SDSU Professor, Global Citizen
SDSU's Li-Rong Cheng received the highest honors from a top organization in her field.
Li-Rong Cheng, director of the San Diego State University Confucius Institute, has dedicated more than two decades to working in in the field of speech, language and hearing sciences.
Her contributions to the field were recently recognized by the top speech and language organization — the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.
She was chosen as president-elect of the International Association of Logopedics and Phoniatrics. She will serve on the executive committee for the 2013–2016 term.
"Throughout her impressive career, Cheng has been a driving force for improving our awareness of multicultural issues in general and advancing our understanding of communication disorders in individuals from multicultural and diverse language backgrounds," said Beverly Wulfeck, director of SDSU's School of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences.
"She has continued her leadership and hard work and this has brought tremendous positive attention to SDSU from professionals in the United States and around the world."
Cheng also received Honors of the Association, which is the highest award given by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. The award recognizes Cheng's distinguished contributions to the field of speech, language and hearing.
The association ensures that all people with speech, language and hearing disorders receive services to help them communicate effectively. It is a professional association for speech–language pathologists, audiologists and speech, language and hearing scientists in the United States and internationally. It has more than 160,000 members and affiliates.
Advocating for globalism
Cheng is a firm believer in the organization's vision to make effective communication accessible and achievable for all.
The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association's mission is to Empower and support audiologists, speech-language pathologists and speech, language and hearing scientists through advancing science and fostering excellence in professional practice.
Cheng is looking forward to further serving the SDSU community and advocating for learning multiple languages.
"As the world becomes more globalized, it is very important to become a more educated, global citizen," Cheng said. "Being bi- and tri-lingual is invaluable."
Cheng is also excited to use her interntational position to leverage support for speech pathologists in underserved regions.
