Our Commitment

Photo of kids posing with Goldy Gopher
Kids met a certain campus celebrity during their week at camp

Members of the Department of Speech-Language-Hearing Sciences (SLHS) are committed to sharing their expertise. Our faculty, staff, and students are engaged with many different communities, including those on campus, in the Twin Cities, in greater Minnesota, and across the world. Our outreach activities are an important part of both our education and service mission.

UMN Initiatives

  • The University of Minnesota has initiated interdisciplinary projects that address topics related to stuttering, autism, and early language development.
  • View SLHS initiatives and partnerships.

Community Partnerships

  • SLHS partners with schools, businesses, community and professional organizations, and some international universities.
  • View SLHS community partnerships.

Faculty Service

  • The SLHS faculty and clinical specialists are actively engaged in service to the community, locally, nationally, and internationally. 
  • Visit their profiles to learn about individual contributions to engagement.

Student Involvement

Students have many opportunities to engage with the community through their undergraduate and graduate coursework and extracurricular activities:

Service Learning

Our undergraduate major offers a unique opportunity for service-learning in the major project course.

Student Organizations

  • Undergraduate and Graduate students who are members of the Student Academy of Audiology (SAA) and the National Student Speach Language Hearing Association (NSSLHA) often participate in fund-raising activities.  
  • The NSSLHA chapter at the U of MN coordinates social, professional, and volunteer opportunities for students.  
  • Members attend monthly meetings and provide input to the NSSLHA officers, who are responsible for organizing NSSLHA events throughout the academic year.  
  • Information about the U of MN NSSLHA chapter is available through the chapter's Facebook page.

Preparing to Provide Responsive Speech-Language Hearing Services

Students in the AUD and MA-SLP build their capacity to work within diverse communities through program activities and clinical reflections. In addition, students interested in developing specialized skills can earn a Diversity in Communication Specialty certificate

Special Olympics

Every year, faculty and graduate students participate in hearing screenings at state-level competitions.

Stuttering Camp

The University of Minnesota Kids Who Stutter (UMKWS) camp has given graduate students an opportunity to work with kids who stutter.

Minnesota Connect, Aphasia Now (MnCAN)

  • MnCAN partners with the University of Minnesota - undergraduate and graduate students work with persons with aphasia to develop effective conversation strategies.
  • The group's emphasis is a social model rather than a medical model.