About Speech SF
We believe play is the basis of learning. Our mission is to help children reach their communication potential while making speech therapy as stress free as possible for our children and families.
Our History
Founded in 2016, Speech SF is a woman owned and family run business that strives to positively impact families, communities, and speech therapists in San Francisco. We were founded because Katie Laher believed that pairing in-home, play-based therapy with an exceptional parent experience and straightforward policies would help remove stress from the therapy process for the entire family.
Our Core Pillars
Families First
Support not only the children but the families too
Purposeful Play
Play is not a break from learning- it’s the basis of learning
Impact Focused
Set your sights on change not tasks
Growth Mindset
Life is too short to think small
Keep it Simple
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication
Partnering with the Community
We partner with schools, therapists, and children learning centers across San Francisco to provide holistic speech and language support. Here's a short list of folks we already have relationships with:
Speech SF Gives Back
At Speech SF we try to find every opportunity we can to give back to the community. We are currently helping the community by:
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Giving every one of our therapists 5 hours of paid volunteer time a year.
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Donating free evaluations for school auctions. Please reach out if you are interested.
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Building Speech Teammate to provide an online community with free resources for parents and therapists alike.
Our Team
Katie Weeks Laher
Co-Founder &
Speech-Language Pathologist, M.S. CCC-SLP
Katie is a speech-language pathologist who has a passion for helping children with communication disorders grow. She has experience working with children of all ages in various clinical settings and believes in fun, effective, family centered therapy. She works closely with families to provide personalized therapy in order to meet the needs and individual differences of each child.
Katie received her Bachelor of Science in Speech-Language Pathology & Audiology from Miami University of Ohio and her Master of Science in Speech-Language Pathology from Rush University Medical Center in Chicago. She is a certified member of the American Speech-Language Hearing Association (ASHA), the California Speech-Language Hearing Association (CSHA) and is licensed within the State of California. She has specialized training in DIR/Floortime, SCERTS and the Orton-Gillingham approach to reading.
TJ Laher
Co-Founder & Operations
After graduating from UC Berkeley, TJ found himself working with a variety of disruptive technology companies in the Bay Area launching products and growing companies through data driven marketing techniques. Before Speech SF, TJ was head of marketing for an early stage AI company called Primer. Prior to Primer, he worked at Cloudera for over 4 years helping it grow from a $50M revenue privately held company into the publicly traded company it is today. He has had the opportunity to help Fortune 500 companies digitally transform their client experience through technology and AI and he's excited to bring that experience to the speech therapy world.
Kaleigh VanVolkenburgh
Speech-Language Pathologist, M.S. CCC-SLP
Originally from upstate NY, Kaleigh decided to move to San Francisco in pursuit of more sunshine. She received her undergraduate and graduate training in Speech-Language Pathology with a minor in Spanish from Ithaca College, located in Ithaca, NY. Kaleigh's areas of clinical experience include autism, articulation, language, Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC), voice, cognitive communication and dysphagia. Kaleigh has worked in preschools, elementary and middle schools, rehabilitation centers, private university clinics and in the client's home. She is a certified trainer in Hanen's "More than Words". In her free time, Kaleigh enjoys hiking and traveling around the Bay Area.
Maple
Chief Cuddle Pup
Maple has been a professional cuddler for over 3 years. She has a PhD in snuggles with a speciality in face licking. When times get tough she always knows how to help.
Contact us!
Feel free to send us a note. We love working with families, schools, and other local businesses. We look forward to connecting with you!
2443 Fillmore Street, #153
San Francisco, CA, 94115