Maplewood Elementary Speech Therapist Completes Prestigious Leadership Program

Join us in congratulating Maplewood Elementary Speech-Language Pathologist Rachel Dotson Stokes for completing a rigorous, well-renowned professional development program through the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA)! 

The ASHA Leadership Development Program is a prestigious, year-long project for emerging leaders in the field, where Stokes was one of just 30 speech-language pathologists (SLPs) chosen from across the country.

Stokes says she sought out ASHA’s Leadership Development Program to build the skills needed to support her colleagues and the profession more broadly.

“I had never been in a leadership role like that before and wanted to obtain additional training to fulfill my role to my highest potential,” Stokes said. “I was thrilled to find out I was accepted to the program.” 

Stokes explains how she is committed to strengthening statewide connections among SLPs by creating opportunities to share strategies and success from therapy rooms across districts.

“Our students deserve practices that are both evidence-based and practical for school settings,” she said. “When professionals collaborate at a high level, students are the ones who benefit most.”

Stokes also mentioned the program has made a difference in how she works with her colleagues throughout the district. One of her biggest takeaways was learning what makes a strong, successful team, and she plans to utilize those ideas with her early childhood team next fall.