Council on Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology

A semi-autonomous body within ASHA that liaisons with the ASHA Board of Directors through the Vice Presidents for Academic Affairs in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology

Charge

Formulate standards for the accreditation of graduate educational programs that provide entry-level professional preparation in audiology or speech-language pathology; evaluate programs that voluntarily apply for accreditation; grant certificates to and recognize those programs deemed to have fulfilled requirements for accreditation; maintain a registry of holders of such certificates; and prepare and furnish to appropriate persons and agencies lists of accredited programs.

Composition

Council of 18 members including:

11 academic members from the faculty/staff of CAA-accredited graduate education programs at the time of appointment. Individuals must: a) have an earned graduate degree from a regionally accredited institution; at least 3 academic members in audiology and 4 academic members in speech-language pathology must be research-qualified (PhD or EdD) doctoral level faculty, b) hold a rank of associate professor or above, or be a comparably experienced educators, c) at least 1 of the academic members shall have significant experience in clinical teaching (supervision). No more than 3 may have clinical teaching as their primary role.
5 clinical practitioners who are employed full-time in non-academic settings. Individuals must: a) have the direct delivery of speech-language-hearing services as their primary employment function at the time of appointment, b) have worked in the area that credentials are held for at least 5 years, c) at least 1 of these shall have experience in supervising students and/or clinical fellows, d) at least 1 shall be an audiologist and at least 2 shall be speech-language pathologists
1 additional member who represents the area of audiology could be either an academic member or a clinical practitioner, depending on the specific needs of the council in a given year.
1 public member who is not a member of the professions of audiology and/or speech-language pathology. As defined by the U.S. Department of Education, a “representative of the public” is a person who is not a) an employee, member of the governing board, owner, or shareholder of or consultant to a program that either is accredited or has applied for accreditation by the CAA; b) a current or past member of any trade association or membership organization that advocates on behalf of audiology and/or speech-language pathology issues; or c) a spouse, parent, child, or sibling of an individual identified in a) or b).

Members

Susan Gordon-Hickey, Chair
Radhika Aravamudhan, Board Liaison, Audiology
Barbara Rodriguez, Board Liaison, Speech-Language Pathology
Valerie Brosius
Chimezie Chidi
Maurice Goodwin
Jean Gordon
Memorie Gosa, Chair-Elect
Annette Hurley
Shatonda Jones, Vice Chair- SLP
Carol Koch
Dorian Lee-Wilkerson
Valeria Matlock
Alyssa Needleman, Vice Chair - Audiology
Amanda Picioli
Mary Reeves, Public Member
Cynthia Richburg
Alison Scheer-Cohen
Heidi Slager
Alan Smith

Term

4 years

Commitments/Obligations

The CAA holds three meetings per year at the ASHA National Office—two 3 1/2 day meetings on the third Wednesday–Saturday of February and third Wednesday–Saturday of July, and one 2 1/2-day meeting in the fall. Attendance and participation at CAA's face-to-face meetings is expected. Specific committees of the council hold several conference calls per year and the full council may hold 2 conference calls per year.

During certain periods of the year, it is anticipated that Council members may average 4–6 hours per week for CAA activities. Members establish accreditation standards, conduct in-depth evaluations of accreditation applications to determine compliance with established standards, accredit qualified graduate programs, and monitor compliance over the period of accreditation through review of annual reports. CAA Members also serve as faculty for training workshops and educational sessions throughout the year. The CAA relies heavily on technology to conduct program reviews and other Council work.

Desired Service Qualifications/Experiences

The Council consists of voting members with the following qualifications:

7 represent the area of audiology, 6 of whom must hold the Certificate of Clinical Competence in audiology;
10 represent the area of speech-language pathology, 9 of whom must hold the Certificate of Clinical Competence in speech-language pathology;
No more than one individual from a specific educational institution or clinical facility may serve on the Council at the same time.
At least 9 shall have served as academic program accreditation site visitors.