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Meet The Team

Jennifer Malone Priest and Karen Malone Gonzalez are sisters who have known since early in life that, ’when they grew up’, they wanted to help people. When it became clear that they would both become speech-language pathologists, they began to dream of a day when they might go into private practice together.

That opportunity came in 2002 when the owner of the clinic, at which they were both employed, retired. This allowed them to continue providing services as the new co-owners. Since then, Jen and Karen have been working hard to build the clinic into a special place where individuals and families alike can feel confident they are receiving the best care possible. The result of those efforts is Central Speech & Language Clinic.

Like the sisters who founded it, the entire staff at Central Speech & Language Clinic functions as a family of similarly-minded professionals with a passion for helping people and a dedication to providing excellent care.

Jennifer Malone Priest, MA CCC-SLP is a licensed and certified speech-language pathologist, as well as co-owner and Executive Director of Central Speech & Language Clinic, Inc.  Jennifer received her Bachelor of Science degree in Speech Pathology and Audiology at Miami University and her Master of Arts degree in Speech Language Pathology at Kent State University.

She began her career in long-term care, working with adults on an interdisciplinary rehabilitation team.   She then returned to working with children in the Evanston / Skokie school district within the early childhood program, as well as a middle school.

In 2002, she began working in private practice where she now continues to provide treatment to children and adolescents, ages 2 - 18, with various speech and language disorders.

Jennifer's areas of specialty include auditory-language processing, reading, and early childhood phonology and language. She has been trained in Orton Gillingham, Fast ForWord® and Lindamood Bell programs, including Lindamood Phonemic Sequencing (LiPS)® and Visualizing/Verbalizing for Language Comprehension and Thinking (V/V)®.

Jennifer is licensed in the state of Illinois.  She is a certified member, in good standing, of the American Speech-Language Hearing Association (ASHA), ASHA's Special Interest Division 1 (Language Learning and Education), ASHA's Special Interest Division 16 (School-Based Issues), the North Suburban Speech and Language Association, the International Dyslexia Association, and the Illinois Speech-Language Hearing Association (ISHA). Jennifer is honored to be a member of the board for the American Academy of Private Practice in Speech Pathology and Audiology (AAPPSPA).

Jen Malone Priest

Jen is the Executive Director and practicing Speech Language Pathologist.

Full bio coming soon!

Becca Lapp

Karen Malone Gonzalez, M.S., CCC-SLP is a licensed and certified speech-language pathologist, as well as co-owner and director. She earned her Bachelor's degree in Speech Pathology and Audiology at Augustana College. She then earned her Master's degree in Speech-Language Pathology at Marquette University.



Karen began her career in the Arlington Heights school district where she provided service for children in grades kindergarten through fifth. She gained experience working with children who have articulation, phonology, expressive language, processing, and vocabulary deficits. In 2002, she began working in private practice where she continues to provide services to children and adolescents, ages 2 - 18, targeting various speech and language disorders.

Karen's areas of specialty include phonemic awareness, vocabulary, auditory-language processing, and academic language. She has been trained in Lindamood Bell programs, including Lindamood Phonemic Sequencing (LiPS)® and Visualizing/Verbalizing for Language Comprehension and Thinking (V/V)® as well as Wilson Language Training.

Karen is licensed in the state of Illinois.  She is a certified member, in good standing, of the American Speech-Language Hearing Association (ASHA), ASHA Special Interest Division 16 (School-Based Issues), the Illinois Speech-Language Hearing Association (ISHA), the American Academy of Private Practice in Speech Pathology and Audiology (AAPPSPA), and the International Dyslexia Association.

Karen Malone Gonzalez

Karen Malone Gonzalez, M.S., CCC-SLP is a licensed and certified speech-language pathologist, as well as co-owner and director.

Full Bio coming soon!

Katie Gurklis

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