#OrganizationOfTheWeek – Meet Dis-Lalie

As we’ve seen, the Ademmoos association brings together elected representatives from every sector! This week, we’re focusing on speech-language pathologists in Montpellier through the Dis-Lalie association! 

In a nutshell, what is the Dis-lalie association?

Dis-Lalie, founded in 1998, is the association for speech-language pathology students in Montpellier. The association’s goals are to foster student life through a variety of events and to represent speech-language pathology students in Montpellier within the federations to which Dis-Lalie belongs, namely the FNEO (National Federation of Speech-Language Pathology Students) and AGEM (General Association of Montpellier Students), to help students prepare for their professional careers through conferences, training sessions, and meetings with partners and healthcare professionals, and to support students in defending their rights and ensuring the smooth progress of their education with university and local authorities.

What activities or initiatives do you organize throughout the year? 

Throughout the year, Dis-Lalie organizes events for its student members:

• Team-building activities : team-building weekends and afternoons, social events, meals, ski trips, end-of-year ceremony, attendance at the graduation ceremony for new graduates…
• Speech-language pathology training : lectures (on Alzheimer’s disease, lip-reading, stuttering, etc.), training sessions and workshops related to the profession (drawing, accounting, etc.)
• Wellness events : sophrology and yoga workshops.
• Cultural events : city tour, visit to the anatomy museum, hikes around Montpellier, beer/chocolate tasting…
• Events focused on prevention, civic engagement, and solidarity: bake sales for Telethon Week, Pink October, and Sidaction, with proceeds donated to charitable organizations; toy drives for hospitalized children at Christmas; collections of plastic bottle caps to be repurposed into assistive devices for people with disabilities; and participation in the hospital’s teddy bear drive…

Dis-Lalie also supports students throughout their studies. Whether by offering discounts on speech therapy materials through our partnerships with publishers or by informing students about the financial aid and mobility assistance available to them. We then assist students interested in spending a semester abroad with the necessary administrative procedures. Dis-Lalie also helps students who wish to pursue a university degree in speech-language pathology by sharing testimonials from speech-language pathology students on social media and by hosting candidates during the oral exam, among other things.

Why did you personally choose the speech-language pathology program, and what does the association offer students in this program?

Personally, I chose to pursue a career in speech-language pathology because it is a profession focused on care and, above all, rehabilitation, which allows you to see real progress in patients, particularly through speech-language therapy.  It’s a very diverse field. Indeed, patients come from all age groups, and the conditions and rehabilitation methods are highly varied. For example, a speech-language pathologist may work with newborns who have oral motor disorders, children with learning disabilities (dyslexia, dysorthography, dyscalculia…), as well as patients with neurological conditions, hearing loss, post-stroke, or even post-COVID! It is therefore a profession in which every case is different, offering the choice to work in a healthcare facility or in private practice, and providing the opportunity to continue training throughout our careers on a wide variety of conditions.

Why do you think someone should join your organization? 

Our association provides speech-language pathology students in Montpellier with opportunities to come together at various events, fostering a sense of community and collaboration among students at our training center. Membership in Dis-Lalie offers students numerous benefits:

• Discounts or free admission to events organized by the association
• Access to conferences and training sessions on speech-language pathology, organized by our Vice President of Training
• Preferential rates from our partner companies: insurance providers, publishing houses, and more…
• Discounted or free travel to events organized by the FNEO (training weekends and national conferences)
• Opportunity to participate in all team-building, cultural, and wellness events organized by the association
• Right to vote at general meetings

How do I sign up? 

Membership is renewed annually in September. The membership fee for the 2019–2020 year is €11.

A few words about the 2020–2021 board?

The election of the 2020–2021 executive board will take place at the end of October during the handover general meeting. The election of Dis-Lalie’s new executive board will be conducted on a position-by-position basis. Each candidate will have the opportunity to present their rationale to the assembly. Each year, the executive board consists of two co-chairs, a secretary, a treasurer, a vice-president in charge of communications, a vice-president in charge of training, a vice-president in charge of international mobility, a vice-president in charge of social issues, a vice-president in charge of culture, a vice president in charge of partnerships, a vice president in charge of student representation, vice presidents in charge of events, vice presidents in charge of social gatherings, vice presidents in charge of prevention, citizenship, and solidarity, and an admissions coordinator.

Here are our contact details. Feel free to follow us on social media:

• website: https://dislalie.jimdofree.com/
• Facebook: Dis-Lalie 
• Twitter: Dyslalia 
• Instagram: dislalia