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Bonnie Soman, M.S. ’75, Au.D. ’95, served as the department’s clinical director for 22 years before retiring in May 2014.

Eight adults afflicted with language impairment sit in a room at the and identify music from TV shows of a bygone era: The Brady Bunch, Gilligan鈥檚 Island and I Love Lucy. It鈥檚 a form of reminiscence therapy designed to test patients鈥� recognition and improve their speech and communication.

Similar exercises occur during one-hour sessions in the fall, spring and summer while the patients鈥� family members meet in another room to share experiences as part of decades-long effort to serve the community through on the campus and Brooklyn’s Adelphi Academy campus.

鈥淏y coming to these meetings, we鈥檝e learned that we鈥檙e not the only ones dealing with this,鈥� said Tom Leibowitz of Glendale, New York, a support group member whose wife Barbara attends aphasia sessions. 鈥淲e meet other people who are going through the same thing and exchange ideas.鈥�

Student clinicians Karen Andersen, Jessica Milano, Alison Stogel and Linda Sulaiman, master鈥檚 degree candidates in the , ran the weekly summer sessions in Garden City under the supervision of Bonnie Soman, M.S. 鈥�75, Au.D. 鈥�95. Dr. Soman was the department鈥檚 clinical director for 22 years before retiring in May. She鈥檚 now a clinical supervisor in the department.

The aphasia group has three goals, Dr. Soman said:

(1)听听 听Therapeutic鈥攖o improve the participants鈥� communication abilities.
(2)听听听 Support鈥攖o allow participants to share experiences.
(3)听听听 Social鈥攖o provide a relaxed and accepting venue to interact with others.

Individual therapy is also available in the aphasia program, which provides invaluable clinical experience for students.

鈥淭he program is very hands-on, and I like that,鈥� said Sulaiman, an international student from . 鈥淚t鈥檚 great to see the difference in the patients from the beginning of the program to the end鈥攆rom being shy and withdrawn to being expressive. It shows how the therapy really makes a difference.

Sandy Slattery, an aphasia patient from Franklin Square, New York, echoes that sentiment. 鈥淚 was scared when I first came here because I didn鈥檛 know what to expect,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ut this program has turned everything around for me.鈥�

Slattery鈥檚 husband, Tom, who attends support group meetings, said, 鈥淲e tell everybody about the Adelphi program because it鈥檚 been such a positive experience.鈥�