Vermont Consultants is a new company with familiar Vermont faces in the fields of speech, language, special education, and interagency services. The agency currently has five core staff people, several subcontractors, and 5 additional employees who are being trained as speech-language pathologist assistants.

The organization was founded by the Director, Susan Kimmerly, who combined the interests, skills, and passions of two additional people (over 100 years of experience) to offer services to schools and human-service agencies. The Director brings work experience in schools, home health, and private practice as a speech-language pathologist (SLP), as well as experience in state government as the State Consultant for Speech, Language, and Hearing and other management jobs in special education, child protection, and juvenile justice. Finally, as an independent consultant for three years, she identified many needs facing speech-language pathologists, school districts, and private agencies trying to offer speech and language services, as well as other treatment and residential services, for children.

Stephanie Keitel, the director of the SLPA Training Program, is also employed by a local high school as a speech-language pathologist. She has been a speech-language pathologist for over 25 years and has also met ASHA requirements for Certificate of Clinical Competence in Audiology. She and the Director have crossed paths professionally on numerous ventures, including members of the board of the Vermont Speech-Language Hearing Association, preceeding and succeeding each in employment with the same employers, and joint planning for SLPA training program offered by VCLLI.

Diane Robie came on as Training Director in September 2003 and also assists with technology and our public relations. She and the Director worked together for years in State's child-protection agency supporting and administering the State's foster-care system.

Vermont Consultants became incorporated in July 2003. It serves many purposes and fills a variety of gaps in Vermont's service needs to children and families.

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