SpeakUp Blog


USSAAC Leaders & Legends: Gregg Vanderheiden

Today, we honor Gregg Vanderheiden. As a graduate student, Gregg invented a speech-generating device. He played an important role in both the definition of the field of AAC and the formation of ISAAC. Gregg founded the TRACE center where he directed projects that were instrumental in accessibility features for the past 50 years.


How Does That Make You Feel? Examining Emotional Effects of AAC Usage

Meggin Nunamaker describes the Emotional Effects of using an AAC system as a person who uses AAC.


Speak Up! & AACT: Mateo Moreno on Teaching Kids about AAC

Mateo Moreno shares his experience of sharing his story as a person who uses AAC with children to raise awareness about all the ways people communicate.


SpeakUp! & AACT: Hannah Foley on AAC in Higher Education

Hannah Foley shares her personal experiences of navigating higher education as a person who uses AAC in this new SpeakUp! & AACT! post


Introducing Speak Up! and AACT: Patrick Regan

Patrick Regan advocates for the Communications, Video, and Technology Accessibility Act, currently under review by Congress


Yes, I still have behaviors but it isn’t the same as when I was little.

Mike Hipple shares his personal experiences as a person who uses AAC on how he has communicated with behaviors throughout his life.


To the Future and Beyond: Can Telepractice be an Effective Treatment Tool for People Who Use AAC?

By Meggin Nunamaker Introduction It is said, “Necessity is the mother of invention.” In this case, the global covid pandemic made “no contact” restrictions necessary, which was the catalyst for…


AAC Specialty Certification for Speech-Language Pathologists

by Meredith Gohsman, PhD CCC-SLP Introduction For speech-language pathologists (SLPs) in the United States, meeting the need of individuals who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) is one of nine…

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“I Want to Sound Like a REAL Person!”: A Woman’s Discovery of Shortcomings of AAC Devices

by Meggin Nunamaker I use AAC; I have a virtual keyboard on my laptop screen that I mouse-click letters to “type” a message. I also use a text to speech…


Physical Prompting & AAC

Most clinicians agree that having a system that does not require any prompting by an assistant or family member is the ultimate goal for an AAC system, and providing the most amount of control to the user in selecting the symbols, words, and letters in their system is paramount. However, many struggle with identifying the “right amount of support” to provide a learner when they are learning to use an AAC system. This post was inspired by questions that the USSAAC board of directors and members receive about this matter, and USSAAC offers this review of current considerations and guidance for our community.


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