Marshall University is now home to a local chapter of the National Stuttering Association. Jamie Maxwell, one of the chapter leaders for the Huntington area, said the club is focused on connecting people who stutter. 

“The idea is that the club is an opportunity to connect people who stutter,” Maxwell said. “A lot of the times when we work with individuals, they don’t know anyone that stutters, they’ve never met anyone else that stutters. That can be very isolating and they can feel very alone, so a support group like this can be a great way to connect people to show them they’re not alone.” 

NSA is a nonprofit organization with the purpose to help people with stutters, to educate about stuttering and to connect people with or without stutters. 

Before Huntington got its own chapter in NSA, the closest available chapter for those in the Huntington area was located at West Virginia University. 

The club has an adult and family group available to people that stutter, want to help or want to learn more about stuttering. 

Maxwell is an assistant professor at Marshall for communication disorders. It is Maxwell’s first year at Marshall University coming from Florida last August. She also oversees her departments fluency clients that attend the Speech and Hearing center at Marshall. 

Maxwell also stated that the club is a good opportunity to learn what is helpful and practice strategies in a safe environment. 

“If you have any interest in learning more about stuttering, if you or someone who know stutters, than this is a great opportunity to meet people and learn more about stuttering,” Maxwell said. “A lot of what people know about stuttering are stereotypical or it’s not accurate, so it’s a great way to learn more. The club is open to anyone who would like to learn about stuttering, students who are learning about stuttering and students with stutters,” Maxwell said.

The first meeting for NSA will be at 6:30 p.m. March 5 at the Speech and Hearing Center in Smith Hall. Students can find more information by contacting Maxwell. 

Hunter Deem can be contacted at [email protected].