Portales, NM – Aug. 18, 2023 – Eastern New Mexico University proudly announced a partnership with the Early Childhood Program of the Mescalero Apache Tribe to offer telehealth speech-language pathology services to infants and toddlers in their Early Childhood Program starting September 1.

These services are designed to assist parents in developing their children's communication skills and work directly with children with speech-language delays or who are at risk for delays.

"We are deeply honored to work alongside the Mescalero Apache Tribe to enrich the communication skills of their youngest speakers.  This partnership allows ENMU to support NM peoples with high-quality therapies by connecting our native communities to a cadre of experts in speech and language while also providing an invaluable learning opportunity for ENMU students in a supported and supervised clinical experience," said Suzanne Swift, Professor of Communicative Disorders at ENMU. "We are proud to serve our NM Family-Infant-Toddler programs, families, and children, and we are especially excited to work with the esteemed members of the Mescalero Apache Early Childhood Program.   The ENMU CDIS Program and our Speech and Hearing Rehabilitative Outreach Center are delighted to serve in whatever capacity the tribe may deem appropriate.  We are grateful for this opportunity.  We grow as we go!"

The Mescalero Apache Early Childhood Program provides early intervention services to children of the Mescalero Apache reservation aged newborn to three. These early intervention services may be developmental instruction, physical therapy, occupational therapy and/or speech-language therapy.  The child is at the epicenter of its operations, fostering relationships with the families, the Mescalero Apache community, and other agencies to provide for the developing child's needs.

"Identification and early intervention are two integral components to addressing developmental delays. The Mescalero Apache Early Childhood Program is hopeful that this partnership with ENMU will further elevate the standard of early intervention services provided to the future of the Mescalero Apache Tribe," shared Rosario Dick, Director of the Mescalero Apache Tribe's Early Childhood Program.

For more information on the ENMU Speech and Hearing Outreach Center, please visit enmu.edu/SHROC.