About Us

Haya Berman Hakim, President

Haya Berman Hakim

Haya Berman Hakim has clinical and teaching background in schools, clinics, colleges, and private practice.

Haya has specialized accent modification training from Arthur Compton in Pronouncing English As A Second Language and from the late Sam Chwat in Accent Elimination for Speech Pathologists.  She also works as a speech-language pathologist in Montgomery County Public Schools, Maryland.

Despite her foreign-sounding name, Haya is a native of Chicago, Illinois.

Clinical Experience

Montgomery County Public Schools, Maryland.  Works as a speech-language pathologist in Montgomery County Public Schools.   Worked formerly in District of Columbia Public Schools.

Speech Improvement Group, Chevy Chase, Maryland.  President/clinician in private practice, specializing in accent reduction and stuttering therapy.

University of Maryland, College Park.  Adjunct faculty.

St. John’s Community Services, Washington, DC.  Worked in this non-profit organization as a speech-language pathologist in special programs for severely-handicapped children at public schools and Head Start programs in Washington, DC.

Education

  • Master of Arts, Speech-Language Pathology, University of Maryland, College Park
  • Master of Science, Mathematics, University of Virginia, Charlottesville
  • Bachelor of Arts, Mathematics, University of Chicago

Courses Taught
(University of Maryland, Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences)

  • HESP 202: Introduction to Hearing and Speech Sciences
  • HESP 403: Introduction to Phonetic Science

Certifications

  • American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA)
    Certificate of Clinical Competence, Speech-Language Pathology
  • Maryland State License in Speech-Language Pathology

Gabriele S. Nicolet, Speech-Language Pathologist

Gabriele Nicolet

Gabriele Nicolet has worked as a clinician in a variety of settings including schools and private practice.

Gabriele has specialized training in PROMPT (Prompts to Restructure Oral Muscular Targets), PECS (Picture Exchange Communication System), and Arthur Compton’s Pronouncing English As A Second Language.

Despite her foreign-sounding name, Gabriele is a native of Connecticut.

Clinical Experience

Center for Outreach in Education, The Ivymount School, Rockville, Maryland. Performs on-site evaluations of preschool students and provides training to teachers, administrators, and parents.

Affiliated Program for Therapy, Testing and Tutoring at the Ivymount School, Rockville, Maryland. Administers speech and language evaluation and treatment to clients with a variety of needs.

The Ivymount School, Rockville, Maryland. Treated and evaluated children with a variety of developmental disabilities, including autism, cerebral palsy, mental retardation, and Down Syndrome.

Education

  • Master of Arts, Speech-Language Pathology, University of Maryland, College Park
  • Bachelor of Science, French Language, Georgetown University

Certifications

Maria V. Dixon, Speech-Language Pathologist

Maria Dixon has over ten years of clinical and teaching background, including in schools, university clinics and private practice.  She has experience and expertise evaluating and treating adults and children with a variety of speech and language issues.  Maria is a faculty member and speech-language pathologist in the Hearing and Speech Sciences Department at the University of Maryland at College Park.

Clinical Experience

Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences, University of Maryland, College Park. Clinical Faculty. Instructs and supervises graduate students in clinical practicum in master’s degree program providing therapy and diagnostic services for preschool-aged children to adult clients within a variety of speech and language areas, including articulation and phonology, accent modification, autism, fluency (stuttering) and reading disability.  Teaches courses and lectures in undergraduate and graduate courses.

Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences Department, Purdue University, Purdue, Indiana.  Clinical Assistant Professor.  Instructed and supervised graduate students in clinical practicum in master’s degree program.  Lecturer in undergraduate and graduate clinical courses.

Indiana First Steps, Tippecanoe County, Indiana.  Early Interventionist, Speech-Language Pathology.  Provided home based oral-motor and speech-language intervention for children, birth to age three.  Provided bilingual services in English and Spanish.

The Lab School of Washington, Washington, D.C.  Speech-Language Pathologist.  Provided therapy and diagnostic services in articulation, language, fluency and phonology to learning disabled students through an arts based curriculum.

Education

  • Master of Arts, Speech-Language Pathology, University of Maryland, College Park
  • Bachelor of Arts, Economics, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

Courses Taught
(University of Maryland, Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences)

  • HESP 639G: Counseling in Communicative Disorders

Selected Continuing Education

  • “Accent Elimination for Speech Pathologists,” Sam Chwat, M.S., CCC-SLP.  (2008), Arlington, Virginia
  • “Recognizing and Treating Children’s Social Skills Deficits: How to Facilitate Communicative Competence,” Diane Yapko, M.A. (2006), Nashville, Indiana
  • “Treatment & Management Decisions for Autistic Spectrum Disorders,” Gail Richard, Ph.D. & Scott Tomchek, M.S., OTR/L. (2003), Indianapolis, Indiana
  • “Diagnosis and Treatment of Children Who Stutter: Practical Strategies.” Stuttering Foundation of America: Eastern Workshop. (2003), Boston, Massachusetts

Certifications