Interview with Tabitha Parent-Buck Au.D., Chair, Audiology Program at Arizona School of Health Sciences

TOPIC: The Au.D programs at Arizona School of Hhealth Sciences
AO/Beck: Hi Dr. Parent-Buck - thanks for meeting with me today.

Parent-Buck: Hi Dr. Beck. It's my pleasure.

AO/Beck: Dr Parent-Buck, would you please tell me about the most recent additions to your faculty please?

Parent-Buck: Certainly. Our distance-learning program, which is the transitional degree program, has been up and running since June 2000 with a wide range of faculty members from across the country. The distance education faculty has grown as needed since we started the program and we have about 35 faculty members for that program now, all of whom teach within their specific areas of expertise. The entire list of those faculty members is available on the Internet and can be viewed at our website (www.ashs.edu)

AO/Beck: I should certainly mention that I have been teaching the Intraoperative Monitoring Class and the Ethics class at ASHS for a little more than a year. As the residential program has started to take shape, can you tell me a little about the faculty for that program?

Parent-Buck: Since the on-campus program is starting this fall, we have been recruiting new on-campus faculty, and we are pleased to recognize the addition of two excellent new faculty at ASHS with a wealth of teaching and clinical experience. Dr. Henry Trahan joined our audiology faculty in December of 2001. Dr. Trahan received his Au.D. from the University of Florida, and he was previously in private practice for more than fifteen years at ACI Hearing and Balance in Lafayette, Louisiana. He has taken a lead role in the development and coordination of the curriculum, the scheduling and the admissions processes for the residential program. More recently, we added Dr. Thomas Rigo. Dr. Rigo obtained his Ph.D. from Florida State University and he was a tenured associate professor in Communicative Disorders at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. He just joined us in May 2002. Dr. Rigo will also work primarily to support the on-campus program, but he will also teach a distance-education class or two within his area of expertise.

AO/Beck: Can you tell me please, how many people have graduated from the ASHS program and how many are currently in the process?

Parent-Buck: We have enrolled a total to date of 497 students, 197 have completed their coursework as of May 31, 2002. Therefore, we have 300 students currently taking classes towards their doctorate in Audiology.

AO/Beck: Have you seen a reduction in the quantity of applicants over the last semester or two?

Parent-Buck: No the opposite has been the case for us. We actually had to increase the amount of spots available per class to reduce the backlog of students. Previously we admitted 40 students, four times a year. But the backlog was getting out of hand, and so over the last 3 quarters we have taken between 60 and 80 students per quarter.

AO/Beck: For the average student, how long can they expect to be in the program, and how many classes will they be taking?

Parent-Buck: The average is about 14 credits and each credit is typically a month in duration. Since we have courses that are either one or two credits, lasting one or two months, respectively, I like to talk about number of credits and months vs number of classes. Of course, those are averages, and the variation is typically between 9 and 19 months. And as you know, some people may take 20 to 24 credits—a two year plan. But again, the average is about 14 credits.

AO/Beck: How large do you anticipate the residential faculty will be once the program is fully up and running?

Parent-Buck: That's difficult to say. However, it will get significantly larger over the next few years. We have one full-time position currently open, and as the program grows, there will be more. Nonetheless, the exact number is hard to define. There will likely be 10 or more audiology faculty; instructors from other departments such as Anatomy, Health Management and Medical Informatics teaching appropriate courses to Au.D. students, and I anticipate some use of adjunct instructors.

AO/Beck: Dr. Parent-Buck what about the limits on the distance education program regarding the last moment of entry? I know there are still many folks saying I'll enroll in a distance education Au.D. when the kids are grown, or when I finish this or that. But isn't the program finite with regards to the final class admission dates?

Parent-Buck: Yes. As of this time, we are sticking to our original schedule, and I don't see any compelling reason to change that. There is indeed a limited time window for which we will offer the transitional degree for the MA/MS level audiologist. During the academic year 2004/2005 we will still enroll new students, but we have no plans to enroll new students after that. Of course, we will allow those students to finish their studies at ASHS into the next academic year or as needed, but again, we are not planning on enrolling new students after that date.

AO/Beck: Could you spend a few moments addressing the new campus?
Parent-Buck: In October of 2001, we moved from the campus in Phoenix, to our brand new home in Mesa, which is about 15 to 20 miles east of Phoenix. We were able to acquire a rather large parcel there, and we put up a new 100,000-square-foot facility, within which the Doctor of Audiology program is housed. We are also adding the new Dentistry and Oral Health program in the new building. The main floor of the new building has small classrooms, large classrooms, a state of the art auditorium and an audiology laboratory for six very well equipped sound booths. The second floor is primarily departmental offices and there are also some labs located there too. The campus has additional land and space to bring in long-term care for geriatrics, an acute-care hospital, perhaps pediatric care, and also other projects too. So although the campus is really just in it's infancy, we anticipate it will grow quickly into the Arizona Health and Technology Park and we're looking forward to the excitement and challenges ahead.

AO/Beck: Dr. Parent-Buck, can you tell me a little about the practicum sites?

Parent-Buck: We are in the process of developing relationships and partnerships with many hearing healthcare providers in the area such as local hospitals and clinics and private audiology practices too, to provide a well rounded and formidable professional experience for the doctoral students in our audiology program.

AO/Beck: Dr. Parent-Buck, as always, it's a pleasure to speak with you and I appreciate your time today.

Parent-Buck: Thank you too Dr. Beck. It's always fun to work with you and Audiology Online, and before we conclude, I'd like to also encourage individuals interested in applying to either the transitional or entry-level programs and individuals interested in future faculty positions to visit our website and to please feel free to contact me if I can be of further assistance (www.ashs.edu or email to tparent@ashs.edu).

AO/Beck: Thanks very much Dr. Parent-Buck.