On-Site and Off-Site Clinical Services
The Center for Communication Sciences & Disorders provides comprehensive diagnostic and therapy services for a wide range of communication disorders across all age groups. We offer services both on and off-campus. Areas evaluated and treated include:
On Campus Services:
- Child Speech Disorders
- Child Language Disorders
- Adult Speech Disorders
- Adult Language or Cognitive Impairments
- Child Feeding/Swallowing Disorders (Dysphagia)
- Adult Feeding/Swallowing Disorders (Dysphagia)
- Literacy & Learning Diagnostic Clinic
- Brain Injury Clinic
- Augmentative and Alternative Communication
- Voice and Resonance
- Voice Banking
- Audiology/Hearing Services
On Campus Groups:
- Social Connections Groups for Elementary and Middle/High School Students
- Adult Aphasia Support Group
- LOUD Crowd/Parkinsons
- Rec N Read After School Literacy/Reading Program
- Camp Maverick Literacy/Reading Camp
- Spasmodic Dysphonia Support Group
- Mankato Chapter of Stuttering Association
Off Campus Services:
- Truman Public Schools
- Dementia Friendly Meaningful Engagement
- Health Commons at Pond in Bloomington, MN
- MnCAN Aphasia Group, Edina Campus
- Concussion Training
ON-CAMPUS Services:
Childhood apraxia of speech, dysarthria (cerebral palsy/brain injury), phonological impairment, speech sound disorders/articulation, orofacial myofunctional disorders, fluency disorder/stuttering, and voice.
Development delays or disorders resulting from various learning disabilities (dyslexia, dysgraphia, ADHD, executive functioning, auditory processing disorder, language processing disorder, nonverbal learning disabilities); social language impairments resulting from Autism Spectrum Disorders; acquired brain injuries or concussions resulting in language and/or cognitive impairments.
Acquired Apraxia of Speech (stroke/traumatic brain injury), Dysarthria (Parkinsons Disease/stroke/traumatic brain injury); Voice Disorders (Spasmodic Dysphonia, Vocal polyps/nodules, Exercise Induced Laryngeal Dysfunction, Parkinson's Disease); Fluency Disorder/stuttering
Adult Language or Cognitive Impairments
Acquired Aphasia/language impairments (stroke/traumatic brain injury/concussions); Cognitive impairments resulting from injury/disease (traumatic brain injury/concussion, Alzheimer's/Dementia, right hemisphere brain injury, Parkinson's)
Child Feeding/Swallowing Disorders (Dysphagia)
Infants and children with difficulty eating due to structural or functional problems in the mouth, throat, or esophagus resulting in weak or damaged muscles used for feeding and swallowing. Some disorders related to these difficulties include: brain injury, birth defects, cleft palate, cerebral palsy, reflux, neuromuscular disease, prematurity, sensory problems/sensitivity to textures, stroke, or structural problems such as tongue/lip tie.
Adult Feeding/Swallowing Disorders (Dysphagia)
Conditions causing swallowing programs can make it difficult for individuals to chew and swallow their food. Conditions that are common with difficulty swallowing include: stroke, brain injury, spinal cord injury, Parkinson's disease Multiple Sclerosis, ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), muscular dystrophy, cerebral palsy, Alzheimer's disease, and head and neck cancer.
Literacy & Learning Diagnostic Clinic
Provides assessment and intervention services for children and adults with reading and writing or other academic difficulties, including dyslexia, disorders of executive functioning and language-related learning difficulties.
The Brain injury Clinic provides evaluation and intervention services for adults with language and cognitive difficulties including aphasia, primary progressive aphasia, traumatic brain injury, dementia, Parkinson' and other neurological progressive disorders.
Augmentative and Alternative Communication
Offers services to children and adults with severe speech/language problems that may need an alternative means of communication such as a low or high-tech (speech generating) communication device.
Evaluation and treatment in our Voice Analysis Lab for a broad category of conditions that affect a person's vocal quality. A vocal disorder can result from a variety of reasons ranging from long term hoarseness to vocal fold paralysis.
Children and adults who have certain disorders, such as ALS, may lose their ability to communicate verbally over time. Through voice banking services, recordings of an individual' speech are made, and a synthesized voice is created from the recordings. The synthesized voice can be programmed into an augmentative and alternative communication device.
Comprehensive hearing assessments and screenings as well as testing for central auditory processing disorders for all age groups.
Following a diagnostic evaluation, a treatment plan is developed to meet the individual's needs. Individuals are scheduled for therapy and all speech-language services are supervised by certified licensed speech-language pathologists.
Contact Information:
Email: centercsd.@mnsu.edu
Phone: 507-389-2821
Fax: 507-389-2821
Office: Clinical Sciences Building 119
On-Campus Groups:
Social Connections Groups for Elementary and Middle/High School Students
Small groups of 4-6 children/young adults in three different age groups that focuses on building foundational social interaction skills. Groups are designed to help attendees learn social communication and relationship building skills in a supportive environment with a focus on fun.
Group for adults ages 18+ with aphasia is designed to create natural conversation and interaction experiences with support from trained graduate students and a Certified Speech-Language Pathologist.
The SPEAK OUT!® and LOUD Crowd® Parkinson’s program is a two-part therapy approach that strengthens the muscles used for speaking and swallowing by combining individual speech therapy (SPEAK OUT!®) with ongoing group therapy (LOUD Crowd®).
Rec N Read After School Literacy/Reading Program
An afterschool literacy/reading program designed for children who are struggling readers and writers and works to promote increased literacy skills while building social skills and making friends.
Camp Maverick Literacy/Reading Camp
Summer recreation and literacy intervention camp designed to help struggling readers improve reading and writing skills while having fun and playing games.
Spasmodic Dysphonia Support Group
Group is affiliated with the National Spasmodic Dysphonia Association (NSDA) and provides educational updates about SD to its members, increases public awareness about the condition, and it provides support and socialization for its members.
Mankato Chapter of Stuttering Association
The Mankato Chapter of the National Stuttering Association (NSA) supports adults who stutter.
OFF-CAMPUS Services:
Providing speech/language services to students ranging in age from birth-adolescents in partnership with the Truman Public Schools. Program is lead and supervised by a Certified Speech-Language Pathologist and trained graduate students.
Dementia Friendly Meaningful Engagement
Dementia-Friendly Meaningful EngAGEment provides patient-centered services for individuals with dementia and real-world learning experiences for our students to work with individuals with dementia. This program includes both our Memory Book program and our Garden EngAGEment programs.
Health Commons at Pond in Bloomington, MN
This clinic is a joint venture with the Bloomington School District, Minnesota State University, Mankato Nursing and the Center for Communication Sciences & Disorders. This program allows us to provide FREE services to children in the Bloomington Schools that may need extra services or may not otherwise qualify for services.
MnCAN Aphasia Group, Edina Campus
Group for adults ages 18+ with aphasia is designed to create natural conversation and interaction experiences with support from trained graduate students and a Certified Speech-Language Pathologist.
Provides education to groups through an interactive, hands-on way, to promote understanding of the signs and effects of concussion. The program allows participants to explore human brain functions and to learn about traumatic brain injury protocols.
