ASI resources

The Associated Students, Inc. is a great resource for students.

They offer the following services:
-laptop rentals $15-20 a week (printers are also available for an additional
cost)
-locker rentals - $15 for the first quarter, then $5 for every quarter after
-$150 textbook voucher (deadlines are approaching mid-February and March)
-Student health and dental insurance: covers students AND their dependents
for very low cost. Covers illnesses or injuries on or off campus.
-local business discounts
-movie/amusement park discounts
-free scantrons and blue books


The Cross Cultural Center located right next to ASI allows students
to print up to 10 pages free per day on their laser printers.

Campus resources!

Hey guys... we'll be sharing at our NSSLHA meeting this week about resources you might be interested in. Here's the summaries for those who are interested.

FAMILY PACT

Family PACT is a state-funded program that provides family planning services to low-income men and women - for FREE! Services include, but not limited to:

- Personal & confidential healthcare (as it pertains to family planning/prevention)

-Education, counseling, assessment & treatment to protect reproductive health

-Contraceptives: Birth control pills, male/female condoms, diaphragms, contraceptive implants, Fertility Awareness Methods (FAM), Lactation Amenorrhea Method (LAM), and male/female sterilization <~ I’m sure everyone will jump on this one! Jk To be eligible, you need to be a California resident and not exceed a certain amount of income. (This may vary every year so please check on the Family PACT website or ask someone who works at the CSULA student health center.) Signing up is easy. Just go to the 2nd floor of the student health center and ask for a Family PACT application. Fill it out, turn it in, and get your FREE Family PACT card – all on the same day. Can we sound any more like a commercial? But seriously, Family PACT is an easy way to save a big chunk of change. For more information, visit: http://www.familypact.org/


ASHA's Minority Student Leadership Program

Opportunity to attend ASHA conference for free (including hotel accommodation and meals), network with ASHA leaders, and build leadership skills.

http://www.asha.org/students/mslp.htm


Best Way to Find Cheap Books Online

http://www.froogle.com/


PROJECT PASS (Preparing Autism Spectrum Specialists)

Project PASS provides up to $5700 of funding to students who are currently in masters degree programs in Special Education, Counseling, and related fields like Communication Disorders.

Autism Certificate consists of 4 courses:
1. EDSP 413 or COUN 501 (4 units)
2. EDSP 586: Teaching Children with Autism (4 units)
3. EDSP 587: Teaching Functional Communication (4units)
4. EDSP 503: Autism Fieldwork (6 units)

Students who are accepted will receive up to $1000 for 3 quarters (maximum total of up to $3000). Students who are on the grant will receive a summer living allowance of $2700 contingent on attendance of amandatory 10 day Autism Summer Institute at CSULA.

Completion of all of the above courses is required for eligibility and participation in summer institute.

Applications can be found at the bulletin board across the office of Special Education in King Hall C1064.

Dr. Jennifer Symon (Director of PASS program)
King Hall B1036 Office Hours: Tues/Thurs 3:30-4pm

STUDENT HEALTH

Ever wonder exactly what you get charged for when you pay tuition? In case you haven't noticed, we all pay $55 each quarter for services at the student health center. So it's time to make that money count!

The services you pay for include: FREE doctor visits, cheap blood tests, free x-rays, free TB and hepatitis shots, free counseling services of all types, courses for stress/anger/time management, nutritional services, and chiropractic, acupuncture, and massage services. There is also the opportunity to access other services for small fees (which vary), these include the dental clinic, optometry clinic,women's and men's health care (i.e. contraception,check-ups, etc.) and CPR courses. You can also get your prescriptions at a reduced price (even if it's not from a Cal State doctor) at the small pharmacy located in the bottom floor of the HealthCenter.

To get all the information drop by the Health Center
(across from the Biology building) or go to
http://www.calstatela.edu/univ/hlth_ctr


FINANCIAL AID

General tips for getting financial aid:

Fill out FAFSA early
Get to know your professors so they see your dedication and your interests and can write specific recommendation letters
Apply to as many scholarships as possible to increase your chances
Begin the application process early, especially if you need letters of recommendation!
Save your application essays and lists of community activities/jobs/volunteer experiences so that you can adapt and re-use them
When application dates fall around the same time, give an organized packet of recommendation letter requests and forms to a professor well ahead of time; make sure that they know the deadlines, and thank them for their help!

CSULA scholarships

General CSULA application (due March 7th):
http://www.calstatela.edu/univ/finaid/pdf/Scholarship_App.pdf
This puts you in the pool of applicants for most of the scholarships available through CSULA

Other scholarship opportunities:
www.calstatela.edu/finaid
Look especially at...
President's scholarship (for entering undergraduates)
College of Health and Human Services (for graduate audiology students)
Perkins Loans-- these are cancellable for SLP's! (a certain percentage for every year you work)

For graduate students:

Alumni Association scholarship (due at the beginning of winter quarter)
inquire within KH D145

Emeriti fellowship
apply through the CSULA general application

Graduate Equity Fellowship (due fall quarter)
inquire within the Office of Graduate Studies and Research, Admin 710

COMD departmental scholarship (due fall quarter)
inquire within COMD department

Other opportunities to get funding:

PASS program
see above

Teaching Assistant positions (income does not get taxed or counted against you on FAFSA)
inquire within COMD department

Outside scholarships for COMD students:

Sertoma scholarship
http://www.sertoma.org/

ASHA
http://www.asha.org/students/financial-aid#Training_Grants

Scholarship search engines
http://www.fastweb.org/

Grants for Research:

ASHA
http://www.asha.org/students/financial-aid#Training_Grants

Acoustical Society of America (funds research in phonetics and speech production)
http://asa.aip.org/fellowships.html

Pre-Doctoral Scholar's Program at CSULA (application due in March)
In addition to funding summer research, this program will also connect you with a faculty mentor and fund any trips you want to make to check out doctoral programs
Inquire within the Office of Graduate Studies and Research, Admin 710

Free Publications

The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) offers free publications under the following subject areas:

• Hearing
• Balance
• Smell and Taste
• Voice, Speech, and Language
• Publicaciones en español
• General Information
• Research Reports

For more information and/or to order, please visit: http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/order/ or click on one of the above links.

You think you may not need it...but you will ;)

Clipboards for sale! But these aren't just any clipboards...these are specially made for SLPs!

Does NSSLHA listen to your requests? Absolutely!

In response to requests from students in the Dysphagia Class, NSSLHA will be selling the Dysphagia Evaluation: Treatment & Recommendations Clipboard at the next NSSLHA meeting (which is March 6, 2007). If you purchase one that night – and that night only – you will receive a fabulous 15% discount, only available at NSSLHA @ CSULA! We will take checks, but cash is preferred. No profit is being made here; we are offering this to you simply for your own (future) benefit!

The clipboards feature the following:

• 24 Hour Clock
• Aspiration/Dysphagia Symptoms and Treatment Techniques
• Documentation Phrases: Do’s and Don’t’s
• Evaluation: labial function, lingual function, velar function, laryngeal, communication/cognition, swallowing
• Glascow Coma Scale
• Global Deterioration Scale
• Goal Writing Components
• Prospective Payment System (PPS) MDS Assessment Periods
• Rancho Los Amigos
• Recommendations for: diet, meds, placement, positioning, chart/monitor
• RUG Minutes/Week (PPS for SNF)
• Swallowing Phases in pictures
• Vital Sign Norms for Adults

Each clipboard comes with a laminated pediatric information chart, International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) chart, word retrieval cues, developmental milestones (think of COMD 456, 460, and 551), phonological processes (think of Dr. Flint’s “rules,” COMD 471, and 553), type-token-ratio (TTR) and mean length utterance (MLU) formulas, and vocal fundamental frequency in boys and girls (think of Audiology courses).

Not only that, but they are very *functional* and will help make those days in the hospital (i.e., 2^nd year graduate school externships) a bit easier because you will always have a “cheat sheet” with you! Whether you are an undergraduate or graduate student, you can buy one now to prepare for your hospital externship! And that’s not all – you can use it all throughout your career!!

The Annual ASHA Convention didn’t even offer this! Don’t miss out on this opportunity!

For more information, please visit this website.

ASI Textbook Voucher Application

The applications are here!

For those of you who work 30 hours or more per week, you may qualify for a textbook voucher. If awarded, (Associated Students, Incorporated (ASI) will give you $150 to spend in the bookstore!!

To qualify, you must:

• have completed at least 3 quarters at CSULA
• have a cumulative CSULA GPA of 2.4 or higher
• be enrolled in at least 4 units of evening courses for Spring Quarter (one class after 4 P.M.) (provide a class schedule from the campus website or the registrar's office showing proof of enrollment)
• be employed for at least 30 hours per week
• provide a letter from your employer, indicating your work hours on your employer's official letterhead

Simply complete an application downloadable here or go to the link under "Local Forms" (on the sidebar navigator), bring your employment letter, and Spring Quarter schedule. Not all eligible applicants will be awarded a book voucher, but it is worth a try!

If awarded, they will notify you through postal mail. If you have not heard from them by the first week of Spring Quarter, stop by the ASI office to follow-up on your application.

The application deadline is Friday, March 6, 2006 by 2:00 P.M at King Hall D138.
For more information, visit the ASI Student Service Center in King Hall D138 or call them at (323) 343-4780.

Don't forget that you can also pick up a FREE scantron or blue book from them anytime, provided you show your Student ID.