Meet Mrs. Flyke

I received my Bachelor of Arts in Speech Communications from NEIU and a Bachelor & Master of Arts in Communicative Disorders from NIU.

I have been practicing as a Licensed Speech and Language Pathologist since 1998. Initially out of graduate school, my heart was set on working in the medical setting. My work experience in the hospitals include: Illinois Masonic Hospital, Chicago IL - in the Adult Rehabilitation & ICU Units and Lutheran General Hospital, Park Ridge IL - at Yachtman Children's Hospital in the Pediatric Therapies and the Adult Rehabilitation Units. I also worked in the private sector as an Early Intervention (EI) Evaluator and Therapist with Child and Family Connections for 17 years. As an EI provider, I performed weekly evaluations and speech therapy to children ages 0-3 yrs. old in their homes. After getting married and learning a variety of skills in the medical and private sector, I decided that I could better serve children with communication disorders in the school setting.

I’ve worked in a variety of schools with multiple ages and populations before coming to District 64. I started out in the district split between Field Elementary and Emerson Middle School. As the needs at Emerson Middle School grew, it became a full time position and I have been here for the last 21 years.

My passion is working with students with special needs and those with social/pragmatic difficulties. I consistently collaborate with our instructional teachers, occupational therapist, physical therapist, social workers, and psychologist, as our goals overlap in many areas. I also work hand and hand with our academic resource teachers and core/elective teachers, focusing on the individual needs of students within the classroom setting.

Although my job is to help teach communication skills to my students, everyday I find that they are teaching me how I can better communicate and connect with them. I always try to challenge my students so that they consistently grow after a struggle and change their way of thinking about the situation with an open mindset. Finding new approaches to reach my students helps me continue to grow as a therapist and an educator. * The one consistency I rely on daily, is the inconsistency of the day.

My hometown is “Sweet Home Chicago”, but my family has recently moved to Park Ridge because of our high quality teachers and schools. I have been married for 23 yrs. to Mr. Flyke, who recently retired as Commander with The Cook County Sheriff's Police Department. We have three active and fun loving children ages 11, 12, and 15. Our family is kept busy with entertaining family & friends, soccer, football, wrestling, gymnastics, swim, dance, and squeezing in national park vacations. Needless to say, it is never a dull moment at work or at home - my own kids and students constantly keep me on my toes!