UWEC CERCA 2026

It has been argued that philosopher Alasdair MacIntyre’s concept of a practice offers a robust and valuable model for understanding how, when supported by institutions, rightly ordered work can not only produce goods effectively but also foster workers’ personal growth and flourishing. MacIntyre describes a practice as a coherent, socially cooperative human activity that aims at “internal goods” realized through the pursuit of standards of excellence specific to that kind of work. This project asks whether speech-language pathology (SLP) qualifies as a practice and, if so, what potential challenges arise in achieving its internal goods. Through a review of the literature, we examined current ethical frameworks, descriptions of practice within SLP, empirical research, and philosophical discussions through the lens of MacIntyre’s framework. Findings are presented that illustrate the ways in which the field of SLP aligns with MacIntyre’s definition of a practice, followed by theorizing about the field’s internal goods, standards of excellence, as well as the external and institutional pressures that could influence the pursuit of those goods.

Narrative language abilities are among the strongest predictors of academic achievement and social communication. Accordingly, speech-language pathologists routinely assess and treat narrative skills in ways considered best suited to help students navigate the demands of the school environment. While this approach is important and necessary, research from narrative psychology and philosophy suggests that narrative language (storytelling) serves broader purposes that extend beyond academic and social competence. The goal of this project is to gain a better understanding of school-based SLPs’ perspectives on these broader purposes, including self-authorship, meaning-making, narrative identity, moral imagination, and character development. We created a short educational video that introduces these broader purposes, along with a survey with Likert-scale questions for pre- and post-video self-reflection. SLPs were asked to evaluate their familiarity with and understanding of the expanded vision, and to offer their thoughts on whether they find this vision relevant and attainable in their work. Data collection is in progress. We expect the content to resonate positively with SLPs and their current practices, despite it being somewhat new for some. SLP input about feasibility and barriers to implementation will shape future efforts to support the broader purposes of narrative in their work.

Investigating preservice teachers’ use of behavior-specific praise in a clinical setting The purpose of this study is to examine whether the use of a visual reminder influences the rate preservice teachers use Behavior Specific Praise (BSP) in a clinical setting. Effective classroom management strategies are essential in addressing students' behavior and managing teacher burn out. Although previous BSP research has shown an increase in desirable student behaviors, limited research has been done on the use of visual reminders to specifically encourage its use with preservice teachers in a clinical setting. Using a multiple-baseline design, researchers collected data on student clinicians' (n=26) use of BSP in an interprofessional assessment clinic with school-aged clients (n=10). Baseline and intervention-phase data was collected on student clinicians during a four-hour clinical testing session. Comparisons analyzing BSP rates for pre- and post-intervention are included. Based on previous research involving tactile reminders, it is expected that the visual prompts will show an increase in the rate of BSP among preservice teachers. The anticipatory findings will work to inform education programs in providing proactive support to improve classroom management skills.

Imposter Syndrome is a phenomenon that involves persistent feelings of self-doubt towards one’s abilities despite evidence of competence. Research on imposter syndrome within the field of speech-language pathology is scarce, indicating the presence of a research gap. Previous research within other fields indicates that imposter syndrome is prevalent in environments of high stress and achievement, making the student population particularly vulnerable to experiences of imposter syndrome. The aim of this study is to better understand the awareness of imposter syndrome (IS) among Speech, Language, and Hearing Science (SLHS) students and the ways it may manifest differently in SLHS undergraduate and graduate students. To address these aims, undergraduate and graduate SLHS students at the University of Wisconsin, Eau Claire were sent a Qualtrics survey containing various questions related to imposter syndrome. The anticipated outcome of this project is to understand whether UWEC SLHS undergraduate and graduate students report feeling IS and which characteristics of IS are frequently experienced in each student population. Ultimately, this could lead to strategies to support SLHS students in developing confidence so they can better support those they serve.

The purpose of this study is to better understand childcare teachers' beliefs about multilingual language development. Understanding these beliefs is essential, as inaccurate advice or inappropriate referrals may contribute to inequities in access to speech-language pathology services for multilingual children. Researchers have found that early childhood teachers often hold false beliefs about the impact of multilingualism on language development, including the belief that learning multiple languages hinders language development or confuses children as they develop their language systems. Undergraduate researchers contacted daycare program directors via email to explain the purpose of the study and how it would be conducted. For centers that agreed to participate, researchers delivered paper surveys for teachers to complete and collected them one week later. Data were analyzed to examine the accuracy of daycare teachers’ knowledge and how factors such as previous work with multilingual children, years of experience in daycare, and level of education related to knowledge accuracy. These findings could spur action and future research aimed at increasing daycare teacher knowledge. This could improve the accuracy of information shared with parents and the appropriateness of referrals to speech-language pathologists, enhancing care for multilingual children and their families.

All individuals have the inherent right to communicate (McLeod, 2018), and every person, regardless of age, deserves the opportunity to participate in their healthcare (Ward, 2015). However, children with complex communication needs (CCN) frequently encounter barriers to effective communication in healthcare settings. Interactions between children with CCN and nurses are often compromised, resulting in frustration for both parties (Fink et al., 2008; Shilling et al., 2012). These communication breakdowns can adversely affect care, delay recovery, and prolong hospital stays (Fink et al., 2008), while also requiring parents to assume the roles of advocates and protectors (Shilling et al., 2012). Furthermore, research indicates that both nurses and speech-language pathologists (SLPs) report low confidence in their ability to support the communication needs of children with CCN. The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of a pilot interprofessional training on the confidence levels of SLP and nursing students. Graduate SLP students provided instruction to nursing students on strategies for supporting hospitalized children with CCN. Subsequently, both groups participated in simulations in which they completed mock nursing tasks while facilitating communication with a “child” with CCN. Participants completed a retrospective pre-post rating scales assessing confidence in supporting children with CCN and engaging in interdisciplinary collaboration. Results indicated increased confidence among all students, with nursing students demonstrating greater gains than SLP students.

We have seen a noticeable lack of understanding amongst undergraduate SLHS students in upper-level courses when recalling information on how speech sounds are made by mouth. We developed a game to reinforce knowledge about the articulation of speech sounds necessary for graduate school and a career as a speech-language pathologist or audiologist. To play the game, the course professor will give each student a notecard and display a prompt. Each student will identify a word that fits based on syntactic constraints. Students will identify sounds and write down the place, voice, and manner of articulation for each sound in the word. When finished, students exchange their work with another and identify the phonetic symbols for all sounds described. This game was played often throughout the 2025 Spring and Fall semesters, and the data is analyzed in the following semester. From the data analyzed for spring of 2025, students made errors in phonetic transcriptions with orthography, place, voice, manner, and the number of phonemes in the word. Through anecdotal evidence, students improved speed and accuracy of their transcriptions over time. This data indicates that the game is effective for helping students engage with knowledge about place, voice, and manner.

How are breaks during educational times beneficial to all students? Additionally, how does Universal Design for Learning benefit students' learning? This goal is important because it allows teachers to further their knowledge on what types of teaching styles and break methods benefit their students the most, in terms of retention and processing information. My project investigates previously written research from both educational and scientific backgrounds to merge these ideas together. This allows for many perspectives to be covered, which will provide new knowledge on how cognitive functions and education directly affect each other. I used data from previous research related to the impact of UDL and how breaks impact learning and retention. My project is a literature review, so for this, I found credible sources that discussed UDL and then later how breaks impacted learning. This research is important because it will help educators have an outline on how they can structure their breaks so that they benefit their students. Since this is only a literary review, the hope is to work with schools and try different types of breaks for a variety of grades, to see the overall impact.

The objective of our research is to determine the efficacy, diversity, and factors that influence intent to stay in public child welfare, specifically applied to the graduates of the Title IV-E program at the University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire (UWEC). For decades, child welfare agencies have experienced near consistent turnover rates ranging from 20-40%. We hope to use the data gathered towards improving the program at UWEC by evaluating preparedness, diversity, and retention to decrease turnover rates and increase intent to stay. Participants will be UWEC Title IV-E graduates who have been employed in the child welfare workforce for at least six months. In the study, participants (n=50) will be asked to complete portions of the Comprehensive Organizational Health Assessment (COHA) and a semi-structured interview. Examples of sections in the COHA are as follows: Peer Support, Supervision, Job Satisfaction, Intent to Stay, and Self-Care. The interview will explore burnout, secondary trauma, and compassion fatigue. We expect results that show the Title IV-E program at UWEC has better prepared social work graduates to succeed in the child welfare field. We expect that job satisfaction and supervision/peer support are major influencers on intent to stay in child welfare.

Individuals with aphasia experience changes in communication that alter identity and life outlook. The poetry modality is less constrained by rules, expresses sense of self, improving self-expression, sharing things otherwise not shared, and processing trauma and getting it out. The indirect, metaphorical language of poetry improves self-expression, partly through externalizing and distancing oneself from their writing. It leads to an increased sense of agency, new identities, sense of belonging, purpose, and a renewed sense of self. Research aim: Understanding the benefits of poetry for individuals with aphasia and CCD. 90-minute weekly sessions were delivered on Zoom to individuals with aphasia and/or cognitive-communication disorders by two graduate speech-language pathology students and a poet. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 20 poets and analyzed through reflexive thematic analysis. Themes include poetry stigma, helping others (poems help others with aphasia, others can understand ones’ experience through poetry), helping self (processing trauma; expressing feelings is healing; accomplishment; growth; new identity; confidence), power of poetry modality (metaphors helps sharing, putting feelings into words, expressing the inexpressible), and power of group (belonging, group is relief, inspired by peer poets, feeling vulnerable). Poetry is a powerful modality for identity recovery when coupled with group interactions and project-based interventions

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) results from an external force, causing impairments to social communication between loved ones. Individuals with TBI experience word-finding, poor turn-taking, disinhibition, and repetitiveness. TBIconneCT is a 10-week manualized telerehabilitation program from Australia, shown to produce significant gains in social communication behaviors. Our first aim addressed whether the delivery of the North American version of TBIconneCT via Telehealth videoconferencing improves communication awareness and confidence in the large group context. Our second aim addressed whether the program reduces negative communication behaviors and increases collaborative communication features. Participants engaged in collaborative video review in large group, discussing reactions to pre-developed, contrasting examples of effective and ineffective conversations. Large-group portions of session videos were examined qualitatively through qualitative content analysis and reflexive thematic analysis. Qualitative content analyses identified value in sharing experiences with other individuals with TBI, recognition of communication breakdowns, metacognitive discussions of repairs and preempting breakdowns, the value of peer feedback, and partners identified the value of seeing other individuals with TBI to help put their partner’s behaviors into context. Reflexive analysis indicated that large group interactions created a sense of shared experience, better recognition of communication breakdowns, increased repairs and self-regulation, and the value of peer feedback.

This study examines Core Stabilizer Endurance Normative Biological Sex and Age Ranged Data with Correlation to Non- Specific Chronic Low Back Pain. Currently, average performance times of the McGill core stabilizer tests compare all ages with the appropriate biological sex. The primary purpose of this study is to create biological sex and age range normative tables for McGill core stabilizer endurance tests. The secondary purpose of our study is to compare normative values to the prevalence of non-specific chronic low back pain. Creating these tables is essential to educate adults on their results as higher endurance times have led to improved activity of daily living performance activity (Santos et al., 2019). Prior to testing, a brief health history questionnaire is completed to ensure eligibility and complete the secondary purpose. Testing will include a familiarization period followed by maximum effort testing of the four McGill core positions. After testing the participants receive their results compared to the current average times. This study aims to prove the importance of improving core stabilizer muscle endurance and the role active lifestyles play in a wide range of populations with different demographics. These demographics include sex, activity levels, and health status.

Metabolic dysfunction is associated with excess adipose tissue, and interventions that improve body composition may mitigate related health consequences. Acute nutritional and exercise strategies have the potential to shift metabolic processes toward those favoring fat oxidation. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of high-intensity resistance training (HIRT) and pre-exercise protein (PRO) ingestion on post-exercise respiratory exchange ratio (RER) in lean (LN) and overweight (OW) females. METHODS: Twenty recreationally active females (LN: n =10, body fat percentage: 22.6 ± 4.0; OW: n = 10, body fat percentage: 30.8 ± 3.2) completed two experimental sessions, consisting of HIRT and two acute nutritional interventions: PRO and placebo (PLA). RER was analyzed via indirect calorimetry (TrueOne 2400, Parvo Medics Inc., Sandy, UT) at the following timepoints: baseline (BASE), immediately-post (IP), 30-min (30), and 60-min (60) post-HIRT. A 2 x 2 x 4 mixed-factor, repeated measures analysis of variance was used to assess statistical significance on 5-minute averaged RER values. RESULTS: Data are presented as means ± SD. LN and OW females displayed significantly lower 30-RER (LN: 0.75 ± 0.04, OW: 0.74 ± 0.06) and 60-RER (LN: 0.76 ± 0.04, OW: 0.73 ± 0.06) post-HIRT when compared to BASE. PRO ingestion resulted in significantly lower RER values in OW females IP-HIRT (PRO: 0.74 ± 0.05, PLA: 0.78 ± 0.08; p = 0.02), and lower RER values in LN females at all timepoints post-HIRT (all p < 0.05), compared to PLA. CONCLUSION: These results show that HIRT effectively reduces RER in LN and OW females for 60 min post-exercise, and that the addition of PRO ingestion prior to HIRT provides a synergistic effect. However, the differential responses between LN and OW females highlight the need for further research to optimize protein dosing and explore the underlying hormonal and physiological mechanisms.

Burnout is one of the most frequently cited reasons teachers leave the profession, with early-career educators demonstrating heightened vulnerability. This study examined the prevalence and characteristics of burnout among physical education teachers within their first ten years of teaching in Wisconsin, with an emphasis on understanding why burnout emerges early in the profession. A quantitative, cross-sectional design was employed, and an online survey was distributed via Qualtrics. Burnout was measured using the Maslach Burnout Inventory-Educators Survey (MBI-ES), a validated instrument assessing three dimensions of burnout: Emotional Exhaustion, Depersonalization, and Personal Accomplishment. Participants also responded to open-ended questions to provide additional insight to their experiences. Findings revealed that Emotional Exhaustion was the most prominent dimension of burnout, with respondents reporting persistent fatigue and emotional strain throughout the school week. No significant elevations were observed in Depersonalization or reduced Personal Achievement. Qualitative responses identified workload, limited preparation time, scheduling demands, compensation concerns, and insufficient administrative support as primary contributors to burnout. Overall, results suggest that structural and organizational factors play a central role in the development of burnout among early-career physical education teachers.

This creative research project documents the design, implementation, and preliminary assessment of Emotion in Motion, a ten-week curriculum designed to implement physical activity that aligns with SHAPE national standards with core SEL principles using the Zones of Regulation Framework and Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL). This project was implemented at the Boys and Girls Club of the Chippewa Valley with youth aged 7-11 to explore how movement-based activity can foster emotional regulation in youth outside of a school setting.This project was created to bridge the gap in current research of SEL integration outside of schools as well as create a practical curriculum model that can be implemented anywhere that demonstrates alignment with SHAPE national standards focused on increasing emotional regulation skills in youth in a unique way.Implementation included backwards design, breaking down core CASEL components into bi-weekly units and daily SEL goals. Movement-based activities were then developed based on the SEL goal and designed to align with SHAPE standards. Pre- and post-emotional regulation and emotional lability were scored for participants using the Emotional Regulation Checklist (ERC).This project creates a replicable curriculum that is practical for youth-serving organizations looking to implement social and emotional skills into movement-based programming.

Our project examines how students navigate forming social connections during their first year of college. According to Liu et al. (2025), social connectedness is multidimensional and influenced by students’ perceptions of their relationships, the actions they take to engage with others, and the emotions associated with belonging and inclusion. We chose to focus on this topic because prior research demonstrates links between social connectedness, academic performance, and mental health.We developed a semi-structured interview and selected two pre-existing measures to explore social connectedness. The interview includes questions about respondents’ high school expectations regarding making connections in college compared to what actually occurred, as well as questions about the actions they took to build social networks. The Fear of Missing Out (FoMO) and R-UCLA Loneliness scales will be used to examine respondents’ emotions related to connectedness. Respondents have been identified using purposive sampling (all UWEC first-year students), and our goal is to meet with twelve participants.Once data collection is complete, we will conduct a thematic analysis of the interview responses and use descriptive statistics to analyze the FoMO and loneliness data. Our goal for this project is to better understand how UWEC students form social connections during their first year of college.

The broader topic in this research is the untrust in current and past sources within major sports teams, with a focus on how this untrust affects the game, culture, and how it’s played. What we intend to achieve with this research is a better understanding of how insiders in the major sports leagues can cause a shift in culture. The method we are using to conduct the research is qualitative case study. With the case, we are focusing on the recent trade rumors of Giannis Antetokounmpo before the NBA deadline. This study is expected to show a negative relationship between an NBA insider’s trade rumor and the team’s fans, culture, and morale. It matters politically, because we are seeing more news sources stretching truths in today’s society. This leads to untrust and misinformation in communities across the United States.

This research project will look at the impact of the performance by Jesse Owens at the 1936 Berlin Olympics and how his performance challenged the Nazi belief in their superiority over other races. This will be done by starting with an overview of the life of Jesse Owens and his background and achievements before he went to the Olympics to compete. This will include his winning four gold medals. The discussion will then move to the setting of the 1936 Olympics, which was held in Nazi Germany and was a form of propaganda for the Nazi belief in the superiority of the Aryan race. This will be done by analyzing the performance of Jesse Owens and how it challenged the beliefs of the Nazis. The discussion will also examine Jesse Owens's response to the performance and its impact on the world, including on Adolf Hitler. This topic is relevant because it shows the relationship that often occurs between sports and politics and how one athlete’s performance may have global implications. This research also has implications for contemporary discussions around race, equality, and athletes’ social change capabilities. My research question is: How did Jesse Owens’ success at the 1936 Olympics counter the Nazi ideology of racial supremacy?

Rural communities may experience barriers to healthcare access, such as provider shortages, long travel distances, and challenges with technology or internet connections, which have a negative effect on overall patient outcomes. The purpose of this project was to examine patient perspectives on rural healthcare access in the Eau Claire region. Older adults living in rural communities around Eau Claire were interviewed about their perspectives and experiences in accessing healthcare services. These interviews included questions related to telehealth and artificial intelligence, as these have emerged as potential solutions for addressing healthcare needs in rural communities. The participants’ responses were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. Themes, categories, and exemplars from the participant interviews will be presented.

Previous studies have indicated a gap in healthcare access between urban and rural environments, primarily associated with travel distances and relative availability of providers. Technological solutions, such as telehealth, have been proposed as a way to close the access gap, but it is unclear whether telehealth and other technologies are having a sufficient impact. The purpose of this project was to examine providers’ perceptions of rural healthcare access in communities near Eau Claire, and particularly how technology plays a role in rural healthcare. Healthcare providers from the region completed an anonymous survey to share their experiences and perceptions. The participants’ responses were analyzed using qualitative content analysis and themes, categories, and exemplars will be presented.

Individuals living in rural communities may face challenges in accessing healthcare services related to internet availability, provider options, and travel distances to healthcare facilities. Telehealth, virtual healthcare, and other technology-driven options have emerged, but may not fully address the needs of rural communities. The purpose of this study is to compare perceptions of healthcare providers to perceptions of patients, particularly related to the value and effectiveness of technological solutions to healthcare access. Surveys of rural healthcare providers and interviews with rural older adults who access healthcare were gathered. Both groups responded to similar questions related to access, as well as the use of technology, telehealth, and artificial intelligence in healthcare settings. Comparisons between the perceptions of providers and patients will be presented.