Executive Council Meeting Report

November 11, 2017

The NSSLHA Executive Council met on November 11, 2017, at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel in Los Angeles, California. Here you'll find the Summary Report of the meeting.

Executive Council members in attendance were President Katie Schramm, President-Elect Teigan Beck, Vice President for Finance Tatiana Windley, Vice President for Planning Charlotte Miller, Vice President for Academic Affairs Sally Wilson, Vice President for Student State Officers (SLP) Margaret Pierce, Vice President for Student State Officers (AuD) JJ Whicker, Vice President for Government Relations and Public Policy Michelle D'Mello, Vice President for Audiology Programming Erica Gardner, Vice President for Speech-Language Pathology Programming Sarah Sadler, NSSLHA National Advisor Kathy Shapley, and NSSLHA National Advisor-Elect Sonja Pruitt-Lord.

Program Director Tracy White, Program Manager Sara Mischo, and American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) Chief Staff Officer for Operations Kyle Vickers were in attendance.

Opening Remarks

The fall 2017 NSSLHA Executive Council business meeting was called to order at 8:00 a.m. on Saturday, November 11, 2017, by President Schramm.

Program Director Updates

In addition to welcoming the Executive Council, White congratulated everyone on their performance during Convention.

2017 Convention Update

Gardner and Sadler shared statistics of this year's Convention attendance (2,524 NSSLHA members, 179 graduate students) and led a discussion about the Executive Council's insights on the event.

2018 Convention Update

The 2018 ASHA Convention Co-chairs, Sharon Sandridge and Melissa Jakubowitz, shared plans for the 2018 Convention in Boston, Massachusetts, and led a discussion about involving students in attendance.

Website and Blog Update

Mischo shared an update about the website and blog project process and schedule. The blog is on track to launch January 2018, and the website is on track to launch April 2018.

Student Advocacy Update

D'Mello led a discussion on ways to increase advocacy locally and nationally.

Peer-to-Peer Mentorship Opportunities Update

Miller led a discussion on how to lay the groundwork for starting a peer-to-peer mentorship program.

Generative Discussion and Activity

Schramm, Shapley, and Pruitt-Lord led a discussion and activity about emotionally intelligent leadership. The activity started with Executive Council members recording peaks and valleys of their own personal leadership experiences, then discussing the commonalities and differences of their experiences. Shapley and Pruitt-Lord discussed how personal experiences can translate into professional and personal lives.

ASHA Presidential Team Update

ASHA President Gail Richard, ASHA President-Elect Elise Davis-McFarland, ASHA Past-President Jaynee Handelsman, and ASHA Chief Executive Officer Arlene A. Pietranton joined the meeting to discuss current activities of ASHA.

Richard updated the Executive Council on issues currently being addressed by the ASHA Board of Directors, including the exploration of a national credential for audiology and speech-language pathology assistants, the approval of Perspectives to become a peer-reviewed journal, the three-year extension of the Value of the CCCs Campaign, and the involvement of an interstate compact agreement.

Pietranton updated the Executive Council on international activities the ASHA Board of Directors is undertaking, including work with the World Health Organization and the Pan American Health Organization to develop an audiology and speech-language pathology infrastructure in underdeveloped international programs; an interstate compact agreement with the audiology and speech-language pathology organizations in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and Ireland that recognizes each credentialing agent; and the ongoing efforts of the International Communication Project, which raises awareness with policy makers internationally.

Davis-McFarland and Handelsman updated the Executive Council on the ASHA Board of Directors' efforts to continue diversifying ASHA's boards and committees.

ASHA and NSSLHA executive leadership discussed leadership opportunities after becoming professionals, as well as the NSSLHA brand refresh.

Closing Remarks

The meeting was adjourned at 11:40 a.m.