Communication Disorders

Contact the department

Dr. Anne Balant, Chair

Department of Communication Disorders
Humanities Building (HUM), Room 8D
1 Hawk Drive
New Paltz, NY 12561-2440
[email protected]
Department phone: 845-257-3620
Fax: 845-257-3605

Equity and Inclusion Statement

We, the faculty and staff of the SUNY New Paltz Communication Disorders department, support and stand by the Black Lives Matter movement. Our students who are Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) are an integral part of our program. We acknowledge our students’ experiences of racism and bias and their frustration with persistent, institutionalized inequality. We recognize that we need to do better to address bias in the present and the future.

We want our department to be a community rooted in inclusivity and equity. The helping professions of speech-language pathology and audiology are dedicated to the inclusion of marginalized people and to lifting up the voices of those who are less likely to be heard. SUNY New Paltz and our larger professional organizations, The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and the Council of Academic Programs in Communication Disorders, have expressed their statements of solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement.

Systemic change to eradicate embedded racism will take time, and we are committed to taking the time to do the necessary work. We are committed to these steps:

• Seek out, hear, and reflect upon the experiences of our BIPOC students and BIPOC LGBTQ+ students;
• Participate in campus-wide anti-racism initiatives;
• Explore our own explicit and implicit biases and their influence on instruction and the department;
• Revise existing programs to ensure inclusivity for the benefit of our CMD students, clients, and families, based on this essential work.

We accept the changes called for by the Black Lives Matter movement and by SUNY New Paltz. Together, we are a powerful force for improving the lives of everyone in our community.

Communication Disorders students are encouraged to share their experience and make suggestions regarding equity and inclusion in the department by utilizing our secure suggestion box, located on the wall outside the department office door, or by submitting a response using the QR code below, or at Communication Disorders Equity Suggestions. All submissions are anonymous and will be read and discussed by the Communication Disorders faculty and staff. Suggestions and messages will be acted upon in accordance with college policies and here in the department we will endeavor to prevent further occurrences and/or to make amends.

 For information regarding SUNY and New Paltz campus-wide diversity and inclusion initiatives, please visit In This Together.