When she enrolled her daughter, Zamora said she realized how critical those services could be.
“Not having those services to help them navigate ... is just not right at the end of the day,” Zamora said. “They need a voice, and they don’t have one.”
Zamora said she’s grateful as a parent for the services CCISD provided. However, a shortage in national speech-language pathologists, or SLPs, remains. As a result, CCISD is searching for ways to bridge the service gap.
“Due to [the pandemic], there’s just been an overall level of burnout from speech therapists that have worked in the public school setting, and it’s led to ... much more of a need for therapists in the schools setting,” said Matt Alexander, licensed SLP and founder of League City-based speech therapy center Alexander Speech and Hearing.
At a glance
While there are a number of factors that experts say have led to the increase in children needing speech therapy, Christen Ashley, CCISD’s speech and related services coordinator, said excessive screen time is a big factor.
“Studies indicate it impacts the development of crucial communication skills, ... especially during critical developmental periods,” she said.
Ashley noted that both parents and children are spending more time on screens, which is replacing important verbal interactions.
The COVID-19 pandemic also stunted development for children in many ways, Alexander said.
“Everything being shut down, people being afraid to go out [and] kids not having that social interaction that they regularly have throughout development [all contributed],” he said.
An uptick in the need for speech therapy in children occurred in ages 3 and 4—especially in late 2020 and early 2021, Alexander said.
While the state is seeing an increased number of children with speech impairments, CCISD is experiencing a faster rate of growth, Texas Education Agency, or TEA, data shows.
“Without speech pathologists ... kids would be out there that would still be mute, misunderstood or not able to talk,” Zamora said.
“To increase the number of SLPs available to hire, the state would need to increase the programs available to pursue a master’s degree in speech-language pathology,” Ashley said.
“There's a lack of understanding of the role of a speech-language pathologist in general and in the schools in particular. I think the value gets overlooked,” Lori Colleti, vice president of advocacy for Texas Speech-Language Hearing Association, said.
Put in perspective
The district has increased pay—including spending about $1.4 million more on SLP staff compared to fiscal year 2023-24—and added remote work options. However, it still can’t compete with medical settings.
Compared to the annual mean wage of an SLP in the U.S. in 2024, CCISD’s base salary for an SLP was over 30% lower, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau of Labor Statistics and the TEA. The district, however, has managed to pay more than the average base pay in Texas school districts starting in 2024, TEA data shows.
Statewide, Colletti said that while teachers saw pay raises during the 89th Texas Legislature this year, school-based SLPs did not.
“When teacher pay keeps inching up but SLPs don’t, ... that discourages people from wanting to work in the schools,” Colletti said.
If a student at CCISD is suspected of requiring speech services, teachers and staff may begin with classroom interventions, often using a Response to Intervention model, according to the district’s special education website.
If concerns continue, either a parent or school staff member can request a special education evaluation at any time.
If CCISD agrees to evaluate and receives written consent from the parent, the district has 60 school days to complete the evaluation under federal and state guidelines. If the student is found eligible, CCISD then has 30 calendar days to hold a meeting and develop an Individualized Education Program, or IEP, that outlines the student’s therapy goals and services.
“Despite the shortage of SLPs, the district has maintained mandated federal timelines required by the [Individuals with Disabilities Education Act] and the TEA,” Ashley said. “The district has also been able to meet IEP-required service minutes through contracted services.”
The cost
Over time, CCISD has leaned on contracted SLP positions, hiring over 23 contracted SLPs and SLP assistants to address the growing number of students with a speech impairment for the 2024-25 school year, Ashley said. That almost doubled the amount the district contracted the year before.
Ashley said SLPs are responsible for teletherapy, virtual supervision of SLP assistants, direct therapy and evaluations.
While the contracted positions have filed vacancies and helped ensure evaluations and services for students are completed on time, Ashley said hiring contractors is a “costly option,” resulting in an expense of nearly $2.5 million for fiscal year 2024-25, which is about $1.4 million more than what the district spent on SLPs the year prior.
Ashley said contracted rates for SLPs increased by an average of $12 per hour from 2023-24, with the highest cost being about $95 per hour.
In 2021, 36% of health-based SLP providers reported more job openings than applicants—a figure that rose to 57% by 2023, according to the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. In schools, over 78% of SLPs reported the same in 2024.
A 2022 survey from the organization found 58% of school-based SLPs listed high workloads as their top challenge. Moreover, by 2024, Texas SLPs reported a median caseload of 65 students, although since 2022, survey results show 40 is the median caseload.
Ashley said she hopes the state will implement lower caseload caps and better pay structures in the future to help address retention and recruitment for SLPs in schools.
Colletti and TSHA’s Advocacy Communications Chair Nathalie Lebrun both said no items for SLPs passed in the 89th Texas Legislature.
An interstate licensure compact bill, which would have allowed SLPs licensed in other states to practice in Texas more easily, was considered during the legislative session. It failed to pass despite 35 states already participating in similar agreements nationwide.
“Sometimes it’s one step forward and two steps back,” Colletti said. “We understand that sometimes it’s not just ‘did the bill we favored pass or not.’ ... It takes several legislative sessions before you can be successful.”
Lebrun said the TSHA will continue to advocate for SLPs when the state is not in a legislative session and educate community members about the importance of SLPs.
“We’re not just helping kids today; we’re affecting the future of the workforce and the future of our neighbors and voting members in our society,” Lebrun said. “If we don’t have the right combination of salary, retention tools and support, our kids face longer wait times for assessment, less individualized services and, ultimately, a diminished ability to communicate effectively in life.”
