PUBLIC SCHOOL PARTNERSHIPS addresses the specific needs of students with hearing aids and cochlear implants in educational settings, providing a support system for monitoring deaf and hard of hearing students’ academic and developmental progress.
Our Service Area
PSP currently supports almost 900 students across more than 90 Massachusetts school districts! Our team includes Teachers of the Deaf, Educational Audiologists, and Speech-Language Pathologists.
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For students, teachers, and families:
PSP services are available to support students and teachers with any level/type of hearing loss in public schools, private schools, regional schools, collaboratives, and universities.
Inside Public School Partnerships
For school districts:
The Public School Partnerships Program (PSP), at The Learning Center for the Deaf (TLC), contracts a variety of consultative services for Deaf/hard of hearing (HOH) children in public schools, private schools, regional schools, collaboratives, and universities. The area of expertise provided by the staff of PSP include educational audiology as well as the education of deaf/HOH individuals. Direct-service-providers maintain required licensure/certification in their area of expertise and have the level of experience required to fully support our clients in the educational settings.
Services provided by the PSP staff, on location in school settings, will coordinate with the Educational Team, including but not limited to: classroom teachers, educational specialists, speech-language pathologists, parents, counselors, and school administrators. PSP services will be provided for students enrolled in special education via Individual Education Plans (IEPs) as well as those enrolled in regular education via 504 Plans.
Consultation Models include:
- Classroom observation
- Teacher consultation
- Educational Support Personnel consultation
- Speech-Language Pathology consultation
- Parent consultation
- Student consultation
- Student assessment
- Participation in IEP, 504, and Team meetings
- Curriculum modification
- Creation and provision of in-service material for teachers and school staff
- Direct instruction, with the purposes of modeling teaching strategies for the school-based educators
- Direct instruction, with the purpose of furthering student learning
- Evaluation of the need for remote microphone hearing assistive technology (RMHAT), formerly referred to as personal or soundfield FM systems
- Installation and removal of RMHAT components from personal amplification devices
- Troubleshooting RMHAT systems
- Troubleshooting personal amplification systems
- Supplemental direct instruction services
- Transition planning
Frequently Asked Questions
As a parent of a Bilingual Hard of Hearing student with additional special needs, I was extremely pleased with the support of the Public School Partnership program. If not for the PSP program, my son would not have gotten the support that ultimately helped him pass MCAS and achieve a High School Diploma. My son got what he needed in terms of hearing loss support and my town was able to successfully graduate one of their multi special needs students, which never would have happened without the Public School Partnership.
Key Staff
Briana has authored many well received publications, including journal articles and book chapters, related to identification, evaluation, and monitoring of pediatric hearing loss. She has also presented research regarding pediatric hearing topics regionally, nationally, and internationally.
Prior to her role, Briana spent nine years as an Educational Audiologist at TLC, until 2009. She was a multi-site manager at Boston Children's Hospital 2007-2022.
Lydia Colón, Au.D.
Dr. Colón received her Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Massachusetts – Amherst, with a certificate in Latin American Studies, and was awarded her Master of Science and Doctor of Audiology degree from Gallaudet University. Dr. Colón had previously completed her last year of doctoral practicum at the world renowned Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Arizona. Her passion is hearing healthcare as well as rehabilitative measures, including hearing aids and cochlear implants. She is a strong advocate of equity and access of healthcare services for marginalized and immigrant populations, spearheading the credentialing of the TLC Audiology Clinic for MassHealth services soon after her arrival in 2019. Dr. Colón has her certificate of clinical competence from the American Speech-Language Hearing Association and is fluent in English, Spanish, and American Sign Language.
As a Director of Special Education, my experience with Deaf/Hard of Hearing students was non-existent until a kindergarten child with hearing loss was on the roster, and the teacher wanted to make his learning experience as accessible as all the other students. The teacher's questions were many, and my answers were few. Fortunately, working with trained staff from TLC taught me that every child with hearing loss needs an educational audiologist who is part of the school team, and who can both educate the staff on an ongoing basis and provide services to children.