East of the River | August 2007 | Speech, Language and Hearing Professions

Speech, Language and Hearing Professions

M. Eugene Wiggins’ Commitment to Educating Health Professionals

by: B. Michelle Harris

Did you know that the University of the District of Columbia offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in speech and language pathology? Let me share how one person is making a difference in the health and wellbeing of District residents through an exciting field of practice.

Speech, Language and Hearing Professions: Making a Difference
The seeds for working in a helping profession are often planted in childhood. This was true for Mr. M. Eugene Wiggins, acting program director of the speech-language pathology program and director of the speech and hearing clinic at the University of the District of Columbia. Wiggins’ sister, Henrietta, two years older than he, was born with cerebral palsy, a physical condition resulting from damage to motor areas of the brain during development or at delivery. It often results in jerky or uncontrolled movements. Severe speech and language problems are almost always present.

Wiggins stated, “African-American children with communication disorders attending racially segregated schools in the South during the 1940s [often] received no help with their disability. Thus, it was left up to individual families to figure out what their disabled children needed to reach their intellectual potential in school.”

Wiggins noted that speech was his sister’s greatest disability. During the early stages of developing speech and language, Henrietta could not make voluntary motor movements with her tongue, which was paralyzed. This made her speech difficult to understand. Her intellect was not at all affected; she was quite intelligent. However, their mother, Lula Wiggins, was determined to ensure Henrietta received the education she needed despite her speech disorder.

Anticipating that she would be subject to ridicule once she began school, and since there was only a two-year difference in their ages, their mother waited to enroll Henrietta in school until Wiggins reached school age. They were placed in the same classroom. As their mother suspected, the greatest challenges they experienced took place in the school setting where some classmates made Henrietta’s disability the target of jokes. Thus, Wiggins spent his early years in school championing his sister’s right to fair treatment and respect, not only by classmates, but by teachers as well.

For Wiggins, the seeds for defending his sister’s dignity were nurtured by his mother. It was his sister’s speech history that would later nudge him into the area of speech-language pathology. In 2004, having long been married and given birth to two children, Henrietta fell victim to breast cancer a week before her 70th birthday.

A Commitment to Educating Health Professionals
Wiggins, who was born and raised in Miami, Florida, graduated from high school in 1954, as did his sister, Henrietta. He served in the US Air Force for four years, spending nearly three years in France. Upon his discharge from the Air Force in 1958, and after studying a year at Ohio Wesleyan University, he transferred to Hampton University in Virginia where in 1963 he earned a bachelor’s degree in speech-language pathology. He moved to Flint, Michigan, where he earned his master’s degree in speech-language pathology from the University of Michigan. While pursing his master’s degree, Wiggins worked for three years in the Beecher School District, a suburb of Flint. In 1966, he was offered the position of coordinating the speech-language-hearing program in the city of Flint. He supervised a staff of 23 professionals.

In August 1971, Wiggins was invited to join the newly-founded speech and language pathology program at Federal City College, the precursor to the UDC. This program was chaired by Wiggins’ mentor, the late Ronald Williams, a speech-language pathologist. Williams became vice president for academic affairs at FCC and later accepted the position of president of Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago, where he remained until he was struck down with brain cancer in 1980.

Wiggins headed the FCC speech and hearing clinic while enrolled in a doctorate program at the University of Pittsburgh. He finished all coursework but never returned to complete the program.

Wiggins was a member of the speech and language pathology program team that in 1980 helped make the UDC program the first among historically black colleges and universities to earn accreditation from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. In 1996, the program was declared by the university as its Center of Excellence.

Now, after nearly 36 years of service to UDC and with a notable number of federally sponsored grants focused exclusively on student support, Wiggins reflects on the considerable number of well-trained students who graduated from the university’s speech-language pathology program with bachelor’s and master’s degrees. Wiggins continues to work passionately in attracting competitive, economically and/or educationally disadvantaged students to the program. His ongoing mission is to increase awareness about allied healthcare professions among minorities. Speech and language pathology is one of these allied health professions.

Federally sponsored programs in which he has been involved includes the Health Careers Opportunities Program, which he co-directed with his colleague, Joan Williams Thomas, professor of biology, and later, Carolyn Cousin, also professor of biology. The HCOP is designed to recruit into UDC, retain and graduate economically and/or educationally disadvantaged high school students who would not be expected to attend college. Other programs at the university whose students benefited from HCOP funding were medical radiology and respiratory therapy. Wiggins is currently project director of four federally sponsored programs funded by the US Department of Education and the Human Resources and Services Administration in the Department of Health and Human Services. Unfortunately, funding for HCOP was cut from the 2007 federal budget; however, efforts are underway to have those funds restored. In view of the problems faced by District residents, particularly regarding health disparities, it is important that funds be made available to continue to recruit, retain and graduate underrepresented and disadvantaged populations into the healthcare fields.

Wiggins is a founding member of the Black Caucus of ASHA, a group of speech-language pathologists and audiologists who, during the 1968 ASHA convention in Denver, Colorado, impressed upon the ASHA leadership to acknowledge the diversity among its membership and to become more attuned to the importance of linguistic and cultural diversity in addressing speech and language disorders, particularly with respect to African-American children. Wiggins noted that the 1968 ASHA convention was the turning point for African Americans in the speech and language pathology profession and for leadership of this profession as well. Last year, and this year, both presidents of the association have been African Americans.

Wiggins is a founding member of the National Black Association for Speech-Language and Hearing, a spinoff of the Black Caucus of ASHA, founded on the campus of Howard University in Washington, DC, in 1978. Wiggins served as its executive director for 14 years (1988-2002). In April 2008, NBASLH will celebrate its 30th anniversary in Washington, DC.

More about the UDC Speech and Hearing Clinic
Wiggins is at the twilight of his career in speech and language pathology. For many years he has helped make a striking difference in the lives of patients/clients, students and practicing professionals. The need for that kind of commitment is great. According to ASHA, for example, nearly 46 million Americans (one in every six) have some type of speech-language-hearing problem. To learn more about the speech-language pathology profession and the university’s speech and hearing clinic, contact Mr. Wiggins at 202-274-6162 or ewiggins@udc.edu. This clinic serves infants, preschoolers, youths and adults with speech-language-hearing problems.

Compassionate Caring in the Health Professions
Eugene Wiggins is an educator who cares about his students and the vulnerable populations that they will serve as professionals. The availability of competent, compassionate healthcare professionals is increasingly important in a city with so many healthcare problems. If you or someone you know wishes to begin a career in an allied health profession, visit the University of the District of Columbia’s Web site at www.udc.edu. In addition to speech and language pathology, you can gather information about other health-related programs of study including, nutrition and food science; environmental sciences; pre-medical/pre-dental; medical radiology; mortuary science; respiratory therapy; nursing; psychology; clinical psychology; social work; counseling; sociology and anthropology; cancer biology, prevention and control; water quality and marine science; and biology.

Advising and registration for the fall semester for the University of the District of Columbia begins Aug. 21. Classes begin Aug. 27.

M. Eugene Wiggins contributed to this column. Michelle Harris is assistant professor at the University of the District of Columbia. Her focus is public and community health through education, information and research. Contact her at bharris@udc.edu.


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Speech, Language and Hearing Professions
M. Eugene Wiggins’ Commitment to Educating Health Professionals
by: B. Michelle Harris
Did you know that the University of the District of Columbia offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in speech and language pathology? Let me share how one person is making a difference in the health and wellbeing of District residents through an exciting field of practice. Speech, Language and Hearing Professions: Making a Difference The seeds for working in a helping profession are often planted in childhood. This was true for Mr. M. Eugene Wiggins, acting program director of the speech-language pathology program and director of the speech and hearing clinic at the University of the District of Columbia. Wiggins’ sister, Henrietta, two years older than he, was born with cerebral palsy, a physical condition resulting from damage to motor areas of the brain during development or at delivery. It often results in jerky or uncontrolled movements. Severe speech and language problems are almost always present. Wiggins stated, “African-American children with communication disorders attending racially segregated schools in the South during the 1940s [often] received no help with their disability. Thus, it was left up to individual families to figure out what their disabled children needed to reach their intellectual potential in school.” Wiggins noted that speech was his sister’s greatest disability. During the early stages of developing speech and language, Henrietta could not make voluntary motor movements with her tongue, which was paralyzed. This made her speech difficult to understand. Her intellect was not at all affected; she was quite intelligent. However, their mother, Lula Wiggins, was determined to ensure Henrietta received the education she needed despite her speech disorder. Anticipating that she would be subject to ridicule once she began school, and since there was only a two-year difference in their ages, their mother waited to enroll Henrietta in school until Wiggins reached school age. They were placed in the same classroom. As their mother suspected, the greatest challenges they experienced took place in the school setting where some classmates made Henrietta’s disability the target of jokes. Thus, Wiggins spent his early years in school championing his sister’s right to fair treatment and respect, not only by classmates, but by teachers as well. For Wiggins, the seeds for defending his sister’s dignity were nurtured by his mother. It was his sister’s speech history that would later nudge him into the area of speech-language pathology. In 2004, having long been married and given birth to two children, Henrietta fell victim to breast cancer a week before her 70th birthday. A Commitment to Educating Health Professionals Wiggins, who was born and raised in Miami, Florida, graduated from high school in 1954, as did his sister, Henrietta. He served in the US Air Force for four years, spending nearly three years in France. Upon his discharge from the Air Force in 1958, and after studying a year at Ohio Wesleyan University, he transferred to Hampton University in Virginia where in 1963 he earned a bachelor’s degree in speech-language pathology. He moved to Flint, Michigan, where he earned his master’s degree in speech-language pathology from the University of Michigan. While pursing his master’s degree, Wiggins worked for three years in the Beecher School District, a suburb of Flint. In 1966, he was offered the position of coordinating the speech-language-hearing program in the city of Flint. He supervised a staff of 23 professionals. In August 1971, Wiggins was invited to join the newly-founded speech and language pathology program at Federal City College, the precursor to the UDC. This program was chaired by Wiggins’ mentor, the late Ronald Williams, a speech-language pathologist. Williams became vice president for academic affairs at FCC and later accepted the position of president of Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago, where he remained until he was struck down with brain cancer in 1980. Wiggins headed the FCC speech and hearing clinic while enrolled in a doctorate program at the University of Pittsburgh. He finished all coursework but never returned to complete the program. Wiggins was a member of the speech and language pathology program team that in 1980 helped make the UDC program the first among historically black colleges and universities to earn accreditation from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. In 1996, the program was declared by the university as its Center of Excellence. Now, after nearly 36 years of service to UDC and with a notable number of federally sponsored grants focused exclusively on student support, Wiggins reflects on the considerable number of well-trained students who graduated from the university’s speech-language pathology program with bachelor’s and master’s degrees. Wiggins continues to work passionately in attracting competitive, economically and/or educationally disadvantaged students to the program. His ongoing mission is to increase awareness about allied healthcare professions among minorities. Speech and language pathology is one of these allied health professions. Federally sponsored programs in which he has been involved includes the Health Careers Opportunities Program, which he co-directed with his colleague, Joan Williams Thomas, professor of biology, and later, Carolyn Cousin, also professor of biology. The HCOP is designed to recruit into UDC, retain and graduate economically and/or educationally disadvantaged high school students who would not be expected to attend college. Other programs at the university whose students benefited from HCOP funding were medical radiology and respiratory therapy. Wiggins is currently project director of four federally sponsored programs funded by the US Department of Education and the Human Resources and Services Administration in the Department of Health and Human Services. Unfortunately, funding for HCOP was cut from the 2007 federal budget; however, efforts are underway to have those funds restored. In view of the problems faced by District residents, particularly regarding health disparities, it is important that funds be made available to continue to recruit, retain and graduate underrepresented and disadvantaged populations into the healthcare fields. Wiggins is a founding member of the Black Caucus of ASHA, a group of speech-language pathologists and audiologists who, during the 1968 ASHA convention in Denver, Colorado, impressed upon the ASHA leadership to acknowledge the diversity among its membership and to become more attuned to the importance of linguistic and cultural diversity in addressing speech and language disorders, particularly with respect to African-American children. Wiggins noted that the 1968 ASHA convention was the turning point for African Americans in the speech and language pathology profession and for leadership of this profession as well. Last year, and this year, both presidents of the association have been African Americans. Wiggins is a founding member of the National Black Association for Speech-Language and Hearing, a spinoff of the Black Caucus of ASHA, founded on the campus of Howard University in Washington, DC, in 1978. Wiggins served as its executive director for 14 years (1988-2002). In April 2008, NBASLH will celebrate its 30th anniversary in Washington, DC. More about the UDC Speech and Hearing Clinic Wiggins is at the twilight of his career in speech and language pathology. For many years he has helped make a striking difference in the lives of patients/clients, students and practicing professionals. The need for that kind of commitment is great. According to ASHA, for example, nearly 46 million Americans (one in every six) have some type of speech-language-hearing problem. To learn more about the speech-language pathology profession and the university’s speech and hearing clinic, contact Mr. Wiggins at 202-274-6162 or ewiggins@udc.edu. This clinic serves infants, preschoolers, youths and adults with speech-language-hearing problems. Compassionate Caring in the Health Professions Eugene Wiggins is an educator who cares about his students and the vulnerable populations that they will serve as professionals. The availability of competent, compassionate healthcare professionals is increasingly important in a city with so many healthcare problems. If you or someone you know wishes to begin a career in an allied health profession, visit the University of the District of Columbia’s Web site at www.udc.edu. In addition to speech and language pathology, you can gather information about other health-related programs of study including, nutrition and food science; environmental sciences; pre-medical/pre-dental; medical radiology; mortuary science; respiratory therapy; nursing; psychology; clinical psychology; social work; counseling; sociology and anthropology; cancer biology, prevention and control; water quality and marine science; and biology. Advising and registration for the fall semester for the University of the District of Columbia begins Aug. 21. Classes begin Aug. 27. M. Eugene Wiggins contributed to this column. Michelle Harris is assistant professor at the University of the District of Columbia. Her focus is public and community health through education, information and research. Contact her at bharris@udc.edu.