Our Story
We’re Emily and Kent Hathaway. We started Speech Pathway to help one family at a time, and we’ve been doing it ever since.
Where we started
Speech Pathway began because families asked for more. Parents of the children Emily was seeing in the schools wanted to know if she could continue working with them privately, and whether insurance would cover it. She did not have the answers yet. She figured it out anyway, because those families needed the help. For the first two years she saw children after school and on weekends in the attic of her mom’s office. By 2012 a team of clinicians had joined her. What started with one child has grown into a clinic that now serves nearly 600 children and families.
KENT
The work became more personal when our son Liam was diagnosed with autism. I left my role as an award winning elementary art teacher and redirected my focus to children’s communication. I became a Speech Language Pathology Assistant and later a Board Certified Behavior Analyst. Years afterward I was diagnosed with autism myself, as an adult. That combination of lived experience, clinical training, and advocacy shapes how we approach families.
We know this road from both sides. We know it as clinicians, and we know it as parents sitting in the waiting room. That is why we work so deliberately to make sure every family understands exactly what their child is working on and feels genuinely heard along the way. Speech Pathway is owned and operated by families like yours, for families like ours.
Meet the owners
Emily Hathaway
Clinic Director
- Master of Science in Speech-Language Pathology, University of Oklahoma
- Specializes in early childhood language, literacy, autism, childhood apraxia of speech, articulation and social communication
- Founder of Camp Communicate
- OKOTA Health Advocate Award (2020) and the OSHA Gwen Casey Award for clinical excellence (2024)
Kent T. Hathaway
BCBA · SLPA
- Master’s in Special Education and Behavior Analysis, Arizona State University
- Speech-Language Pathology Assistant degree, Oklahoma City Community College
- Guides families through treatment and insurance, and supports parents and staff
- An adult with autism, who brings that experience to every family he meets
What we believe
Families are part of the team
Parents should always know what their child is working on and why. We collaborate with you at every step.
We advocate for every child
From insurance calls to school meetings, we speak up for children, families and providers so kids get the care they need.
Every voice matters
We want every child to feel seen, heard and valued, and to have the power to communicate in their own way.
