Julie A. Dalessio

Julie Dalessio is a Teaching Professor in the Department of Speech and Hearing Sciences and an ASHA-certified speech-language pathologist (SLP) licensed to practice in the state of Washington. She obtained her BA in Communications from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst in 1992 and spent the first part of her career working in corporate communications and the healthcare and professional liability insurance fields. Prior to leaving the private sector, she worked as an Operations Manager overseeing business planning, budgets, communications, administrative workflow, and a staff of ten.

In 2000, she moved across the country to attend the University of Washington to study speech-language pathology, with a focus on adult and geriatric populations. She earned her MS degree in 2002 and completed a thesis entitled, “Supported communication intervention for chronic aphasia:  A preliminary investigation into the effects of communication partner training on the quality of communication.” Julie completed her Clinical Fellowship training and certification at the VA Puget Sound Health Care System in Seattle and subsequently worked in the Seattle area for several years as a medical speech-language pathologist across acute care, inpatient rehabilitation, transitional care, and skilled nursing settings. Her specific clinical interests include acquired speech, language, cognitive-communication and swallowing disorders, as well as interventions for patients with head and neck cancer.

Julie joined the SPHSC faculty in 2006 to help develop the clinical curricula for the new MS in Medical Speech-Language Pathology (MedSLP) program. Her initial responsibilities included development and coordination of community-based practica and internships for graduate students, clinical supervision of MS students in the UW Speech and Hearing Clinic, and managment of the MedSLP program. Over the last twelve years, Julie's been involved in both academic and administrative roles for the undergraduate and graduate degree programs. She's taught in the classroom and online, developed several new BS and MS courses, revised the BS and M.S.-CoreSLP degree programs, helped create the new MS-EdSLP program, overseen the academic and student services unit, and developed a variety of degree program policies and procedures.

Her key service responsibilities in the department have included almost two decades on the MS Admissions Committee (chairing for the last 6 years), twelve years on the BS Admissions Committee (chairing for 8 years), twelve years as the department's Curriculum Coordinator, as a member of the CAA Site Review and Reaccreditation Committee, and on the SPHSC Executive Committee, and six years as the Chair of the Student Progress Committee. Within the University, she is a Faculty Senator representing the SPHSC and Linguistic Departments, a member of the UW Advisory Council for Technology-Enhanced Teaching (ACTT), and a Student Appeal Reviewer for Student Conduct and Title IX cases at the UW.  Outside of the University, Julie served as the Membership Committee Chair for the Washington State Speech-Language Hearing Association (WSLHA) from 2012-2013, the WSLHA Treasurer from 2013 - 2016, and is currently serving as the Chair of the WSLHA Bylaws, Standards, & Advocacy Committee.