By: Gina Glover, MS, CCC-SLP, Honors and Awards Chair
At the recent Texas Speech-Language-Hearing Association (TSHA) Convention, the 2023 Honors and Awards recipients were recognized at the Texas Speech-Language-Hearing Foundation (TSHF) annual breakfast event. This year’s recipients are an outstanding group of individuals who have volunteered their time and efforts to help TSHA, members of our professions, and the clients and families we serve.
The TSHA Public Service Award is awarded to individuals other than speech-language pathologists (SLPs) and/or audiologists in recognition of outstanding committee work or other association activity that supports the work of TSHA. In recognition of his outstanding committee work on the TSHA Financial Advisory Committee (FAC) for the past five years, this year’s award honors Brad Briscoe.
Brad is a certified accountant (CPA) and married to Valerie, a TSHA member and SLP, so he has a connection to and understanding of our professions and our association. His nominators wanted you to know that he has consistently supported the goals and ideals of TSHA through his wise and knowledgeable counsel related to financial matters of the association. Brad is a master at balancing budget and financial details with TSHA’s vision, mission, and priorities to make suggestions related to both the operating budget and the long-term investment portfolio. Brad has provided much-needed guidance to the FAC during his tenure as a public member and has done this during both prosperous and turbulent times. TSHA is stronger because of Brad’s volunteer service and generous gifting of his financial expertise to the FAC.
The TSHA Special Commendation Award is awarded to individual speech-language pathologists and/or audiologists who are members of TSHA in recognition of outstanding committee work or other association activity. This award has been presented only four times in TSHA’s history. In recognition of his outstanding committee work on the Public School Advisory Joint TSHA/TCASE Committee (PSAJC) during 2022, the fifth person to receive this award is Dalan Gore.
The first thing you should know about Dalan is that he has three master’s degrees, including an MBA, and he has dedicated so much to our association while raising three little ones at home. The Texas Health and Human Services Commission (THHSC) announced School Health and Related Services (SHARS) policy updates in October 2021. Every public school special education department participating in SHARS in the state of Texas was impacted. Dalan stepped up to be a point of contact and to serve as a liaison for the PSAJC with the two agencies, THHSC, and Texas Medicaid Health Providers (TMHP). He developed explanatory documents for posting on the TSHA website, responded to district and individual questions and concerns, and provided written directions for securing a National Provider Identifier (NPI) number and for working through glitches with the TMHP enrollment software. He also led a group of knowledgeable individuals who worked to develop and provide a hands-on webinar on “Texas Medicaid Individual Enrollment for Public School SLPs and Audiologists,” prior to the November 1, 2022, deadline. The webinar was made available to TSHA members and non-members, was very well-received, and was the most attended session in the history of online offerings by TSHA. He exhibited true leadership skills and built a rapport and working relationship with THHSC and TMHP while being persistent but diplomatic in his communications. The time he invested is remarkable. Through his efforts, he has strengthened TSHA’s coalition with the Texas Council of Administrators in Special Education (TCASE).
The TSHA Hall of Fame Award is awarded to individuals who have demonstrated exemplary commitment and contribution in serving those with communication disorders. This award honors lifetime achievements in the fields of speech-language pathology or audiology that have promoted excellence in clinical service. This year’s award honors Dr. Melinda Corwin.
One of her nominators said Dr. Corwin meets every eligible activity or achievement for the Hall of Fame Award! It would take pages to share all of her accomplishments, but here are a couple of highlights. In 1998, Melinda started a weekly meeting with a handful of stroke survivors; that program has evolved into a nonprofit organization called the Stroke/Aphasia Recovery (STAR) program with an accompanying Caregivers’ Network. Melinda has shared information about treating people with aphasia at meetings of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) and also has given presentations at international meetings in Canada, Denmark, Australia, Greece, and Ireland. She became involved with TSHA while still in graduate school. In the intervening 30-plus years, she has been a member of several task forces and committees and served as the chair of the Publications Board and a mentor for the TSHA Leadership Academy. In 2010, Melinda became a board member of the Texas Speech-Language-Foundation and subsequently was elected president of the Foundation. One of her nominators described her as a kind, thoughtful, and conscientious servant-leader whose joy in giving back to the professions is made evident regardless of the size or complexity of the task at hand.
In addition to acknowledging the accomplishments and work of these well-deserving honorees, the chair of the Honors and Awards Committee, Gina Glover, would like to mention the work of the Honors and Awards Committee members: Erin Bellue, Margarita Limón-Ordoñez, and Martha McGlothlin. The work of this committee has truly been a team effort.