ACADEMICS
Alumni to the Rescue
Students not only complete practicums but gain new skills during the pandemic.
by Sally Parker
Two sides of the screen: Mary Lugo '15, '17G聽(above) volunteered to help Anani Serbeniuk '18, '20G聽(below) complete her practicum remotely after the COVID-19 pandemic caused student-staffed clinics to close in March.
Anani Serbeniuk 鈥18, 鈥20G, was in the middle of a rewarding practicum as a speech-language pathology graduate student in March when the bottom fell out.
She was working with geriatric clients in Nazareth鈥檚 Neurogenic Communication and Cognition Clinic, honing skills in treating disorders that were new to her. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the clinic closed abruptly.
That was a two-way loss. 鈥淎s a clinician, it鈥檚 about the relationships you build and what you get from the individual, not just what they get from you,鈥 Serbeniuk says. 鈥淎ll of a sudden that鈥檚 ripped out of your hands. Not having that closure with them was the most upsetting.鈥
The pandemic bumped 43 graduate students out of practicums, throwing graduation into question. Students must earn 400 clinical hours 鈥 many of those in the final spring and summer 鈥 to finish the program.
鈥淚 was honestly really stressed,鈥 Serbeniuk recalls. 鈥淲e didn鈥檛 know how we were going to complete those hours. If you don鈥檛 complete them, of course you can鈥檛 graduate.鈥
The department was fast to react, moving classes and simulation experiences online and emailing alumni around the country to ask for help providing practicum alternatives using online video platforms.
Eighteen alumni answered the call. There were challenges in the new modality: lack of familiarity with the technology, varying levels of client access, interruptions in service. But the biggest obstacle 鈥 adjusting in-person therapy models to distance applications 鈥 opened doors to new approaches.
鈥淚鈥檓 a very in-the-moment, play-based, experiential therapist,鈥 says Brittany Hughes 鈥14, 鈥16G, whose work on language and speech skills with deaf and hard of hearing students at the River School in Washington, D.C., went virtual in March. Keeping children engaged online requires a bag of tricks. Fortunately, Hughes鈥 intern, Lauren Vigue 鈥19, 鈥19G, was a natural planner who mined the internet for online games, books, and activities for themed lessons every week.
Amanda Wright 鈥17G was working as a speech therapist in a South Carolina nursing facility when she supervised Sarah Lenoir 鈥20G. Overseeing Lenoir as she helped geriatric patients with eating and swallowing was difficult over Zoom, but the pair made it work. Some of Lenoir鈥檚 other patients worked on cognitive skills and looked forward to the sessions.
鈥淭hey did so well with it. I just put Sarah [on the laptop] on the table in front of them and they worked with her [via video conference],鈥 Wright says.
Mary Lugo 鈥15, 鈥17G, a bilingual speech pathologist in the Rochester City School District, worked over Zoom with Serbeniuk primarily with the parents of Spanish-speaking children under 3 at Rochester Hearing & Speech Center.
Doing therapy with children this young isn鈥檛 feasible on video calls because of their shorter attention span. So Lugo and Serbeniuk coached their parents instead, walking them through strategies to stimulate language at home. The results were eye-opening.
鈥淚f we were just going into the day care centers, that wouldn鈥檛 happen,鈥 Serbeniuk says. 鈥淭hat was the best thing 鈥 to work so closely with those families and educate them on their important role in language development.鈥
Participants say Nazareth prepared them to pivot quickly under intense pressure. They discovered humor, collaboration, and a willingness to play with new ideas.
鈥淭he higher level of thinking they forced us to do 鈥 when it came time to do it in the real world, I could pull on my experience from that,鈥 Hughes says.
鈥淚 was really happy that I did it,鈥 Lugo adds. 鈥淚鈥檓 glad I listened to the email.鈥
Sally Parker is a Rochester-based freelance writer.
