About Ali Steers

I settled upon my career path at the age of 14 after volunteering at a camp for children with disabilities.  I attended San Diego State University from 2002-2005, finishing my BA in Communication Sciences and Disorders Summa Cum Laude and with Honors in three years. I then remained at San Diego State University from 2005-2007 to complete my MA in Speech-Language Pathology. I began my career in a clinical setting for 2 years before venturing to the Caribbean island of St. Thomas where I worked in the local public schools for a year. In 2010, I returned to Los Angeles and I began work at CHIME Charter School where I remained for the following six years. This experience working in a fully inclusive school transformed my view of disability, communication and education. I will always, always advocate on the side of inclusion. No special school/program/classroom will ever replace the interactions that happen in a fully inclusive setting and all children deserve the right to develop communication skills within meaningful, natural contexts with their peers. With the birth of my second child in 2016, I found it necessary to step away from CHIME to pursue a more flexible schedule. Steers AAC Language & Speech, Inc was born the same time as my daughter and has allowed me the opportunity to work with children alongside their families and in partnership with a variety of school teams. In 2018, I experienced the most serendipitous event of my professional life when Linda Burkhart, educator and AAC specialist extraordinaire, became my mentor, teacher, sounding-board and source of professional inspiration. I can not fully express how grateful I am to have Linda in my life to help me help kids communicate in the best way possible. Following many years of mentorship, attendance and presentations at conferences/PODD Trainings, co-teaching an Intro to PODD Course with Gayle Porter and submission and review of a comprehensive case study, I’m pleased to officially be a PODD Trainer. I can now offer 2-Day Introduction to PODD trainings and continue consulting with schools and families to support the “lifestyle” of AAC through autonomous communication. To say I love my job is an understatement. I am so privileged, honored and humbled to support the communication functioning of the children and families with whom I work.