Ed M. Bice, M.Ed., CCC-SLP

IOPI Medical, LLC, Clinical Consultant (providing clinical support to clinicians in 32 countries treating individuals with swallowing disorders) (full-time)

SwalTech, the creator of BiSSkApp, USA Consultant 

Bristol Regional Speech and Hearing Center, Clinician

University of Maryland, Adjunct instructor

Ed M. Bice, M.Ed., CCC-SLP, has extensive and ongoing experience as a clinician, researcher, and instructor. He has worked in public schools, medical settings, management roles, industry, and academia. His previous experience at the helm of an organization provides him with unique abilities to care for and promote the needs of the membership while promoting growth and ensuring financial stability for SHAV. His current responsibilities of assessing and treating patients, conducting research, and educating future clinicians provide him with broad insight into the challenges facing our field. Ed is a staunch advocate for the profession and the patients we serve and has served as a mentor to new and experienced clinicians.

Leadership Experience: 

Ed has held numerous leadership roles, including facility manager, Regional Director of Operations, Regional Clinical Director, Vice President of Clinical Services, and Chief Operating Officer.

Professional Contributions and Memberships: 

Ed is a member of the American Speech-Language and Hearing Association, Dysphagia Research Society, and Virginia's Speech and Hearing Association. He has numerous publications in peer-reviewed journals and actively participates in ongoing research related to swallowing and swallowing disorders (currently, five active IRBs and one editorial publication are in process). He is the author of a recent book related to the assessment and treatment of swallowing disorders.  Ed has been an invited speaker at sixteen state level speech and hearing conventions and regularly provides guest lectures at universities, industry funded, and facility funded events.  He has been an invited guest blogger for well-known blogs such as Dysphagia Cafe and a guest on numerous national and international podcasts. Ed was an invited researcher at the University of Talca, Talca Chile, as part of a Chilean government grant. He was also invited to develop and present a conference at the University of Larissa, Larissa, Greece. He has numerous publications in peer-reviewed journals and actively participates in ongoing research related to swallowing and swallowing disorders (currently five active IRBs and one editorial publication in process).

Engagement or Participation in Professional Associations:

Ed has served on the SHAV Conference Committee for several years and is the co-chair of the SHAV Feeding and Swallowing Group. He has served on the ASHA Convention Adult Swallowing Committee numerous times and was selected to be on the committee to update the ASHA Practice Portal for Adult Swallowing. He has been an invited speaker for ASHA online conferences. He has been an invited speaker at the ASHA Convention three times in the last five years. He also presented submitted talks during the ASHA convention and posters at the ASHA Convention and the Dysphagia Research Society Annual Meeting. He has served as a mentor in the ASHA Leadership Mentoring Program.

Heidi Miller

UVA Children's Hospital Inpatient Acute Care Pediatrics Clinician 4 Speech Language Pathologist

I am committed to growing the reach of SHAV. As SLPs seek better connections and access within our profession and to grow our professional networks, I am confident I can increase the visibility and participation in SHAV with our medical SLP community. I have a variety of connections across the state and five hospital systems that will allow me to support SHAV in understanding how to engage these members, as well as the relationships necessary to reach those SLPs to encourage engagement with this organization. This past year, through my work with the SHAV Leadership Academy, I have started a bimonthly CEU meet-up for pediatric medical SLPs. The group has 40 members and averages 15-20 participants at each virtual event. Having built that program, I feel experienced in building out SHAV membership to include previously under-engaged groups within the Commonwealth.

Leadership Experience: 

I completed the SHAV Leadership Academy in 2024. I am the highest level on the clinical ladder in my current workplace. I serve as the founding member of the Virginia Pediatric Dysphagia Collaborative.  I am a frequent CEU presenter through NANT (National Association of Neonatal Therapists), other independent contractors such as Therapy Insights and The Informed SLP.  I am the lead pediatric FEES SLP for UVA Children's Hospital. I also serve as an adjunct faculty member for the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders at James Madison University.

Professional Contributions and Memberships: 

ASHA and SHAV member

Engagement or Participation in Professional Associations:

ACE award from ASHA the past two CEU cycles. CEU presenter for ASHA CEU credit averaging 2-3 presentations per year.

Erin S. Wallace

Longwood University, Assistant Professor

I graduated with my masters from Old Dominion University in 2014 and soon after went to work in the public schools. During my time in the school systems I learned a lot about evidence based practices,  services in groups, challenging behaviors, time management, and unfortunately burn out. During this time, I had an exceptionally high caseload and remember feeling overwhelmed as I wanted to provide the best services for my students but did not know how. In order to provide services to my entire caseload, I often saw students in groups of four or five, and during this time I would experience challenging behaviors. I like majority of SLPs did not have significant training in this area and felt lost. This is when I decided to go back to school for my Ph.D. First and foremost I want to acknowledge the privilege I had to walk away from a career and go back to school again, this is something I do not take lightly and will always be immensely grateful for. I decided to obtain my Ph.D. in special education as I wanted to learn more about the school system and their services as a whole. Even though my Ph.D is in special education I focused on language disorders, challenging behaviors, collaboration, and training for SLPs. Through my program I reflected on my time in the schools and how I felt at a loss. I wanted to keep this close because I wanted to always remember what it felt like being that burnt out SLP. My goal was and is always to help our practitioners and students alike. After completing my PhD I obtained a job at Longwood University in their Communication Sciences and Disorders department. Here I have fallen in love as I get the privilege of teaching the next generation of SLPs and witnessing their passion to make our field and world a better place. Through all of this I have always had the desire to serve in a bigger capacity. This is my reason for wanting to serve on the SHAV board in Member Services. I want to give back to our field and to connect more graduate students and SLPs with the wonderful work that SHAV does. I feel that SLPs could use all the support they can get and SHAV is a great resource for them. My desire is to spread awareness of SHAV and the community of SLPs its created as we together can work on advocating for ourselves, our students, and together we can continue to learn and develop new and better evidence based practices.

Leadership Experience: 

I am the SLP faculty representative for VA-LEND (Virginia Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities) and the Longwood Coordinator. VA-LEND is a program funded through the Autism Cares Act where we provide training for professionals working with individuals with neurodevelopmental disabilities on how to engage in interdisciplinary collaboration. This program is housed at Virginia Commonwealth University; however, Longwood is granted a sub award as we bring in the speech language pathologists. Thus, I serve as the SLP faculty and the Longwood Coordinator. The SLP faculty role provides me the opportunity to advise graduate level SLPs or early career SLPs through out the program and my role as Longwood Coordinator allows me to sit on the leadership team for VA-LEND.

I serve as a faculty advisor on graduate student research projects from idea to development and IRB approval to data analysis and manuscript write up. The students present their findings at the Longwood University’s Graduate Research Symposium and Speech Hearing Association of Virginia’s Annual Conference.

Additionally, at Longwood University I sit on the following boards/committees:

Graduate Curriculum Committee

Graduate Research Symposium as the co-chair

Educational Policy Committee

Incite Undergraduate Journal

Professional Contributions and Memberships: 

Erin Wallace has contributed to several peer-reviewed publications and book chapters in the areas of Special Education, Language, SLP-teacher collaboration, experiences with challenging behavior, and more. She has been an invited presenter across several association conferences including ASHA, SHAV, and GHSA and universities such as Longwood University in Virginia and Vanderbilt University in Tennessee, and has spoken on the School of Speech podcast.

Memberships:

Council for Learning Disabilities (CLD)

Teacher Education Division (TED)

Council for Exceptional Children (CEC)

American Speech Language Hearing Association (ASHA)

Speech Language Hearing Association of Virginia (SHAV)

Engagement or Participation in Professional Associations:

As stated previously, I am a member of the following associations: 

• Council for Learning Disabilities (CLD)
• Teacher Education Division (TED)
• Council for Exceptional Children (CEC)
• American Speech Language Hearing Association (ASHA)
• Speech Language Hearing Association of Virginia (SHAV)

I regularly attend ASHA and SHAV conferences.

Additionally, I am a member of CSDisseminate. This is an organization with a mission of providing practitioners with access to research journals and articles. They discuss and try to spread awareness on how to provide open access to SLPs.

• Michelle L. W. Dawson, MS, CCC-SLP, CLC, BCS-S

Part-Time Speech-Language Pathologist

Wolfe Speech Therapy Plus, Private Practice, Staunton, VA

Dear Colleagues,

It would be an honor to serve you in the capacity of VP of Speech-Language Pathology. I envision tithing my time by volunteering to:

1. Forge partnerships between our professions and those of the American Academy of Pediatrics-Virginia Chapter. To improve understanding of our respective roles/responsibilities in screening, assessing, and treating pediatric feeding disorder, advocating for improved access to medical records/POC with initial referrals for speech therapy across the life continuum, as well as streamline process for improved access for speech generating AAC devices. In order to meet these goals, I anticipate collaborating to establish online webinars, in person learning experiences, and guidelines for best practice for the commonwealth.

2. Forge partnerships between SHAV and the Infant & Toddler Connection of Virginia. To establish a working partnership between the systems to help advocate for colleagues in these settings: A. Improved reimbursement rates, B. Access to medical records for improved continuity of care, C. Grow interest in this setting to encourage colleagues to work as an EI SLP, D. Inclusion of Feeding Matter's PFD Screening Tool as part of the intake process. In order to meet these goals, I anticipate collaborating with a SHAV task force to establish online webinars, in person learning experiences, and guidelines for best practice for the commonwealth.

3. Strengthen partnerships between SHAV and VDOE. Specifically, to work with current VDOE leadership and colleagues working in this setting to determine how we can continue to support/advocate for their needs, while also propelling the field forward. For example, establishing guidelines for supporting pediatric feeding disorder within the school-based setting.

4. Advocacy for patient access to Speech Therapy and SLP reimbursement for services rendered: A. Advocate for equitable pay from Medicaid across geographic regions, B. Advocate for full reimbursement for cotreatments between ST and OT, or ST and PT. C. Advocate for full reimbursement for CPT codes if more than one is used in a session, for example 92507 and 92526 or 92507 and 92609. If these concerns are addressed, it will encourage colleagues to serve patients in historically disadvantaged areas. In order to meet these goals, I anticipate collaborating with a SHAV task force and lobbyist to meet with various insurance providers and legislators to advocate for improved access to care/reimbursement rates across the commonwealth.

In order to achieve each of these goals, it will require support from membership. It would be an honor to work alongside colleagues that work in these settings, creating opportunities for them to share their lived experiences with the appropriate stakeholders, to bring about desired change. It will take time, months and/or years to see all of these goals come to fruition, and I am willing to volunteer to do so!

Leadership Experience:

Trailblazing Speech-Language Pathologist accomplished in engaging in national and state-wide leadership and interprofessional advocacy initiatives for improved continuity of care for pediatric patients in special education, acute, sub-acute, and home health settings. Placing unique emphasis on maximizing each individual's access to their activities of daily living by providing a functional approach to feeding/swallowing impairments and language acquisition through current evidenced-based practice.  Recognized for dedication to the field via volunteer work with South Carolina Speech-Language-Hearing Association (SCSHA) that resulted in dysphagia evaluation and treatment current procedural codes (CPT) and augmentative and alternative communication CPT codes being added to the South Carolina CMS manual, significant updates to Babynet (SC IDEA Part C birth-three statewide agency) Policy and Procedures for speech-language-pathologists, as well as SCSHA membership growth and retention.  Nationally respected CEU lecturer on topics including: evaluation and treatment of pediatric dysphagia, pediatric feeding disorder (PFD), augmentative communication use in early intervention for language acquisition, for the medically complex infant, toddler, and child, as well as interprofessional practice team building, and policy shaping for improved pediatric patient continuity of care.  Acclaimed host of “First Bite: Fed, Fun, and Functional”, a speech therapy podcast for speech-language pathologists, that was the first ASHA approved CEU podcast in the nation with 285+ episodes, over 1.9 million downloads, and downloaded in over 100 different countries. Celebrated author of “Chasing the Swallow: Truth, Science, and Hope for Pediatric Feeding and Swallowing Disorders”, which has been purchased on four continents.  

Professional Contributions and Memberships: 

Michelle Dawson has been awarded the “Board Certified Specialist in Swallowing and Swallowing Disorders” by the American Board of Swallowing Disorders and was recognized as an ASHA Innovator in 2023. She also serves as a member of the Communication Disorder Foundation of Virginia Board of Trustees and as co-chair of the SHAV Dysphagia and Pediatric Feeding Disorder Special Interest Group, and is a past-president of SCSHA. She has received several clinical achievement awards from a variety of organizations and publications, including ASHA and SCSHA. She has been a featured SLP on several podcasts in the field and published both independently and with ASHA Wire. Her book “Chasing the Swallow: Truth, Science, and Hope for Pediatric Feeding and Swallowing Disorders” has been purchased on four continents. She is a renowned speaker and presenter, giving talks both in person and virtually for state and national associations as well as universities across the country.

Engagement or Participation in Professional Associations:

American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA)

o Current Member and Member of Special Interest Group 13: Swallowing and Swallowing Disorders (Dysphagia)

 ASHA Convention Planning Committee: 

 2024 Topic Chair for Pediatric Feeding and Swallowing Disorder Track

 2023 Topic Chair for Pediatric Feeding and Swallowing Disorder Track

 2022 Pediatric Feeding and Swallowing Disorder Track

 2021 Inaugural Pediatric Feeding and Swallowing Disorder Track

 ASHA Leadership Development Program Candidate Reviewer: 2024, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020

 ASHA Early Career Professional Candidate Reviewer: 2023, 2024

American Speech-Language-Hearing Foundation 

o Graduate Student Scholarship Candidate Reviewer: 2022  

Asian Pacific Island Speech-Language-Hearing Caucus (ASHA API Caucus)

o Current Member: 2024, 2023

Communication Disorder Foundation of Virginia (CDF) 

o Current Board of Trustee Member: 2024, 2023

Dysphagia Outreach Project (DOP)

o Pediatric Feeding Disorder (PFD) and Dysphagia Application Reviewer: 2023, 2022

o Understanding Dysphagia: Hosted a nine-part podcast miniseries regarding dysphagia across the life continuum, during “Dysphagia Awareness Month” in June of 2021, as a fundraiser for Dysphagia Outreach Project.

Dysphagia Research Society (DRS)

o Current Member: 2022-present

Feeding Matters, LLC

o Course Moderator at International Pediatric Feeding Disorder Conference: 2022, 2021

o Digital Outreach Committee: 2023

o Invited Pre-Conference Speaker at International Pediatric Feeding Disorder Conference 2022

o Various Policy Reviewer/Volunteer Consultant: 2024, 2023, 2022, 2021

o Virtual Community Host: 2022, 2021

National Black Association for Speech-Language and Hearing (NBASLH)

o Current Member: 2024, 2023

National Foundation of Swallowing Disorders (NFOSD)

o Current Member 

o Interactive Cookbook Planner: 2024, 2023, 2022

o Co-host of Pediatric Swallowing and Support Group: October 2022

Speech-Language-Hearing Association of Virginia (SHAV)

o Current Member: 2023-present

o Inaugural Co-Chair of Dysphagia and Pediatric Feeding Disorder Special Interest Group: 2023-present 

o Convention Planning Committee for the 2025 and 2024 Convention

South Carolina Speech, Language, Hearing Association (SCSHA)

o Current Member: 2014-present

o Co-Chair and Chair of Babynet Committee 2022-2023

o Past President of SCSHA 2019-2020

o President of SCSHA 2018-2019

o President Elect of SCSHA 2017-2018 and Convention Chair 2018

o President Elect-Elect of SCSHA 2016-2017 and SCSHA Convention Co-Chair 2016-2017

o Vice President of Governmental Affairs SCSHA 2015-2017

Samantha M. Dudding

Student Support Coordinator - Arlington Public Schools

Speech Language Pathologist, PRN - KidsCare Home Health

Clinical Fellowship Mentor - KidsCare Home Health

As I step into the role of Vice President for Public Relations and Communication, I am committed to elevating the visibility and engagement of the Speech and Hearing Association of Virginia (SHAV) through strategic communication and collaboration. My leadership experience, particularly in coordinating Special Education initiatives and mentoring future clinicians, has equipped me with the skills necessary to effectively manage our communication efforts and foster a sense of community among our members.

In this role, I plan to leverage my background in education and advocacy to enhance our marketing and public relations strategies. I will work closely with the SHAV Board of Directors to ensure that our messaging is clear, timely, and resonates with our diverse membership. By updating the SHAV website and managing our social media accounts weekly, I aim to create dynamic platforms that not only inform but also engage our members in meaningful dialogue.

Collaboration will be a cornerstone of my approach. I look forward to partnering with the Vice President for Membership to drive initiatives that promote membership growth, while also supporting the Vice President for Governmental and Professional Affairs in highlighting legislative needs. My goal is to ensure that our advocacy efforts are well-publicized and that our members feel empowered to participate.

As we prepare for the Annual Conference, I will focus on strategic advertising and effective communication with local media to maximize our outreach. By maintaining regular contact with SHAV Committee Chairs, I will ensure that our activities are well-coordinated and reported, allowing us to celebrate our achievements and share opportunities with the membership.

I am eager to foster a culture of transparency and collaboration within our organization, encouraging feedback and active participation from all members. Together, we can enhance the impact of our association, ensuring that our voices are heard and our contributions valued. I am excited to embark on this journey with SHAV, and I look forward to working diligently to advance our mission and support our community.

Leadership Experience

As a dedicated professional in the field of Communication Sciences and Disorders, I have cultivated a robust leadership profile through a variety of roles and responsibilities. My current position as Student Support Coordinator at Arlington Public Schools exemplifies my commitment to leading Special Education initiatives, where I coordinate and facilitate compliance meetings, manage a diverse team, and ensure that our services meet federal and state regulations. This role has honed my skills in collaboration and advocacy, allowing me to effectively engage with administrators, educators, and families to foster an inclusive learning environment.

In addition to my coordination efforts, I have served as a Clinical Educator at James Madison University, where I directed the Scottish Rite Camp in Summer 2022. This experience involved mentoring graduate clinicians, providing constructive feedback, and guiding them through assessments and interventions, reinforcing my passion for developing future leaders in our field.

Through my presentations and publications, such as my recent work on neurodiversity and strengths-based assessment, I have sought to influence best practices and promote innovative approaches in speech-language pathology. My participation in professional organizations, including SHAV's 2024 Leadership and Advocacy Academy, further underscores my commitment to leadership and advocacy within our profession. These experiences reflect my belief that effective leadership in education and healthcare is rooted in collaboration, continuous learning, and a dedication to enhancing the lives of individuals with communication disorders.

Professional Contributions and Memberships

Memberships: 

Speech and Hearing Association of Virginia, Member 

American Speech-Language and Hearing Association, Member 

Certificate of Clinical Competence, Speech-Language Pathologist 

Presentations and Publications: 

Dudding, C., Zraick, R., & Dudding, S. (2024). The use of simulation in communication sciences and disorders: A follow up survey. American Journal of Speech Language Pathology. 

Dudding, S. (2023, March 30-31).  Neurodiversity and DLD: The importance of strengths-based assessment and treatment [Conference presentation]. WVSHA 2023 Convention, Roanoke, WV, United States. https://www.wvsha.org/events/convention-2023/.

Tavassolie, T., Dudding, S., Madigan, A.L., Thorvardarson, E., & Winsler, A. (2016).  Differences in perceived parenting style between mothers and fathers: Implications for child outcomes and marital conflicts.  Journal of Child and Family Studies, 25(6), 2055-2068.  

Engagement or Participation in Professional Associations:

Speech and Hearing Association of Virginia – Leadership and Advocacy Academy, 2024 Cohort 

American Speech-Language and Hearing Association – Special Interests Group 16, School-Based Issues

Kenzie VanDerweker

Speech-language Pathologist

Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughters (CHKD), Virginia Beach

Warren G. Bennis, an eminent scholar on leadership, once said that “Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality”. I am passionate about taking an out-of-the-blue idea and helping lead the idea into fruition. 

I have been on SHAV’s Communication Committee for the past 7 years helping with graphics, problem-solving, organizations and social media. In addition, I have been the website organizer for the 2022-2024 year, making edits and creating information for the SHAV website. 

After reading Brene Brown’s “Date to Lead: Brave Work. Tough Conversations. Whole Hearts”, I started establishing goals for myself in regards to my leadership skills, and will utilize these sills at SHAV’s VP for Communications. My top two leadership goals are outlined below:

1. Identifying and facilitating leadership skills in others.

a. I aspire not only to become a leader myself, but instead to foster and facilitate leadership skills in others. SHAV’s Communication Committee has a great potential to be a great source for micro-volunteerism for SHAV members. Information in regards to audiology and speech-language pathology is consistently changing and new evidence is being found and released. I hope to use SHAV social media platform to get information to SHAV membership faster and more efficiently. 

2. Learning to fail gracefully

a. While I always stroke for greatness- I take great pleasure in my mistakes and failures. I feel that I can learn more from evaluating the mistakes and problem solving for the next time. I hope to increase various creative social media programs and initiatives to find the “right fit” for SHAV members- continuing programs and initiatives that are helpful and modifying those that are less helpful! 

Leadership Experience

SHAV VP for SLPs (3 full terms, one partial term due to another person needing to step down). 

SHAV Secretary (1 year)

Odyssey of the Mind Coach (3 years- including moving to the World level at the Division 4 level for two years, placing 2nd place and 1st place)

National Forensics League Coach (4 years)

National History Day Coach (2 years)

Professional Contributions or Memberships

Kenzie is a proud SHAV member and has been volunteering on the SHAV Board of Directors for the past 7 years since graduating from Radford University. 

Kenzie is also an ASHA member and has participated in ASHA's Student to Empowered Professional (S.T.E.P.) is an online mentoring program where mentees and mentors communicate to address a short- or long-term goal for the past 4 years. 

Kenzie has presented numerous times at the local, state, and national level (ASHA Convention) in regard to various areas including Selective Mutism, ADHD and executive functioning deficits, phonological awareness, speech-sound disorders, and stuttering.

Engagement or Participation in Professional Associations

Kenzie has been volunteering on the SHAV Board of Directors for the past 7 years since graduating from Radford University. Starting her service joining mid-term as the Vice President for Speech-Language Pathology, following 2 years as SHAV’s secretary, following two terms as SHAV’ Vice President for Speech-Language Pathology. 

In addition to serving on the SHAV Board of Directors, Kenzie is active on SHAV Communication Committee serving as the Communication Committee Char for 2 years. In addition, Kenzie is active on the Conference Committee for the past 7 years including taking lead on several initiatives and programs for the annual SHAV Conference. 

During the 2023-2024 SHAV year, Kenzie was the SHAV Board Liaison for 7 SHAV Groups attending meetings and providing supports throughout the year.

When Kenzie is not volunteering with SHAV, she runs a free monthly online newsletter “Speech like a P.I.R.A.T.E (Prepared. Innovative. Resourceful. Academic. Thought-Out. Evidence-Based.” which provides resources and evidence-based information to speech-language pathologists. In addition, she judges for school, regional, and state levels of Odyssey of the Mind, National Forensics League, and National History Day.