91PORN

The department shares the mission, vision, and values embraced by UT at San Antonio Health Science Center and the School of Health Professions.

University of Texas at San Antonio Health Science Center

The University's mission is to improve lives through excellence in education, research, commercialization, community health care, and healthcare policy advocacy. Strategies for achieving this mission include cultivating a new generation of excellent healthcare providers and scientists, conducting top-notch research, making discoveries available to the public, actively engaging in community healthcare service, and advocating for healthcare policy.

School of Health Professions

The School of Health Professions’ mission is to provide an excellent education to nurture future health professionals and leaders and advance the science and practice of the health professions. The main goal is to be a world-renowned school with top-ranked programs in the United States.

Speech-Language Pathology Program

As an integral part of the University and School, the Master of Science in Speech-Language Pathology (MS-SLP) program aims to enhance lives through education, research, community healthcare, and healthcare policy advocacy.

Mission 

The mission of the MS-SLP Program is to provide graduates with a broad knowledge base, expertise in evidence-based approaches, and real-world problem-solving experiences (particularly in healthcare settings). We will achieve this mission through excellent education, scholarship, patient-centered care, and community partnership.

The MS-SLP Program will do this through:

• Educating a diverse student body to become excellent speech-language pathologists;
• Providing graduates with a broad knowledge base, expertise in evidence-based approaches, and real-world problem-solving (particularly in health care settings) experiences; 
• Advancing the science and practice of speech-language pathology through research and scholarship, commercialization, and healthcare policy advocacy;
• Ensuring that our students, graduates, and faculty provide outstanding speech-language pathology services to our patients and community; and,
• Cultivating leadership for the speech-language pathology profession through professional service, community engagement, and community education.
• Promoting best patient care practice through developing and improving institutional and professional policies in healthcare.

Vision 

Our vision is for the MS-SLP Program to be recognized as an outstanding training and education program that prepares excellent speech-language pathologists to practice in any setting, with additional training and a focus on medical speech-language pathology.

Program Goals

We aim to train and educate speech-language pathologists who are exceptional critical thinkers and research-driven clinicians, incorporating best practices to deliver high-quality, cost-effective, and accessible speech-language pathology services.  We also strive to prepare leaders in speech-language pathology who can make meaningful contributions to their profession and the communities they serve.  

Goal 1: Excellence in Education.
The speech-language pathology program will demonstrate excellence in training and educating future speech-language pathologists in the healthcare field.

Goal 2: Excellence in Research and Scholarship.
The program will contribute to the discipline by discovering and disseminating new knowledge, skills, and tools in the field of communication sciences and disorders.  

Goal 3: Excellence in Patient Care Through Professional Service and Community Engagement.
The program will ensure high-quality clinical services to patients and communities in San Antonio and South Texas. The program will make essential contributions to professional service and community engagement.

Goal 4: Advocacy for Best Practices in Patient Care through Thoughtful Health Care Policy Making.
The program will advocate for and contribute to policy development that enhances patient care in communication and swallowing services.

Executive Summary: Strategic Plan 2022-2027 

Goal 1: Excellence in Education.

Strategy 1. Recruit highly qualified faculty who have respectable educational credentials, areas of expertise, and professional experience to provide students with excellent academic and clinical education.  

Strategy 2. Refine the current curriculum to prepare students to be exceptional critical thinkers and research-driven clinicians using the best practices.

Strategy 3. Provide students with appropriate clinical training in a wide range of community-based practica in preparation for future work as speech-language pathologists in diverse clinical settings.

Goal 2: Excellence in Research and Scholarship.

Strategy 1. Provide a supportive environment for faculty and students’ scientific inquiry and scholarship. 

Strategy 2. Encourage research opportunities between faculty and students for the scholarship.

Goals 3: Excellence in Patient Care Through Professional Service and Community Engagement.

Strategy 1. Increase faculty practice through 91PORN affiliations.

Strategy 2. Pursue and expand community engagement opportunities. 

Goal 4: Advocacy for Best Practices in Patient Care Through Thoughtful Health Care Policy Making.

Strategy 1. Participate in internal or external activities that advance health care policy or practices.