About Eileen

Meet Eileen McLaughlin, Special Education Advocate and Speech Language Pathologist in New York State

Originally, I graduated as a business major, garnered an MBA, and worked in corporate banking as a relationship manager. Then everything changed when my oldest son had a speech delay and was helped by a speech therapist – and that motivated me to pursue a career as a speech language pathologist.

I worked for 15 years as a speech pathologist through the New York State Early Intervention Program, which helps children up to 3 years old, visiting students at their house or at preschools.

As I got more involved in the fields of special education and speech therapy, I developed expertise in the Orton-Gillingham reading instruction and provided individualized reading instruction to students with dyslexia and other language-based reading difficulties.

I also learned first-hand that evaluations are at the crux of the special education navigation process – but years ago when my son needed help, we got a complex evaluation with very technical language. Initially we weren’t sure what to do, but we were assigned a special education advocate, and that’s when I first saw the importance of advocates. 

Ultimately, I decided to become an advocate myself, so I could help other children and families understand and navigate the special education process to make it more manageable. I completed Special Education Advocacy Training (SEAT I and SEAT II) with Council of Parents, Attorneys, and Advocates (COPAA), and I enjoy working with children and families to strategize and achieve the highest quality educational services possible. 

Education: 

  • Master of Arts, Speech Language Pathology, Lehman College
  • Master of Business Administration in Finance, Fordham University
  • Master of Science in Finance, Fordham University

Training:

  • Special Education Advocacy Training (SEAT I and SEAT II) with Council of Parents, Attorneys, and Advocates (COPAA)
  • Trained at the Associate Level by the Academy of Orton-Gillingham Practitioners and Educators (AOGPE)

License:

  • New York State Speech-Language Pathology, NY License #020518

Certification:

  • Certificate of Clinical Competence-Speech Language Pathology (CCC-SLP)

Past Experience:

  • Speech-Language Pathologist providing reading/speech pathology services to children, New York Early Intervention Program
  • Institutional Custodial Administrator, Chase Manhattan
  • Institutional Custodial Administrator/Assistant Secretary, Chemical Bank

Professional Memberships:

  • Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates (COPAA) 
  • American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA)
Eileen McLaughlin
Eileen McLaughlin

Ultimately, I decided to become an advocate myself, so I could help other children and families understand and navigate the special education process to make it more manageable.