Cassidy Seipt ‘27SLP listened closely as parents shared small but meaningful milestones about their children who are diagnosed with childhood apraxia of speech (CAS).
It put into perspective for her how much effort, patience, and advocacy go into supporting a child with CAS, and how meaningful progress can be even when it looks different than expected.
“From this experience, I learned how strong and connected the apraxia community is. It reinforced that communication is not just about speech, but about connection, confidence, and being understood,” said Seipt, who was volunteering for the event for the first time. “Seeing the support among families, clinicians, and advocates made the impact of speech-language intervention feel very real and personal.”
Seipt was part of the Drexel University Speech-Language Pathology (SLP) team that participated in the 2025 Walk for Apraxia Team Challenge to help raise awareness of childhood apraxia of speech, a motor speech disorder that affects a child’s ability to plan and coordinate the movements necessary for speech, leading to difficulties in producing clear and intelligible speech.
The walk included 58 university teams from across the country and raised more than $13,100 in donations to support the mission of Apraxia Kids, a nonprofit that strengthens the support systems in the lives of children with apraxia of speech.
“Participating in the annual Walk for Apraxia is honestly such an inspiring experience as we come together to support kids facing the challenges of childhood apraxia of speech,” said Trish Mayro, MA, CCC-SLP, assistant professor in the SLP department. Master of Science students in the Elkins Park, Pennsylvania-based SLP students supported the event by staffing the registration table, setting up and playing lawn games with the children, providing face painting, and distributing snacks.
The Drexel SLP team earned a third-place finish in fundraising, trailing only Temple University’s Castle Team New York University’s Motor Speech Team.
“I want to congratulate the faculty, staff, and students of the SLP department for supporting our community with fundraising and increasing awareness with the 2025 Walk of Apraxia University Team Challenge,” said Robert Serianni, MS, CCC-SLP, FNAP, chair and program director of the SLP department at Drexel. “A third-place finish behind foundational, legacy programs like Temple and NYU is amazing.”
According to Arielle Brown, MA, CCC-SLP, an SLP adjunct faculty member, a third-place finish reflects the students’ strong commitment and genuine enthusiasm for the event and its mission.
“It shows that they were motivated not only to participate, but to actively support the cause and raise awareness within the community,” said Brown. “This accomplishment highlights their dedication, teamwork, and passion for the profession, as well as their willingness to go above and beyond in support of individuals and families affected by apraxia.”
Brown added that students were able to interact with families and individuals affected by childhood apraxia of speech, which helped deepen their understanding of the impact communication disorders have on daily life.
“From what I observed, students gained a stronger sense of empathy, professional responsibility, and awareness of their future role as advocates,” she said. “Experiences like this help prepare them for their careers by reinforcing the importance of service, collaboration, and compassionate care within the profession.”
For Kylie Hier ‘27SLP, participating for the first time in the event provided her with a deeper understanding of childhood apraxia of speech and the profound impact it has, not only on the child but also on families.
“The experience was very meaningful in supporting my educational and professional growth,” said Hier. “As a future SLP, it reinforced the importance of family-centered care, community involvement, and advocacy. Being able to interact with families and support an event so closely tied to my future career helped solidify my passions and strengthened my commitment to becoming a compassionate and informed clinician.”
Another first-time participant, Ruby Murrani ‘27SLP, wanted to be part of the event because she didn’t have much experience working with families that have children with communication disorders.
“I wanted to show up for kids and families living with apraxia and be part of something bigger than the classroom,” she said. “Hearing parents talk about advocating nonstop for their kids really stuck with me. It made the emotional and systemic challenges feel very real, not just clinical.”
All three Drexel master’s students, who were part of a larger team of faculty and students, said being part of the event helped advance them along their educational paths and further prepared them to achieve their career goals.
“This experience helped prepare me for my future career and showed me how bringing a community together can change the trajectory of a child's life,” said Seipt.
Hier agreed. “Being able to interact with families and support an event so closely tied to my future career helped solidify my passion and strengthened my commitment to becoming a compassionate and informed clinician.”
