February 14, 2012
LANSING, Mich. - Gov. Rick Snyder has announced the appointments of Erica Dwyer, Nicola Hawatmeh and Bradford Swartz to the Michigan Board of Speech Language Pathology.
This 11-member board regulates the licensure and practice of speech-language pathologists in Michigan.
"I am confident these individuals will use their diverse and extensive experiences to continue ensuring appropriate oversight of Michigan's speech-language pathologists, who play a vital role in our state's health care delivery system," Snyder said.
Dwyer, of Williamsburg, is a speech and language therapist for the Charlevoix-Emmet Intermediate School District, specializing in the use of technology, including Skype, iPad applications and video-conferencing to provide increased services to students in remote areas. She is fluent in Spanish and brings significant knowledge of bilingual language acquisition and the current scope of bilingual speech-language pathology. Dwyer is a member of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and Special Interest Group for school-based service providers and the Michigan Speech-Language-Hearing Association. She earned a bachelor's degree in communication disorders and a master's degree in speech language pathology, both from Central Michigan University. Dwyer will represent professionals and replaces Katie Strong.
Hawatmeh, of Warren, has worked as a Lexis Associate for Lexis Nexis, a law clerk for the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission - Office of Equal Opportunity and a student attorney with the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law - Urban Law Clinic. Hawatmeh earned a bachelor's degree in political science from Wayne State University and a law degree from the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law, where he served as executive president of the Student Bar Association. He will represent the general public and fills a vacancy.
Swartz, of Mount Pleasant, is a speech-language pathologist and serves as an associate professor and as chairperson for Central Michigan University's Department of Communication Disorders. He specializes in dysphagia, voice, speech science and phonetics, and provides clinical supervision in voice, laryngeal physiology and endoscopic evaluations of the hypopharynx for purposes of voice and swallowing diagnostics. Swartz is a member of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and the Michigan Speech-Language-Hearing Association. He earned an elementary provisional teaching certificate and a bachelor's and master's degree from Central Michigan University, and a Ph.D. in speech science from Michigan State University. Swartz will represent professionals and replaces Ellen Fairbrother.
Dwyer and Swartz will serve four-year terms expiring Dec. 31, 2015, and Hawatmeh will serve the remainder of a term expiring Dec. 31, 2013. Their appointments are subject to the advice and consent of the Senate.
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