New 216 License
Speech/Language
Therapist
Welcome
Ann Moore
Associate Superintendent of Education
Mississippi Department of Education
Office of Special Education
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Review of the agenda for the day
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Due to the continued, long-term
shortage of master’s level 215
licensed Speech Language
Pathologists in Mississippi, local
school districts have not been able to
recruit and employ fully qualified staff
to serve all eligible students with
speech/language disabilities.
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The Mississippi Department of
Education (MDE) has over the years
granted renewable emergency and
interim 215 licenses to ensure that
districts are able to offer language
speech services to eligible students
as required by State and Federal
regulations.
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• Each year the MDE has issued
between 125 and 175 emergency and
interim 215 licenses.
• The emergency and interim 215
license holders have no restrictions
on the scope of practice.
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• Many of the emergency and interim
215 license holders do not meet the
master’s level program enrollment
criteria, including the minimum
required GPA and/or the required
GRE score.
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• The total number of master’s level
program slots at each IHL offering
that degree is limited, and only those
candidates with the highest GPA and
GRE scores are accepted.
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In 2010, Superintendent Tom
Burnham challenged the Commission
on Teacher and Administrator
Education, Certification and Licensure
and Development (Commission), to
develop a new bachelor’s level
license that would achieve the
following:
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1. To implement a bachelor’s degree
program that would provide the clinical
skills training and practicum experience
necessary to provide articulation therapy
services by July 2013
2. To eliminate the need for Emergency and
Interim 215 licenses by July 2013
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On July 9, 2010, the Commission
approved a 5-year renewable
Standard License for the 216
Speech/Language Therapist
effective beginning July 1, 2013.
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• The request was submitted to the State
Board of Education.
• The State Board of Education gave
approval to begin the Administrative
Procedures Act (APA) process.
• The APA process provided the public a
period of time to comment on the Standard
License for the 216 Speech/Language
Therapist.
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On October 21, 2010, the State Board
of Education (Board) approved the
new 216 license for a
Speech/Language Therapist following
implementation of the Administrative
Procedures Act process. The new
216 license requires the following:
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1. a bachelor’s degree from an approved
Speech Pathology or Communicative
Disorder program;
2. passing scores on the Praxis I; and
3. limitations on the scope of practice to
include articulation therapy under the
guidance/supervision of a master’s level
215 licensed Speech/Language
Pathologist.
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A Task Force was created by agreement of
the Board and the State Superintendent of
Education. Gloria Kellum, Ph.D., was
appointed as the chair of the task force to
advise and make recommendations to the
Board and MDE. Task Force members
were selected and appointed by the State
Superintendent and by the Commissioner
of Institutions of Higher Learning.
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The Task Force identified the following
guiding principles:
1. Whether through screening, testing,
providing direct services, supervising, or
other roles and practices, speech/language
pathology services impact children and their
educational successes, and ultimately their
transition from school to work.
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2. Eliminated emergency and interim
certificates must be replaced with
aggressive and creative recruitment of
215 licensed, master’s level
speech/language pathologists and
recruitment of 216 licensed, bachelor’s
level personnel.
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After a year of intensive study and
numerous meetings and conference calls,
the Task Force report and
recommendations were submitted to the
State Board in March 2012. The State
Board and MDE will consider all
recommendations in establishing suggested
guidelines to implement the new 216
Speech/Language Therapist license by July
2013.
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• The MDE staff and State board members
have carefully vetted all recommendations
and developed specific guidelines for local
school districts.
• Guidance was presented to local school
districts during regional superintendent
training sessions.
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• Training will be provided to special
education directors on June 7, 2012.
• Additional workshops will be scheduled
this fall and next spring.
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• Bachelor’s Degree Programs for
Speech/Language Therapists. In order to
transition to the new 216 License for a
bachelor’s level Speech/Language Therapist to
provide articulation therapy services to eligible
students, the IHL bachelor’s level degree
programs will need to provide an endorsement
program of studies in speech/language that
includes 100 hours of supervised clinical
practice.
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• Current Emergency and Interim 215 License
Holders. The current Emergency and Interim
215 license holders may need some degree of
clinical skills training and/or clinical practice
(practicum experience). The experience,
training, and education of the Emergency and
Interim 215 license holder will determine the
amount of time needed for additional clinical
skills training and/or clinical practice.
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Scope of Practice for the 216
Speech/Language Therapist
• A bachelor’s level Speech/Language
Therapist (216) will be licensed to provide
articulation assessment and treatment to
eligible students.
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• Articulation therapy includes the treatment of speech
sound errors, instruction in correct sound production,
and the facilitation of production in sentences and
conversational speech.
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• The 216 Speech/Language Therapist may not
perform duties related to the assessment, diagnosis,
and treatment of more severe speech/language
problems, including voice, fluency, and language
disorders.
• The 216 Speech/Language Therapist may not serve
as the chairperson of the eligibility determination
committee.
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• The 216 Speech/Language Therapist will
work under the guidance/direction of, and
in collaboration with, a master’s-level, fullycertified Speech/Language Pathologist with a
215AA license and/or with an American
Speech-Language-Hearing Association
Certificate of Clinical Competence.
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• Additional suggested guidance is outlined in
the following documents:
• Working in Collaboration: A Mentoring Model
developed by the DeSoto County School District,
DeSoto County, MS
• Scope of Practice for the 216 License,
Speech/Language Therapist
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Scope of Practice
Emily Ballard
Coordinator of Speech, Language and Hearing
Impairment Service
DeSoto County Schools
The following suggested guidelines
have been developed to provide
overarching guidance to public school
districts in implementing the new 216
license for Speech/Language
Therapists.
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• A bachelor’s level Speech/Language
Therapist (216) will be licensed to provide
articulation assessment and treatment to
eligible students.
• Articulation Therapy – includes the treatment
of speech sound errors, instruction in correct
sound production, and the facilitation of
production in sentences and conversational
speech.
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• Students diagnosed with more severe speech
problems (voice, fluency, and language
disorders) must be served by a Speech/
Language Clinician/Pathologist, which is a
master’s-level, fully-certified Speech/Language
Pathologist with a 215AA license and/or with an
American Speech-Language-Hearing
Association Certificate of Clinical Competence.
• The maximum caseload for the 216
Speech/Language Therapist is 60 students.
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• The 216 Speech /Language Therapist will work
under the guidance/direction of, and in
collaboration with, a master’s-level, fullycertified Speech-Language Pathologist with a
215AA license and/or with an American SpeechLanguage-Hearing Association Certificate of
Clinical Competence. (See the suggested
guidance outlined in Working in Collaboration:
A Mentoring Model developed by the DeSoto
County School District.)
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• The scope of practice for the 216
Speech/Language Therapist may include the
following duties:
• Participate in Child Find activities as assigned
by the district special education director
and/or building principal.
• Conduct articulation assessments and
develop assessment reports.
• Participate in meetings, including, but not
limited to, TST, MET, IEPs, etc.
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• Participate in the development of IEPs and any
other related activities for scheduling and
conducting the IEP meeting.
• Conduct treatment of articulation deficits
following the student’s IEP (a documented
treatment plan) as assigned by the district
special education director.
• Communicate with parents/guardians, including,
but not limited to, procedural safeguards,
assessment results, eligibility requirements, and
student progress on meeting IEP goals.
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• Develop therapy schedules to implement
IEPs.
• Document therapy information such as
therapy logs, notes, and other data.
• Collaborate with school personnel as
necessary to provide the articulation therapy
services for the assigned caseload.
• Maintain confidentiality of personal student
information and educational records as
required by State and Federal regulations.
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• Perform other duties consistent with other
school instructional staff as assigned by the
director of special education and/or building
principal.
• Participate in other school-related activities
consistent with other school instructional staff
as assigned by the director of special
education and/or building principal.
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• The following are not within the scope of practice for the
216 Speech/Language Therapist:
• The 216 Speech/Language Therapist may not perform duties
related to the assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of more
severe speech/language problems, including voice, fluency, and
language disorders.
• The 216 Speech/Language Therapist may not serve as the
chairperson of the eligibility determination committee.
• The 216 Speech/Language Therapist may not represent
himself or herself as a master’s-level, fully-certified
Speech/Language Pathologist with a 215AA license and/or with
an American Speech-Language-Hearing Association Certificate
of Clinical Competence.
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Working in Collaboration
Emily Ballard
Coordinator of Speech, Language and Hearing
Impairment Service
DeSoto County Schools
By utilizing a collaborative/mentoring model,
public school districts will be able to
maximize the skills of available licensed
professionals to serve all eligible students
with disabilities. The 216 licensed
Speech/Language Therapist and the 215
licensed Speech/Language Pathologist will
work together utilizing a collaborative model
as described below.
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The 216 Speech/Language Therapist will
provide articulation therapy services
(assessment and treatment) under the
guidance/direction of, and in collaboration
with, a Speech/Language Pathologist
who is fully certified at the master’s level
(215-AA and/or ASHA-CCC).
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The 215 licensed Speech/Language
Pathologist assigned to provide
guidance/supervision will foster a
mentoring relationship with the 216
licensed Speech/Language Therapist.
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The guidance/supervision is NOT an
administrative role.
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• A continuum of direct observation,
collaboration, consultation and mentoring
will be implemented. The experience,
training, and education of the 216
Speech/Language Therapist will determine
the amount of time needed for direction
under the master’s level
Speech/Language Pathologist (215).
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• Transition to each stage is based on the mentoring
215 Speech/Language Pathologist’s observation
and judgment of the 216 Speech/Language
Therapist’s clinical performance and the 216
Speech/Language Therapist’s input and confidence
level. Likewise, if a 216 Speech/Language Therapist
is having difficulty at the collaborative or consultative
level, then the 215 Speech/Language Pathologist
may deem it necessary to step back to the previous
mentoring stage until competence is achieved.
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The mentoring 215 Speech/
Language Pathologist will provide
direct and active mentoring, modeling
and feedback on all clinical duties and
responsibilities of the 216
Speech/Language Therapist.
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• The goal of this stage is to identify the 216
Speech/Language Therapist’s
strengths/weaknesses and build on them and to
ensure that 216 Speech/Language Therapists
understand their role, job duties, and
responsibilities. The task is to give them the
support they need to perform more
independently and move into the collaborative
stage of the mentoring relationship.
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• Based on the 216 Speech/Language
Therapist’s clinical practicum experience
and/or prior work experience, the length of
this direct/active stage may vary for each
216 Speech/Language Therapist.
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The 216 Speech/Language Therapist begins to
take a more active role in clinical duties by
problem-solving, decision-making, and
evaluating clinical/job performance. Mentor and
mentee communicate/collaborate and work
together as colleagues to ensure the
professional growth of the 216
Speech/Language Therapist and that
appropriate clinical services are being provided.
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The 216 Speech/Language Therapist has
gained enough competencies and
confidence in evaluating his/her own
performance accurately. The 216
Speech/Language Therapist acts
independently, but with consultation and
feedback, when necessary, from the
mentoring 215 Speech/Language
Pathologist.
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Examples of Implementing a
Collaborative Model
Emily Ballard
Coordinator of Speech, Language and Hearing
Impairment Service
DeSoto County Schools
Articulation therapy includes the
treatment of speech sound errors,
instruction in correct sound
production, and the facilitation of
production in sentences and
conversational speech.
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Articulation Disorders are based on difficulty
learning to physically produce the intended
phonemes.
• Omissions: Certain sounds are not produced (e.g., fi' for fish)
• Additions/Commissions: An extra sound or sounds are
added to the intended word (e.g., fith for fish).
• Distortions: Sounds are changed slightly so that the intended
sound may be recognized but sound "wrong," or may not
sound like any sound in the language (e.g., lisp).
• Substitutions: One or more sounds are substituted for
another (e.g., wabbit for rabbit).
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Articulation disorders range from mild to
severe cases.
• Mild cases - speech that can be understood by
everyone but in which some sounds are slightly
mispronounced (e.g., lisp)
• Severe cases - speech is completely
incomprehensible, even to family
• Medical Articulation Disorders - have a known
anatomical, physiological, or neurological basis
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• Children who have problems creating
speech sounds may have academic
problems in subject areas such as spelling
or reading.
• The speech language therapist will also
coordinate programs and services with
general education and/or special
education service providers.
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• The 215 Speech/Language Pathologist will
serve in a mentoring, collaborative role to
direct and guide the 216 Licensed
Speech/Language Therapist.
• The role of the 215 Speech/Language
Pathologist is NOT as a supervisor or
administrator.
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• Caseloads and assignments will be made
by the Special Education Director.
• The 215 Speech/Language Pathologist
and the 216 Speech/Language Therapist
will work under the administrative
supervision of the Special Education
Director.
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• The 216 Speech/Language Therapist and the
215 Speech/Language Pathologist will work
together to review IEPs and caseloads under
the supervision of the Special Education
Director.
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The 216 Speech/Language Therapist and
the 215 Speech/Language Pathologist will
work together utilizing a collaborative model
as described below.
1. Direct/Active Stage
2. Collaborative Stage
3. Consultative Stage
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• Using the stages of the mentoring model, the
215 Speech/Language Pathologist will assist
in making recommendations to determine the
severity of the articulation cases being
considered.
• The skillset of the 216 Speech/Language
Therapist will determine the severity of the
articulation disorders to be served.
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When the 216 Speech/Language Therapist
has gained enough competencies and
confidence in evaluating his/her own
performance accurately, the 216
Speech/Language Therapist will act
independently, but with consultation and
feedback, when necessary, from the
mentoring 215 Speech/Language
Pathologist.
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• In summary, this will be an individualized
and fluid process under the continued
supervision of the Special Education
Director.
• The experience, training, and education of
the 216 Speech/Language Therapist will
determine the amount of time needed for
direction under the master’s level
Speech/Language Pathologist (215).
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