Meet Leslie Whitaker - MA, CCC-SLP

Education and Professional Credentials

I hold a master’s degree in Communication Disorders with an emphasis on Reading Disorders from Appalachian State University.

I have earned the Certificate of Clinical Competence in Speech-Language Pathology (CCC-SLP) from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and am licensed to practice in both California and Florida.

I founded and managed Bay Area SpeechWorks, Inc., a private speech-language and occupational therapy clinic in Mill Valley, California (Marin County), for 18 years before moving to Florida in 2018. Bay Area SpeechWorks was also a Non-Public Agency (NPA) certified by the California Department of Education and served students in private, public, and charter schools throughout the San Francisco Bay Area, including Marin, San Francisco, Sonoma, Napa, Alameda, and Solano counties. Additionally, I conducted Independent Educational Evaluations (IEEs) for parents and schools as a private SLP when there were questions or concerns about eligibility and services.

Professional Experience

I lived and worked in the San Francisco Bay Area for 20 years, serving clients ages 5 to 21 in private practice and as a contractor with public, charter, and private schools.

In 2005, I founded Bay Area SpeechWorks, Inc., a private speech-language pathology and occupational therapy practice and clinic in Mill Valley, California. From 2005 through 2019, my team and I assessed and treated children, teens, and served families throughout the Bay Area. Bay Area SpeechWorks was also a Non-Public Agency (NPA) certified by the California Department of Education (CDE) and served students in private, public, and charter schools throughout the San Francisco Bay Area, including Marin, San Francisco, Sonoma, Napa, Alameda, and Solano counties.

In 2019, I expanded my work to Palm Beach County, Florida. Today, my practice is dedicated to providing specialized virtual speech and language services to clients across California and Florida.

My experience in clinical, educational, and private-practice settings allows me to understand the communication demands clients encounter at home, at school, in college, in the workplace, and within their communities.

Advanced Training

  • Early language development through the Hanen It Takes Two to Talk® Program

  • Motor speech disorders through PROMPT — Prompts for Restructuring Oral Muscular Phonetic Targets

  • Reading decoding and comprehension through Lindamood-Bell LiPS® and Visualizing and Verbalizing®

  • Social Thinking® mentorship with Michelle Garcia Winner at the Social Thinking Clinic in San Jose, California

I completed the Social Thinking® mentorship in 2011 and am included in the Social Thinking® Directory of Clinical Trainees.

Personal Interests

Outside of my professional work, I enjoy spending time with my children, reading, and practicing yoga. I have been an avid yoga practitioner since 1998 and formerly taught Vinyasa flow based on the Mysore tradition. I am currently studying yoga in the Iyengar tradition.

I am also a Guardian ad Litem volunteer, supporting children involved in the Palm Beach County dependency court system.

Social Thinking Website Page

I am proud to be listed on the Social Thinking website page Directory of Clinical Trainees. Click here to Learn More.

Social Thinking ™ is methodology created in 1990 by speech-language pathologist, Michelle Garcia Winner, in San Jose, California to help people understand the thought processes and components of social interactions. Core concepts include the need to understand nonverbal communication, perspective, flexible thinking, and the understanding of the social outcomes of behavior. Michelle was instrumental in changing the name of Asperger’s Syndrome (high-functioning autism) to Social-Communication Disorder in the 2015 DSM V.