Graham Schenck knows what it’s like to have a speech issue. As a child he had a mild stutter and worked with a speech therapist in his hometown in Illinois.

“I had a great experience working with my speech therapist and that sparked my interested in the field,” says Schenck, who is now a Gillette speech-language pathology specialist on the Gillette craniofacial team. “My personal experience as a speech therapy patient drives me to help my patients.” 

Schenck has a doctorate from East Carolina University and specializes in working with patients who have craniofacial conditions.  “I’m excited to work with patients on improving their articulation and evaluating their resonance when they speak,” he says. “Resonance is the quality of a sound as it vibrates in a cavity. Children who have cleft lip and palate often have hyper-nasal speech because it can be difficult for them to seal off the oral cavity from the nasal cavity during speech. Once the palate is repaired, we expect most of our patients will have a palate that works great. For the small percentage that still have issues we can work with them to improve their speech.”

Schenck says he enjoys working with parents to map out a treatment plan so their child can reach their full potential. “I also really like working with kids. My favorite part of my job is being part of that moment when a light goes off in a kid’s mind and they have a breakthrough in correcting a speech issue. It’s a great experience.”

Schenck looks forward to working with Cheryl Anderson-Cermin, DDS, and the rest of the Gillette craniofacial team. “After years of living in North Carolina during graduate school, I’m happy to be back in the Midwest. I’m even looking forward to seeing some snow,” Schenck jokes.