Training

Currently, the nonspeaking population is underserved. There are more potential spellers than trained practitioners. To teach communication to more nonspeakers and support their families, I-ASC is committed to training more rigorously prepared practitioners.

“I am very grateful for the ability to communicate. This has opened up my world. I am now getting to learn. I study the things that normal kids get to study. I find that the world has infinite possibilities now.”~ Siddarth, Nonspeaker

I-ASC currently has 61 trained S2C Practitioners in the United States, Canada, South Africa, New Zealand, and Germany. In addition, Practitioners are currently taking our training program from the US, Canada, Chile, Venezuela and Dubai. Our goal is to train 1000 practitioners in Spelling to Communicate (S2C), a means of Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) over the next three years with the hope of serving 20,000 nonspeaking, minimally speaking and unreliably speaking kids and adults.

To meet our goal we are engaged in:

Global recruitment of talented people to train as S2C Practitioners
Increasing the number of S2C Practitioner training courses offered per year
Establishing best practice standards and guidelines for ethical practice
Providing continuous education and resources for S2C Practitioners and allied professionals
Adding to the growing number of spelling communities around the world

I-ASC’s six-month training course prepares S2C Practitioners to work with a wide range of nonspeaking individuals, and coach parents, family members, and educational aides to serve as Communication Partners to provide continued support for their nonspeaking person. The course is organized to be taken part-time, as many prospective Practitioners are already working in related fields such as Education, Speech, or Occupational Therapy. S2C Practitioner Training Brochure

S2C Practitioner Training Course Includes:

A kick-off weekend of 14 hours of virtual initial instruction
12 interactive academic webinars held twice a month
Intensive clinical supervision and mentoring
Feedback for Practitioners in sessions with nonspeakers
Completion of knowledge and clinical competencies
A five-day clinical internship

I-ASC is led by Elizabeth Vosseller, a Speech-Language Pathologist with decades of experience working with nonspeaking individuals. To implement this training program, Elizabeth is joined by eight experienced Practitioners who are members of I-ASC’s Leadership Cadre. These leaders, along with other seasoned Practitioners serving as mentors, work closely with students to support their successful completion of the course. Upon completion, students are prepared to open their own practices or join an existing practice or school. Graduates are eligible for membership in the I-ASC S2C Practitioner Network which provides ongoing access to content, resources, and support.

“The S2C Professional Cohort not only gave me the
tools to help my clients succeed, the training also
has given me confidence as an S2C professional. The
education from this class has given me the
understanding about why I am practicing S2C
methods as well as the ability to explain why I
believe in what I am practicing. The in depth
training, 1-on-1 mentorship, and the strategic
teaching laid out in the class provided a recipe for
success. I highly recommend investing your time
and money in this training.”
Nolan Shaffer, Littleton, Colorado

If you wish to learn more about the S2C Practitioner Training program and apply, please contact Anna Schoenfeld at training@i-asc.org.

Training

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