Alumna Abby Jeppson earns national honor

NIU alum, Abby Jeppson, was awarded the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) Distinguished Early Career Professional (ECP) certificate.

The certificate was created to recognize and identify early career professionals in the fields of audiology and speech-language pathology who are making an impact in the areas of leadership, volunteering, or advocacy at the local, state, and/or national level.

Northern Illinois University alumna Abby Jeppson is currently a Senior Speech-Language Pathologist at the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab Homewood DayRehab location.

“I am honored because as an early career professional, it can be so easy to get in your own head and not feel as confident when comparing yourself to others because of your number of years of experience,” said Jeppson, who graduated with a master’s in speech-language pathology in 2017. “My confidence as a speech-language pathologist has been an area that I have worked a lot on over the last two years and continue to do so.”

Jeppson said her time at NIU in the School of Allied Health and Communicative Disorders thoroughly prepared her for a career as a speech-language pathologist. She said while at NIU – for her undergraduate and master’s degree – she was involved in research and other leadership opportunities that supported her academic career.

“The foundational skills I developed at NIU have supported my professional growth,” Jeppson said.  “The communicative disorders professors were always encouraging as I focused on the medical side of speech-language pathology and have continued to extend their support even years later.”

In fact, Jeppson said, she landed her current position at the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab after completing her full-time graduate clinical placement and a short time as a clinical fellow in a skilled nursing facility.

“Without this placement, I would not have found my dream job,” said Jeppson, who is currently a Senior Speech-Language Pathologist at the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab Homewood DayRehab location. “NIU and the communicative disorders department will always hold a special place in my heart; I am the person I am today because of my experiences during undergrad and grad school.”

Learn more about Speech-Language Pathology at NIU.

 

 

 

 

 

Source: NIU Today CHHS News

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