Alanna Harrison

• Supervise staff members from the speech, hearing and vision departments at Manhattan Star Academy's Lower School
• Collaborate with department heads (OT/PT, Educational Supervisor, school administrators) for programming, school-wide events, administrative duties
• Obtain and organize professional development activities and opportunities for the related services department
• Establish and maintain symbiotic relationships with outside organizations (New York Deaf-Blind Collaborative, The Sign Language Center, Columbia University, Hunter College, New York University Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital, etc.)
• Oversee and approve time worked, paid time off, and payroll on mobile time management system (WorkDay)
• Manage hiring needs for speech department, teachers of the visually impaired, and hearing education specialists

Provide support to all staff members on AAC implementation and language development

• Maintain student-centered AAC programming for applicable students
• Support staff and families in AAC system implementation
• Provide family/caregiver trainings on AAC systems and implementation
• Apply student-centered modifications and adaptations to AAC systems
• Manage digital storage solutions such as iShare, DropBox, or OneDrive
• Liaise between NYC DOE and MSA for AAC and AT Referrals, Evaluations, and Follow Ups
• Troubleshoot and problem solve for technology predicaments as they arise
• Monitor student body and classrooms for possible AAC and AT supports;

• Serve students with complex communication needs (CCN) in their home setting
• Evaluate, customize and implement the high-tech communications devices with my clients to enhance functional communication skills across a variety of environments
• Educate related service providers on best practices for facilitating communication and assessing knowledge with AAC communicators

• Served a caseload of clients ages 3-9 in a private school setting
• Conducted AAC assessments, work with insurance companies to procure devices for students with complex communication needs
• Implemented the use of low, mid and high-tech AAC to enhance student’s functional communication skills across a variety of environments
• Supported lead teachers and related service providers by creating interactive Boardmaker Online activities that facilitate academic learning, participation and communication
• Worked on an interdisciplinary team of therapists, classroom staff and special education teachers to create individualized goals using the SMART framework
• Graduate student supervisor
• Universal Design for Learning Task Force leader