speech-language pathologists.

The Speech and Hearing Clinic provides a valuable service to the community:

• Seeing more than 1000 different clients annually
• With total client visits approximating 5000

The clinic completed almost 2,000 free speech and hearing screenings in the community, increasing the opportunities for early identification and prevention of communication disorders.

In addition to its general diagnostic and therapeutic services, the Clinic houses a number of specialty programs designed to meet the needs of certain populations with disabilities. Accent modification sessions are offered also.

Other Research and Clinical Laboratories

The departmental faculty operates several laboratories and has collaborative access to several others for the scientific investigation of normal and disordered speech, language and auditory development and function. These include the:

• Center for Human Neurophysiologic Research
• Laboratory of Speech-Orofacial Physiology
• Speech Science Laboratory
• Stuttering Research Laboratory
• Child Language Laboratory
• Speech Physiology: Clinical Assessment Laboratory [includes Aerodynamic (AEROWIN) and Force Physiology (FORCEWIN) Workstation]
• Infant Vocalization Laboratory
• Evoked Response Laboratory
• Hearing Aid Laboratory
• Otoacoustic Emissions Laboratory
• Pediatric Audiometric Laboratory

Other on-campus research sites with which the department is affiliated include the Center for Clinical and Developmental Neuropsychology, the Adult Learning Disabilities Center, and the UGA’s Clinic for Autism Spectrum Evaluation and Research (CASPER Clinic).

Innovative Online Certification: SETWEB (Special Education Training on the Web)

Non-Degree, Interrelated Certification Only (No longer taking applications for this non-degree program)

Launched in summer 2000, SETWEB was originally designed for teachers with a clear renewable teaching certificate who were teaching in special education on a provisional basis. Completion of this program, most recently called SETWEB Add-On Certification, led to an add-on certification in interrelated (mild or high-incidence disabilities) special education.

The SETWEB Initial Certification track

With the success of the original SETWEB program, a similar program of study, SETWEB Initial Certification, was begun in 2001 for individuals who hold a bachelor’s degree and seek initial certification in interrelated special education.

The first SETWEB students began their studies in summer 2000. More than 200 will have been recommended for certification in interrelated special education by spring 2005. SETWEB  is no longer accepting applications.

The Program of Study

Academic credit courses offered by UGA in the SETWEB program are web-based.  Additional components of the program of study have included teleconferences and on-site activities such as the SETWEB Academies and Summer Institutes. Prior to beginning online courses at UGA, students came to Athens for an orientation and advisement session designed to make the SETWEB online experience as rewarding and trouble-free as possible.

Study Abroad in Ireland

A Multidisciplinary Program in Partnership with The COPE Foundation, Cork, Ireland

MAY 30 – JULY 14, 2012

~ Special Education ~ Psychology ~ Speech/Communication Disorders ~ Social Work ~ Adaptive P.E. ~ Recreation/Leisure ~ Gerontology ~ Nursing ~ etc.

Study Abroad Ireland is designed for students wanting an international experience that focuses on the delivery of educational and social services to individuals with developmental disabilities and their families in Ireland. Students from a wide range of disciplines with an interest in social, educational, vocational, recreational, and/or medical services for persons with developmental disabilities will be recruited. Both volunteer service hours and completion of 6 hours coursework will be required:

SPED 4800/6800: Cross-Cultural Perspectives in Developmental Disabilities: Ireland, and SPED 4440/7440: Practicum Study Abroad in Ireland

For further information click here

Contact:

David L. Gast, Ph.D,
Director, Study Abroad in Ireland
dlgast@uga.edu