معرفی
Sarah Verdon is an Associate Professor in Speech and Language Pathology at Charles Sturt University's School of Allied Health, Exercise and Sports Sciences. She is based at the Albury/Wodonga campus and specializes in research regarding children's speech, language, and literacy in culturally and linguistically diverse contexts. As a speech pathologist and early childhood researcher, she is passionate about embracing children's diversity across cultures, languages, socioeconomic backgrounds, and abilities to create equal opportunities for all children.
- Co-chair of The International Expert Panel on Multilingual Children's Speech
- Overseeing development of Speech Pathology Australia's national position paper and clinical guidelines for "working in a culturally and linguistically diverse society"
- Director of the Trinh Foundation Australia, supporting speech therapy development in Vietnam
- Registered Supervisor for HDR students at Charles Sturt University
- Member of multiple professional organizations including Speech Pathology Australia, Early Childhood Australia, and the American Speech-Language Hearing Association
Dr. Verdon's research program has two main foci: (1) investigating and supporting the speech, language, and literacy development of culturally and linguistically diverse children, particularly those from migrant, refugee, and Indigenous backgrounds; and (2) facilitating the development of culturally responsive professionals and workplaces. Her areas of expertise include cultural responsiveness, multilingual and multicultural practice, children with speech and language needs, autism in young children, and early years education. She is a mixed methods researcher with extensive experience across five continents in various professional and cultural contexts.
Her research spans multiple disciplines including speech-language pathology, linguistics, multicultural education, and child development. Dr. Verdon has published extensively on topics related to multilingual children's speech, cultural responsiveness in healthcare, and speech pathology practice with diverse populations. Her work contributes to UN Sustainable Development Goals, particularly in education and reducing inequalities.
- Charles Sturt Executive Dean's Teaching Award (2021)
- Charles Sturt Staff Excellence Award: Successful Graduates (2021)
- Charles Sturt Excellence Awards: Research (2023)
- Charles Sturt Excellence Awards: Social Responsibility (Highly Commended) (2023)
- Bloorview Pursuit Award (2015)
Dr. Verdon actively supervises HDR students completing honours and PhD projects. She has been involved in significant research projects including an ARC Discovery Grant on Vietnamese children's speech and language competence, investigating the impact of 20 years of speech pathology at CSU on the regional workforce, examining the health and wellbeing of regionally resettled refugees, and studying Australian children's speech and language development in the early years. She has developed culturally responsive assessment tools for Ghanaian-English speaking children and has contributed to curriculum development for Vietnam's first speech-language pathology degrees.
She is part of the Children's Voices Centre at Charles Sturt University, which focuses on listening to children's perspectives to inform healthcare and education policy and procedures. Her work with the Trinh Foundation Australia extends her impact internationally, particularly in developing speech therapy services in Vietnam.
