Overview of CSD Department

The Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders (CSD) offers an undergraduate degree in communication sciences and disorders as well as a Master's degree in speech-language pathology. Located in Parks Hall on the south campus of Western, the CSD Department contains a large array of state-of-the-art laboratory and clinical equipment. The department facility also houses the Western Washington University Speech-Language-Hearing Clinic which provides assessment and treatment services for the communicatively disabled from Bellingham and nearby communities.

Accreditation

The Master's degree program in speech-language pathology is accredited by the Council on Academic Accreditation (CAA) of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA). For further information and public comment opportunities contact ASHA using the above link or the following address and phone numbers:

American Speech-Language-Hearing Association
2200 Research Boulevard
Rockville, MD 20850-3289

Action Center Phone
Members: 800-498-2071
Non-Members: 800-638-8255

Our Mission Statement

The Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders is committed to providing a student-centered learning environment of the highest quality where undergraduate and graduate students develop the knowledge, clinical skills, and life-long learning skills to prepare them for professional careers and advanced study in speech-language pathology and audiology.  The faculty and staff are dedicated to engaged excellence as we focus on:

• Fostering the critical thinking, intellectual rigor, curiosity, and creativity that will provide the foundation for ongoing learning about communication and its disorders.

• Providing supervised clinical experiences where students have multiple opportunities to provide high quality client/patient care.

• Creating opportunities for students to understand and engage in research related to normal and disordered communication.

• Promoting an understanding of social, political, and multicultural issues that impact learning, research, and clinical service delivery.

• Encouraging and supporting civic engagement, leadership,  and active involvement in campus-life and the broader community.

• Promoting scholarship, educational innovation, and instructional excellence.

CSD Undergraduate Program Assessment Plan
Note: Most of the CSD Program Assessment Plan regarding standards and implementation is adapted, or directly quoted, from certification standards of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Our department is required to provide a graduate program that allows our graduate students to meet ASHA certification standards. We developed learning objectives and formative assessment procedures in accordance with those standards, and implemented the graduate program plan beginning Fall, 2005. We also adapted the assessment plan to our undergraduate program. We are in the process of implementing the following plan. The ASHA standards and numbering have been maintained to allow us to seamlessly and efficiently track undergraduate and graduate learning outcomes. See specific course syllabi for learning indicators (objectives) that link to these standards. More...

About the University

Western Washington University is located in Bellingham, Washington, situated approximately 90 miles north of Seattle and 50 miles south of Vancouver, British Columbia. Bellingham is a unique and diverse area with nearby mountains and the Puget Sound which makes it ideal for outdoor activities such as hiking, biking, sailing, and skiing. The beautiful campus of Western Washington University is positioned on a hilltop providing magnificent views of the San Juan Islands and the Cascade Mountain Range.