Jessica Chizen, M.S., CCC-SLP, is now a graduate of the Apraxia Kids Intensive Training Institute (Apraxia Boot Camp) and is considered Recognized by Apraxia Kids for Advanced Training and Expertise in Childhood Apraxia of Speech.

Jessica Chizen, a Bay Area native, is a California state licensed and nationally certified speech-language pathologist, providing speech therapy services to children for over a decade. She received her Bachelor of Arts from Washington University in St. Louis with an interdisciplinary major in Philosophy-Neuroscience-Psychology and minors in Speech & Hearing Sciences and Children’s Studies. She continued to complete her Master of Science in Speech Language Pathology from Boston University. Jessica is proficient in Spanish and incorporates baby sign language in her speech therapy.

Jessica offers services in San Francisco.
Check out Jessica’s Apraxia Kids SLP Directory Listing to learn more.

Apraxia Kids: What are the top 3 things you learned from this training experience?

Jessica:I mostly learned that even expert SLPs in our field sometimes don’t agree and we don’t know everything there is to know about apraxia yet! That is a little overwhelming but also validating that we’re all on this journey to learn more together 🙂
I also learned how best to do a thorough evaluation for CAS, rather than simply relying on one test like the DEMSS. Through working on my case study, I learned how to better implement ReST, a treatment protocol I had experimented with previously, but not worked through in full.

Apraxia Kids: How did the boot camp experience change or expand your network of colleagues/friends?

Jessica: The boot camp experience gave me a community of individuals who are passionate about CAS to collaborate with! I LOVE our WhatsApp group chat where we can ask each other questions and help each other with challenging cases. These individuals are all over the country (even, world!) and I most likely would not have met these individuals otherwise.

Apraxia Kids: Describe how you have implemented the knowledge you gained at boot camp.

Jessica: I have been working with many patients in my medical setting and clients in my private practice who either have concerns of CAS or have already been diagnosed with CAS. I have implemented skills learned in both areas of assessment and treatment. I have also been better educating parents about CAS and feeling more confident during my discussions with caregivers.

Apraxia Kids: What is an example of how you have been able to (or plan to) use your expertise as a local resource/support for other professionals and/or families since attending the intensive training?

Jessica: I had the opportunity to present to my SLP colleagues at Stanford Medicine Children’s Health about current evaluation and treatment recommendations for patients with CAS. I developed a protocol to better support our large community by providing episodic care treatment programs for these patients with CAS.

Apraxia Kids: What would you say to someone considering applying to boot camp next round?

Jessica: I would tell them to definitely apply! The week at bootcamp was incredibly valuable and gave me a resurgence of passion for the SLP field. It was completely applicable to my current clients/patients, and I could take valuable strategies to my speech therapy sessions the following week back at home. The case study seems daunting at first but then it feels accomplishing and worth it to solidify your knowledge.