Meet Kacie Wittke, M.A., CCC-SLP, an Associate Clinical Professor in the Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences (SLHS) Department!
Originally earning a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Brandeis University, Kacie always knew that she wanted to work with children in her future career. Following her graduation from Brandeis, Kacie planned to go into a PhD program in psychology. However, she decided to take a year off instead to teach preschool, which would ultimately become the catalyst for her journey to becoming a speech-language pathologist (SLP). Kacie was introduced to the field of speech-language pathology when one of her students received services from an SLP. She realized that she liked the specialist role that SLPs played and that she wanted to pursue a hands-on clinical job that was more specialized. Once she decided to pursue a career in speech-language pathology, Kacie returned to her home state of Connecticut and enrolled in the University of Connecticut’s (UConn) three-year program to fulfill SLHS prerequisites and then complete her master’s degree.
After earning her Master of Arts in Speech-Language Pathology from UConn, Kacie worked at Connecticut Children’s Medical Center for four years, playing a role in the hospital’s autism assessment program and providing intervention to infants and children with speech, language, and swallowing disorders. In 2018, Kacie returned to UConn’s SLHS department as a clinical faculty member. As an Associate Clinical Professor, Kacie mentors graduate students and treats patients in the UConn Speech and Hearing Clinic (UCSHC), where her clinical focus is on providing high-quality assessment and treatment services for children with complex speech and language needs. Her particular interest in working with patients with neurodevelopmental disabilities started during a year-long graduate assistantship in the Connecticut Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (CT LEND), in which she gained extra training in working with neurodivergent populations and their families.
Kacie shares that her favorite part of her job is being a teacher to both graduate students and her patients. She loves being an SLP, and she wants to impart that enthusiasm on her students because it also benefits her patients! She also states that, for her, there is nothing more exciting than starting the therapeutic process with a patient who is minimally verbal and helping them find a way to express themselves.
A fun fact about Kacie is that she was an all-state basketball player in high school, and she continues to play in an adult basketball league in her hometown!
