WEST LIBERTY, W.Va., Dec. 6, 2021 — The West Liberty University chapter of the National Student Speech Language Hearing Association (NSSLHA) raised $550 recently to support international student, Gilbert Kandaya, in his upcoming research with the hearing impaired.
“Our students in the NSSLHA chapter felt a real connection to Gilbert and his research after hearing about it,” said Assistant Professor Sara Alig, who teaches in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders and is the faculty advisor to the chapter.
NSSLHA states its mission as “to inspire, empower, and support students in the field of CSD” (Communication Sciences and Disorders] by providing them with tools to be successful academically and professionally.”
Some of these tools include the vision to support ongoing research that will benefit those affected by communication impairments.
Kandaya, who is studying special education at WLU, connected with the WLU NSSLHA chapter to discuss his upcoming research project geared toward examining the effect of large classroom sizes on reading and literacy outcomes for the hearing impaired.
“After hearing about his passion to help individuals with special needs, the entire department, led by our Director Dr. Stephanie Bradley, was inspired to take action. The WLU NSSLHA officers and fellow members organized a bake sale and raised $550 to help fund Gilbert’s research,” said Alig.
Officers of the NSSLHA chapter include the following senior students:
- President, Kelsi Hulit, Malvern, Ohio
- Vice President, Macy Zeiger, Carrollton, Ohio
- Treasurer, Riley Bennington, Wheeling, W.Va.
- Secretary, Callie White, Buckhannon, W.Va.
- Community Service Coordinator, Delaney Bird, Washington, Pa.
- Historian, Amber Yoho, Hundred, W.Va.
Gilbert will conduct this research in his home country of Malawi upon his return home in 2022.
“I want to thank all my fellow students, professors and participants at WLU. I appreciate all the love and support you have shown me for my research project. Your support is great input for my academic achievements. God bless you for your effort,” Kandaya said.
“The WLU CSD faculty and NSSLHA students are honored to be a part of a study that could help the hearing impaired in Malawi and all over the world,” said Bradley.
WLU’s Speech Pathology and Audiology undergraduate degree program has been educating students since 1975 and WLU expects to enroll graduate students soon for its new Master of Speech-Language Pathology degree program with an anticipated start date of fall 2022.
The department also operates a Speech and Hearing Clinic with low-cost fees that is open to the public. For complete information on the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, please visit westliberty.edu/health-sciences or contact Dr. Bradley at 304.336.8100.