Note: This is the third of a three-part series that takes a look at our speech-language pathologists and the work they do. 

Because McCulloh Therapeutic Solutions works to serve the whole child, we have a team of school-based speech therapists serving several districts throughout South Carolina.

Many budding speech therapists and seasoned clinicians often wonder what it is like to serve children in their public, private or charter school.

Let’s take a look into a day in the life of a speech-language pathologist, or SLP, in our schools division!

Kathleen Quinn, CF-SLP and Ohio native, shares some of the great aspects of serving in the schools.

“I enjoy being part of the school community because there are multiple people available to provide support and insight about the students,” Kathleen said.

The teachers and other professionals in the school setting  (OT, PT, reading interventionist, behavioral specialist) become great sources of knowledge and perspective.

“We work as a team to best serve our students,” Kathleen said.

Kathleen serves a diverse caseload filled with students on the autism spectrum, with articulation disorders and expressive language difficulties.

“I am constantly expanding my skills and learning new strategies and methods of treatment,” Kathleen said.

Caseloads are bigger and the paperwork can be more “overwhelming” in the school environment, but those challenges don’t bother Kathleen.

“I enjoy the flexibility I find working in the schools,” Kathleen said. “I have the ability to create my own schedule, because I can organize it in a way that takes into account how I work best.”

Long summer and Christmas breaks are a nice perk for an SLP in the schools division, too.

“The breaks give me the opportunity to travel, to visit family or friends and allow me to keep a healthy balance between work and time for myself,” Kathleen said.

 SLPs who are new to the schools division may feel intimidated by caseload individualized education programs, but that feeling won’t last.

“You get the hang of things much quicker than you think,” Kathleen said. “Once you have the hands-on opportunity to learn the process, things will go smoothly!”

One of the most important bits of advice Kathleen can give new SLPs: “Don’t be hesitant to ask questions! Most of the time, if you are unsure of something, there is someone who knows the answer and may even show you an easier way to do it.”

Kathleen found that support and guidance as a part of the MTS family, who helped ease her transition to the schools.

“At MTS, there is always a support system with people who have multiple years of experience in this field,” Kathleen said. “Our team has always made me feel reassured in moments of uncertainty, because there is always someone who has experienced similar issues or has the same questions as me.”

Interested in serving alongside Kathleen in our schools division? Ready to take your next steps and give children a voice that lasts forever? Complete your MTSKids application today!