Jeff Steffen '89

Jeff Steffen graduated from CU in 1989 with MA/SLP. He received his BA degree from University of Maine at Orono in 1986. He currently manages Foothills Speech and Language LLC, a private practice, out-patient office in Littleton, Colorado which provides speech and language services to both children and adults. In his practice he treats individuals and their families with a wide variety of communicative impairments. Jeff is also currently serving as vice president of the Colorado Speech-Language Hearing (CHSA) Foundation board. As a graduate student at CU, Jeff said he knew that he “was definitely interested in kids and completed the pediatric tract. Exposure to CLC and use of Story Book Journey continued to support my decision to work with peds. I was so hungry for knowledge that I didn’t have any specific area of interest…since then have become interested in voice disorders as well as cleft and resonance disorders.” One of Jeff's memories was a meeting on his first day of grad school at CU. “It was a mandatory meeting in the morning (I had no idea that the afternoon was to be spent signing up for classes.I had to leave to join friends on a West coast Grateful Dead tour...Telluride, New Mexico, Utah, California…) so Marci Williams, whom I had met that morning, offered to sign me up for courses. I didn’t have a lot of social interaction as I was not only the token male, but the “mountain man” as well, I lived up in Nederland for most of Graduate school. It was hard to get classmates to come up for high mountain bar-b-ques.” When asked about any special reunions Jeff has had with your classmates over the years he shared that he “hasn’t really had any big reunions, it would be fun to do so.” (If any of you out there are Jeff's classmates and could make that happen, contact us here at the In Touch website, or Jeff at his private practice website.) When asked to pick his current favorite area of expertise, Jeff related that "it would be working with children with cleft lip and palate and related speech/resonance disorders. I would love to do some research on internationally adopted children with clefting and development of compensatory misarticulation patterns”. In addition to his research plans, Jeff is interested in generating a website and consultation opportunity for SLP’s in Colorado working with children with cleft lip and palate. Other goals include "...improving recognition of our services with insurance companies to assist with gaining better reimbursement rates." He is also working to grow his new private practice and to obtain grant and private funding for a mobile voice lab.

Jeff & Family

Currently, when not helping with his two children (age 5 and 2) and running his private practice, Jeff is learning the banjo (still) and is involved in telemark skiing and golfing when time allows. Jeff is married and met his wife while working at The Children’s Hospital. “She was an OT at the time. She now works for Invest In Kids, consulting and implementing The Incredible Years Curriculum into schools in Colorado. We have two wonderful children Stella and Oliver. Stella is having fun learning to read, write.” By all accounts, Jeff seems to be living up to one of his favorite quotes, Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined. --Henry David Thoreau We wish Jeff continued confidence and success with his research & innovative professional goals! You can learn more about Jeffs private practice at his office website Foothills Speech and Language LLC http://www.foothillsspeech.org