Mindy McNeely
Mindy is a licensed and certified Speech-Language Pathologist in the states of Missouri, Kansas, and California. She attended the University of Central Missouri, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Speech Pathology (May 2001) and a Master of Science degree in Speech Pathology and Audiology (December 2002). She has held her Certificate of Clinical Competence (CCC-SLP) through the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) since 2003. She also recently completed coursework to obtain certification as an Autism Spectrum Disorder Clinical Specialist (ASDCS).
For the first decade of her career, Mindy focused on providing early intervention services for the birth-three population before moving on to preschool and school-aged children. She has provided services in a variety of environments including homes, daycares, public schools, private schools, and private clinics. She has extensive experience with a variety of speech and language disorders including, but not limited to: apraxia, autism, phonological disorders, speech sound disorders, receptive and/or expressive language disorders, Down syndrome, hard of hearing, neurological/genetic disorders, fluency disorders, traumatic brain injury, feeding difficulties, and medically fragile children. Mindy prioritizes neurodiversity-affirming intervention approaches to ensure each child is able to work toward their highest potential, being sure to recognize both individual and family needs for optimal results and carryover of skills.
Mindy currently resides in Kansas City, Missouri. When she is not spending time with her nephews, she enjoys live music, reading, movies, and traveling. Having visited nine countries so far, it is her dream to see and experience as much of the world as possible.
Mindy can be reached at mindy@communicationstationkc.com
Favorite children’s book: Hooway for Wodney Wat ~Written by Helen Lester
Favorite play based therapy activity: I'm a fan of any and all pretend play, literally anything that grows the imagination and allows the child to thrive in and share their areas of interests. However, I absolutely love bubbles, they are messy, fascinating, and so versatile!
Best moment as a clinician: I think my favorite is when a mother graciously thanked me, with tears in her eyes, for now having to enforce 'quiet time' at home.
Funniest moment as a clinician: After 20+ years there are too many to count, though a recent favorite was a little guy that was so excited for the warmer weather because his mom let him wear his, "short sleeve pants."
Why did you become a speech-language pathologist? When I was a teenager, my mom and I watched the movie, "The Miracle Worker," which portrays Anne Sullivan teaching a young Helen Keller how to learn and communicate, when most all of the people in her life had given up hope. Anne Sullivan saw the potential in Helen Keller, though she was deaf, blind, and mute, and worked through Helen's frustrations and behaviors to prove difficulty with communication did not equate to inability to learn...and of course, Helen went on to prove to the entire world just how intelligent she was. It was then I knew I wanted to work with children to help them not only learn from their environment, but to also effectively communicate their incredible thoughts through whatever means necessary to confidently interact with others.
