Clinicians & Experience
Katherine M. Wilkie, M.S., CCC-SLP/L
My journey to speech-language pathology is called "non-traditional" because I didn't follow a straight path to my career, and each step added to my professional philosophy. I started my college degree thinking I wanted to be a doctor, then a nurse, then an activist, an artist, a theologian, and a public speaker. I found communication studies and researched political comics through a rhetorical and public-speaking lens. I took a class called Survey of Communication Disorders and met Dr. Frank Cirrin, a Speech-Language Pathologist whose goal was simply to teach and for us to learn. I was inspired and found a career that was creative, scientific, artistic, medical, justice-seeking, and human-centered. Speech Pathology literally strives to provide a voice for those that have none.
My educational and work experiences are full and widely diversified. In 2007 I graduated from the University of St. Thomas with a B.A. in Communication Studies, but not communication disorders, so I went to graduate school and worked as a UK Visa Officer while completing requisite courses. I started my Master's Degree at Northwestern University in Chicago in 2007 and I completed my M.S. at Rush University in 2012. Since 2007, I have sought experiences across the life span. I was provided opportunities to work in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) helping to feed premature babies, on teams for end of life and hospice care, and every age and in between. I worked in preschool, elementary school, high school, and therapeutic schools. I was placed in the head and neck cancer clinic, two urban acute-level hospital settings, and in a literacy clinic. I have worked for public schools, a level one hospital trauma and stroke center, non-profit agency center and their associated charter schools. I have worked with Phyllis Kupperman on evaluations and treatment of children who present with a learning style called hyperlexia. I have been on both sides of the negotiating table for my clients and believe in client-centered care.
I believe in having a conversation with the client and finding out what their goals are to make sure they match with my therapy goals. I believe in functional therapy, to both provide strategies and to grow the actual function of the brain for language. I maintain my certificate of clinical competence (CCC) from my professional organization (ASHA), as well as a license from the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) and my professional educator license (PEL) from the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE).
My journey to speech-language pathology is called "non-traditional" because I didn't follow a straight path to my career, and each step added to my professional philosophy. I started my college degree thinking I wanted to be a doctor, then a nurse, then an activist, an artist, a theologian, and a public speaker. I found communication studies and researched political comics through a rhetorical and public-speaking lens. I took a class called Survey of Communication Disorders and met Dr. Frank Cirrin, a Speech-Language Pathologist whose goal was simply to teach and for us to learn. I was inspired and found a career that was creative, scientific, artistic, medical, justice-seeking, and human-centered. Speech Pathology literally strives to provide a voice for those that have none.
My educational and work experiences are full and widely diversified. In 2007 I graduated from the University of St. Thomas with a B.A. in Communication Studies, but not communication disorders, so I went to graduate school and worked as a UK Visa Officer while completing requisite courses. I started my Master's Degree at Northwestern University in Chicago in 2007 and I completed my M.S. at Rush University in 2012. Since 2007, I have sought experiences across the life span. I was provided opportunities to work in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) helping to feed premature babies, on teams for end of life and hospice care, and every age and in between. I worked in preschool, elementary school, high school, and therapeutic schools. I was placed in the head and neck cancer clinic, two urban acute-level hospital settings, and in a literacy clinic. I have worked for public schools, a level one hospital trauma and stroke center, non-profit agency center and their associated charter schools. I have worked with Phyllis Kupperman on evaluations and treatment of children who present with a learning style called hyperlexia. I have been on both sides of the negotiating table for my clients and believe in client-centered care.
I believe in having a conversation with the client and finding out what their goals are to make sure they match with my therapy goals. I believe in functional therapy, to both provide strategies and to grow the actual function of the brain for language. I maintain my certificate of clinical competence (CCC) from my professional organization (ASHA), as well as a license from the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) and my professional educator license (PEL) from the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE).
