MDE – Specialty Track

Students in the Specialty Track for Pediatric Hearing Loss

The purpose of the service obligation is to provide our students with the opportunity to gain an enhanced understanding of the challenges facing children with hearing loss and their families. Specifically, we want our students to have opportunities that allow them to interact with children who have normal hearing and hearing loss in ways that will demonstrate typical and atypical social-emotional, cognitive, adaptive, motor, and communication development. In addition, we encourage opportunities for our students to observe and participate in family-child interactions.

Service obligations require a minimum of 100 hours during the first year of enrollment. At least half of the hours should involve direct child contact. Students may not discontinue a volunteer placement until the end of a semester even if the minimum number of hours has been obtained. Each semester, the placement and schedule will be arranged by the volunteer coordinator. Students may not arrange their own placements. Once class and clinical schedules have been received, students will contact the volunteer coordinator, Dr. Dana Kan, to arrange their service opportunity.

Potential service placements include, but are not limited to:

• Mama Lere Hearing School
• Neonatal Intensive Care Unit – Newborn Infant Hearing Screenings
• Bill Wilkerson Center Research Laboratories
• Bridges Tutoring Program
• TN Deaf-Blind Project
• Community Events

For more information, contact:

Lynn Hayes, EdD
lynn.hayes@vumc.org