Speakers: Chris Sawka and Beth Christianson
Session Description:
AAC success is built through real‑world participation, meaningful experiences, and strong self‑advocacy. In this keynote, Chris Sawka shares insights from his lived experience as an AAC communicator, highlighting how exploration, play, and community involvement support language development. Participants will learn how moving beyond the therapy room encourages vocabulary growth, confidence, and identity. This session emphasizes designing AAC experiences that support every voice across environments. Therapy happens everywhere—and AAC users deserve access to it all.
Objectives:
- Identify ways to support AAC use during everyday activities and community experiences.
- Apply strategies for expanding descriptive and functional vocabulary through play and exploration.
- Explain how representation and self‑advocacy contribute to long‑term AAC success.
Speaker Bios:
Chris Sawka is an adult AAC communicator, advocate, and ambassador for PRC‑Saltillo. He serves as Vice Chair of the USSAAC Membership Committee, participates in ImpAACt Voices conferences, and competes on the Synergy Bocce team. Chris brings lived experience from a lifetime of using AAC across school, therapy, and community settings. His perspective helps professionals better understand what truly supports meaningful communication, participation, and self‑advocacy. Chris is preparing to begin college and continues to advocate for AAC users of all ages.
Elizabeth “Beth” Speaker‑Christensen, MA, CCC‑SLP/L, ATP, is a speech‑language pathologist and owner of AAC Helper, LLC, a private practice
specializing in AAC evaluation and intervention. She has supported AAC users of all ages across hospitals, schools, skilled nursing facilities, non-profits, and specialty clinics. Beth is an Assistive Technology Professional through RESNA, a LAMP-certified provider, and holds an Assistive Technology Certificate from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She serves on RESNA’s Professional Standards Board and is Chair of the USSAAC Membership Committee. Beth is passionate about ethical, person‑centered AAC and mentoring professionals to design communication systems for lifelong success.