In honor of National Speech-Language-Hearing Month, on this edition of The FOX Five, we speak with Anne Mironchik, MS, CCC-SLP, who lists off a handful of reasons why she decided to become a speech-language pathologist. Anne’s story is an interesting one, as she joined the clinical community in the middle of her professional career. As a teacher and musician Anne enjoyed working one-on-one with others, and as you listen to her FOX Five today, you will realize that the transition into speech therapy makes perfect sense for someone who enjoys a change of scenery, spending time with older adults, and working with like-minded people to positively impact peoples’ lives.

Jim: Welcome to The FOX Five, the show that explores the world of FOX Rehabilitation through an original list created by a FOX colleague. That FOX colleague today is speech-language pathologist, Ann Mironchik.

Anne: Well, thank you for that very exciting introduction.

Jim: I'm pumped, I'm pumped to have you on an episode of The FOX Five.

Anne: I do have a background in performing, so I don't get shy in front of the camera or knowing that a whole bunch of people are going to be watching and listening to what we do. I'm like, “Go ahead, bring it. Come on, let's go.”

Jim: Alright, so Anne, what is your FOX Five today?

Anne: I have a little different situation than maybe some FOX colleagues. I became a speech therapist mid-career, and I was teaching music and singing privately. So, I knew I loved that one-on-one work. I knew that any kind of work, or if I was going to advance my career, it still had to be one-on-one. I kind of ruled out teaching at the college level, or touring, or doing academic work. I need to be with people.

Jim: I like that. A little context before you dive into your FOX Five. So, with that background information, what is your FOX Five today?

Anne: My FOX Five is Five Reasons Why I Became a Speech Therapist, Mid-Career.

Jim: I never knew that. That's quite interesting. I'm excited to hear your FOX Five. What is Number One?

Anne: Number One was to maintain the carryover of my previous work with teaching piano and voice one-on-one. I love that, so I needed to maintain that. I love working one-on-one. I had dabbled in some teaching at classrooms or, you know, thinking about teaching at the college level to advance my career, but nothing to me is as good as one-on-one. Being a speech therapist, I knew I'd be able to do that.

Jim: Alright, and that brings us to Number Two on your FOX Five.

Anne: Some of my favorite students were older adults. I loved my retirees. I love the adolescence, too. That's always fun, but this idea of older adults started to come forward.

Jim: I like how this isn't just a FOX Five, this is a story.

Anne: (sings) So many stories of who I am.

Jim: You're up to Number Three on your FOX Five.

Anne: Number Three was what environment was going to put me with other people who were do-gooders, who wanted to do the right thing, who wanted to do well. There's a myth that people in the Performing Arts, and it's a cutthroat business and all, I didn't experience that, even in New York. If you weren't nice to work with, then you didn't get hired, and nobody wanted to hire you unless you were at some high, huge echelon that you could get away with being a jerk. I started thinking about some of my students who have voice problems and breathing problems. What's connected with that? That's where I started to learn all about the spectrum of speech therapy, and when I talked with the other speech therapists who were doing this work, they were all amazing people, really wonderful people. I'm like, “Okay, I'm in. I want to work with these people.”

Jim: Would you say there are a lot of do-gooders at FOX Rehabilitation?

Anne: Totally, totally.

Jim: That brings us to Number Four on your FOX Five.

Anne: Steady income. That's Number four. I had no idea what I would be getting into when I applied to grad school. I was thinking about something in the healthcare field or something where I could make a decent living as I was entering midlife. I knew I didn't want to work as a speech therapist in the school system. In the healthcare system, I felt like, “Boy, oh boy, the need is great and the job security is huge, is so stable, and I knew that was also a good factor.”

Jim: It's a practical Number Four. I like that.

Anne: Very practical.

Jim: Closing out your FOX Five, what is Number Five?

Anne: You know, it's really hard to just to narrow this down to five things. Any of us, and I tell my students who come to work with me, and I talk about this with other younger colleagues, that you're going to go through so many changes in your career, and you're going to change your ideas of who you are, and what you have to offer, and what you want to do, but having that flexibility is really important to me—knowing that I can work with FOX to change locations or work in different settings in the community. In assisted living, I knew there was some wiggle room in that area, I could work with students, work on different projects, and things like that. I like the flexibility of the job, and if I can add a quick Number Six, it's I'm not locked into a windowless speech therapy room. That was not an option.

Jim: You like the change of scenery?

Anne: I love the change of scenery, and I am in an area where the drive to work is over bucolic beautiful hills and dales. It's a nice drive to work and nice communities that I work in, so that's good, too.

Jim: Well, Anne, thank you for making this happen.

Anne: We did it.

Jim: It wasn’t a FOX Five today, it was a FOX Six!