Leonia Speech & Language Services LLC

¡Bienvendos! We have a strong team of Speech-Language Pathologists who practice person- and family-centered care and caters to each client's needs. We provide bilingual services and neurodiversity- affirming educational and therapy practices. We are passionate in serving our families holistically and ready to provide resources and referrals whenever needed so that our clients thrive outside the therapy room. Let's introduce the team! Joelle LaTorre, M.A., CCC-SLP (bilingual Spanish/English) - Joelle was born and raised in Maryland, but her parents moved here from the Jersey Shore. Her mother is African American and her Father is Puerto Rican. Joelle graduated with her Bachelors of Science in Hearing and Speech Sciences in May 2020, and received her Masters of Arts in Speech Pathology in May 2023. She initially started as a graduate intern at the practice in spring of 2023, and saw the dire need of bilingual speech services at the practice. She has expertise in a variety of areas, but she has specialized training in stuttering, Natural Language Acquisition (NLA), and recognition of dialectal differences vs. disorders. Her hobbies are playing soccer and binge reading books. Nathalie Fiestas, M.S., CF-SLP (bilingual Spanish/English) - Nathalie was born and raised in Maryland, and her parents are from Lima, Peru. Nathalie graduated with her Bachelors of Arts in Hearing and Speech Sciences in 2021, and received her Masters of Sciences in Speech Pathology in May 2024. She initially started as a graduate intern at the practice in spring of 2024, and enjoyed working with culturally diverse families that came to the practice, that she wanted to extend her expertise to these families. She has a wide variety of areas of expertise, however, she has specialized training in AAC, expressive/receptive language, orofacial myofuctional therapy, and performs pre/post-operative exercises for frenectomy clients. Her hobbies are going to barre workout classes, going on hikes, and dancing to Latin music with friends and family. Christian Zapata, M.A., CF-SLP (bilingual Spanish/English) _ Christian is from Pennsylvania, where his dad is originally from Colombia, and his mom from the Philippines. Christian graduated with a Bachelors of Science in Communication Disorders and got his Masters of Arts in Speech Pathology in 2024. He is a person who stutters (PWS) who will be bringing both his personal and professional experiences to his families. He also specializes in stuttering, autism, and pragmatics. He will be expanding his expertise in the areas of NLA, AAC, and orofacial myofunctional therapy. His hobbies are running, soccer, basketball, and people watching. Karla Garcia, M.S., CCC-SLP (bilingual Spanish/English); owner - Karla is from Maryland, and her mom is from El Salvador and dad is from Honduras. Karla graduated with a Bachelors of Arts in Hearing and Speech Sciences, was an SLP-A for 5 years, and got accepted to UDC where she graduated with her Masters of Science in 2018. Karla is also a PWS and focuses on a variety of needs from early intervention to adulthood and with the geriatric population. She has a variety of specialties, and trains graduate students with how to provide services that are catered to the client and the family's needs.