Emily Harvey,
M.S. CCC-SLP

About Me

I grew up in a small town in Pennsylvania. I had always had an interest in languages, but it was some mild but persistent speech differences that drew me to Speech/Language Pathology. I went to California University of Pennsylvania and graduated Summa Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Science in Communication Disorders and a minor in Spanish. I continued my education at Penn State University and earned my Master of Science in Communication Sciences and Disorders. I then took a year to get my ASHA Certificate of Clinical Competence before returning to Cal U to get my Graduate Certificate of Advanced Study in Autism Spectrum Disorder.

I had chosen to further learn about autism, not only because I worked with mostly autistic students in my job as a Speech/Language Pathologist at a public elementary school and wanted to do as best as I could for my students, but also because I realized I might be autistic myself, after starting to get to know some of them and doing some of my own research. However, I was sorely disappointed that I was required to take a class about Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), and at the overall ableism within the program.

In the same year I finished that program, I was officially diagnosed with Autism Spectrum “Disorder,” along with a couple other neurodivergencies. I finally didn’t feel like I was broken - that I was just different. The label gave me an explanation for what I had felt but masked for years, and from there I worked to build my self-esteem, understand myself, and unmask.

I started to seek out better sources of information, such as the Therapist Neurodiversity Collective, taking the Inside of Autism class by the Autistic Advocate, and generally consuming as much as I could by other autistic individuals. I delved into research articles about ABA, Neurodiversity, and better approaches to use in my own therapy with autistic students.

As my knowledge grew, so did my disappointment in the “special” education I witnessed every day being forced upon autistic students at my job. And so, I left. I began working as an SLP at a neurodiversity-affirming private clinic and at the same time, I founded Emily Harvey: SLP and Neurodiversity Advocate, LLC, with the purpose of serving individuals with communication needs and advocating as much as possible to help them get what they need, and not get what they don’t need.

My Philosophy

Autistic people don’t need to be fixed; they don’t need to be changed; they don’t need to be more “normal”. We are living in a society that makes it difficult to truly thrive as an autistic person - but it is not impossible, especially given the right support.

When given the building blocks of self-confidence, acceptance, and improved skills, children of all ages and abilities can discover their unique voices, whatever form that voice may take. It is the underlying goal of therapy to provide these building blocks to your child, help them face their challenges, and empower them to use their newfound voice to actively participate in life. Many autistic people have found their voice to communicate and possess effective self-advocacy skills; these are essential to hold power in a world that tries to speak over them.

My philosophy towards speech-language therapy in the autistic population is aimed at empowering autistic people through several goals:

  1. Building communication, whether that be through spoken language, AAC, or body language.

  2. Identifying emotional and sensory regulation strategies as they pertain to overall regulation needed for effective communication.

  3. Building self-advocacy skills, respecting boundaries, and presuming competence.

  4. Identifying accommodations and supports to be put in place in a variety of settings.

Notable Certifications & Trainings

 

  • Natural Language Acquisition Framework for Gestalt Language Processing

  • Making Sense of Autism’s Neuro-Strengths Based Support for Autism (Advisory Board)

  • Inside Out Sensory Certificate

  • Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

  • The Inside of Autism Course

  • The Ultimate Play-Based Speech Therapy Course

  • Story Grammar Marker

  • Dynamic Temporal and Tactile Cueing