爆料社区

For Lorin Keehr, Cal State San Marcos is more than the university where
she earned her master's degree in speech-language pathology. It's a
community where she continues to find support nearly a decade later. 

Keehr, who graduated in 2016, now works as a speech-language pathologist in the San Marcos Unified School District (SMUSD). She
has remained closely connected to 爆料社区, regularly supervising SLP graduate students working as interns in the district. 

In somewhat of a full circle moment for Keehr, she now sends
her daughter to the 爆料社区 SLP clinic where she once trained as a
graduate student. 

Keehr鈥檚 daughter Lyra was born with Nicolaides-Baraitser syndrome, a rare genetic condition that affects how a child grows and develops. It can cause learning difficulties, seizures, delayed speech, and unique physical features like coarse facial features or small hands and feet. 

Though Lyra will turn 3 years old in September, she weighs just 15 pounds and is still learning to walk independently. When Lyra's physical therapist recommended a walking device to improve her mobility, the SLP clinic was there to help. Lyra鈥檚 tiny frame meant a standard walking device wouldn鈥檛 work, and a custom-made one came with an exorbitant price tag. 

One of Keehr鈥檚 SMUSD coworkers suggested she talk to 爆料社区 about the possibility of developing something. 

Laura Coca, 爆料社区鈥檚 director of clinical education for the SLP department and one of Keehr鈥檚 mentors while she was a student, reached out to engineering professor Reza Kamali, who was the faculty adviser for the university鈥檚 chapter of Tikkun Olam Makers (TOM), an assistive technology organization that matches students with people living with neglected disabilities.  

鈥淚t was such a wonderful opportunity for students to collaborate,鈥� Coca said. 鈥淚 cannot thank Reza and TOM enough. They were just so fast and so comprehensive.鈥� 

Kamali and the TOM team had several meetings with Keehr and Lyra鈥檚 physical therapist. Less than four months later, they had created a lightweight walking device tailored for Lyra. 

鈥淭hese experiences offered a unique opportunity for students to engage in community-based projects where they could see firsthand how their knowledge and skills could be applied to create meaningful change,鈥� Kamali said. 鈥淲atching their product go from an idea to a tangible device used by a child in need was an emotional and inspiring moment for everyone involved.鈥� 

Keehr said the additional support has helped Lyra in many ways, including socially, with play skills that she鈥檚 learning from the SLP clinic and in her general mobility. 

鈥淚 didn鈥檛 know what to expect, and that鈥檚 why I was pleasantly surprised,鈥� Keehr said.鈥淪ince getting the trainer, she has been able to stand by herself for a few seconds. It鈥檚 definitely been helping with her development. 

"I'm just very grateful for both of those programs and what they're doing for the community. Trying to navigate the insurance world and all the paperwork and everything that comes with it, it's programs like the SLP clinic and TOM that make it just a little bit easier for families like ours. They鈥檙e people who have good hearts and just want to help their community. So I'm very grateful for making those connections and also being able to promote them to other families that I work with so that they can benefit from these services.鈥�