Hjelte-Phillips Speech & Language Center

The Hjelte-Phillips Speech & Language Center at Villa Esperanza is a community clinic that provides individualized communication therapy to each unique client that comes through our door. We work with clients to reach their greatest potential in a warm and compassionate therapy environment that includes parents, teachers and caregivers in the process. Please contact us to inquire about services for your loved one.

Our clinicians have a wealth of experience treating speech and language needs resulting from phonological and articulation disorders, learning differences, neurodevelopmental and intellectual disabilities, and acquired brain injuries. We have specialized expertise in treating children from birth to three years old, individuals with autism spectrum disorder, and nonspeaking or minimally speaking clients who need assistive technology including augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). In addition, we provide training, support and education to related professionals across the Los Angeles County region.

A male teenage student in a blue hoodie standing behind a table with snack items and cans of soda, smiling with hands clasped.
Woman standing in front of shelves filled with children's toys, books, and games in a playroom or classroom.
A child using a pink iPad with a protective case, navigating a communication app with pictures and words, sitting at a table near a window.
Bookshelf filled with children's books in a speech therapy clinic's library, with some colorful posters on the wall above.
A young boy elementary school student singing into a microphone during a performance.
A person playing a digital version of Connect Four with red and blue discs, while referencing a visual aid and a tablet with digital content, on a black table.
A woman in a red sweater holding an open children's book with colorful illustrations towards another woman holding a communication device, in front of a whiteboard decorated with orange and cream paper streamers.
A young man sitting at a table playing a bingo game with colorful cards and a tablet device.
A young girl and a woman sitting in a room with white walls, looking at a tablet together. The girl is wearing an orange sweater, and the woman is wearing a teal sweater and jeans. They are engaging in speech therapy.

“[Speech] has really opened [Jun]'s world up. He’s able to share his wants and one of the first things he said was, ‘When can I talk?’ ...Now he’s able to do math, Touch Chat, and express himself with a high level of vocabulary. This is truly life changing.”

— Sophia, mother of participant Jun

A speech therapist holding a foam alphabet flipbook with the letters 'A B C' and 'R', in front of an iPad displaying various icons and apps from Touch Chat, with a young child sitting nearby.
Male high school student in a blue hoodie offering a drink from a teacher behind a cart in front of a classroom, with a speech therapist standing next to the cart, in front of a orange school building with scalloped siding.

Services

  • Speech and Language Assessment

    Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) Evaluations and Consultation

  • Individual Speech Therapy

    Family-based Speech Therapy

    Social Groups

    Early Intervention Services

  • AAC Implementation

    Autism

    Classroom Lessons for Students with Communication Challenges

    Neurodiversity-Affirming Practices

    TouchChat

Treatment Strategies and Tools

  • Aided Language Stimulation

    Complexity Theory for Highly Unintelligible Children/Phonological Disorders

    DIR-Floortime Therapy

    Early Intervention Strategies

    Functional Communication Skills

    Neurodiversity-Affirming Practices

    Phonological Awareness Training

    Positive Behavior Support

    Social Narratives

    Total Communication Approach

    Visualization Strategies for Language Comprehension

    Vocational Training

  • High, Mid and Low Tech Augmentative and Alternative Communication

A female high school student sitting at a table with a woman who is showing her something on an iPad. The girl is wearing a blue Disney sweatshirt, and the setting is indoors in the Speech center, near window blinds.

Payment Options

    • Kaiser Permanente

    • Local regional centers

    • Local school districts

    • Private Pay

    • Claims assistance as an out-of-network insurance provider

Cartoon illustration of a blue owl holding a sign that reads 'The Owl'.

The Owl Newsletter

Extra! Extra, read all about it!

To learn more about our Speech newsletter run by students, check out our latest issues!

A colorful newsletter from Villa Esperanza Services titled 'Welcome to the Owl.' It features a cartoon owl, information about communication rights, and a section on favorite candies. The newsletter includes photos of staff and students, with quotes and questions about activities, food, and fun at Villa Esperanza.

Fall 2024

Spring 2025 newsletter from Villa Esperanza Services with an owl mascot holding a sign that says 'The Owl'. The newsletter features sections on communication rights, a poll about favorite campus activities, and an interview with a student named Kaelin. The color scheme is yellow and blue with various text boxes and a photograph of Kaelin smiling and wearing headphones.

Spring 2025

A woman with long straight brown hair, wearing a black top, standing against a white background, smiling with her hands behind her back.

Meet Your Director

Kimbery Tan states, “My highest priority is to make our clients feel safe and cared for.  Working at Villa provides me with the time and resources to make client and family needs my top priority.” Kimberly earned her B.A. in Linguistics and English from UCLA and her M.A. in Communicative Disorders from California State University, Long Beach. In 2000, she began her career in special education in public schools, first as a Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) aide and later as a speech-language pathologist. After working in the Fountain Valley, Long Beach Unified, El Rancho Unified, and San Mateo-Foster City School Districts, Kimberly joined the team at Villa Esperanza Services in 2011. Here at Villa, she has worked with a diverse group of students, developing expertise in the areas of Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC), group intervention, supervision, and neurodiversity-affirming practices. Kimberly believes that “everyone deserves a voice.  Whether it is through spoken words, pictures, or sign language, all people deserve to have the power to express themselves and be heard.”

A TouchChat certified trainer, Kimberly stays current on evidence-based practices by attending and presenting at conferences such as the annual California Speech-Language-Hearing Association Conference. Following are the titles of her recent presentations:
• Creating a Neurodiversity-affirming Environment for AAC Users in Schools (2025)
• Neuro-affirming Strategies for Students With Autism and Neuro-Affirming Techniques for Goal Writing (co-presented with Adam Tan, 2025)
• “Neurodiversity Affirming Practices for Autistic AAC Users” (co-presented with Tricia Lewis, 2023)
• “Creating Interactive Social Group Activities for Students with Complex Communication Needs” (co-presented with Cynthia Young, 2023)
• “Resources and Techniques for Bilingual Assessment in Young Children” (co-presented with Laura Garcia-Maxey and Judith Montgomery, 2019)
• “Speech and Language Assessments for Children from Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Backgrounds: Resources and Techniques (co-presented with Laura Garcia-Maxey and Judith Montgomery, 2018)

Kimberly is a clinical instructor at Chapman University.

Kimberly Tan, M.A., CCC-SLP

Director of the Hjelte-Phillips Speech & Language Center

Meet the Team

  • Portrait of a woman with glasses, brown wavy hair, wearing a floral blouse, smiling, against a white background.

    Sandra Gonzalez, CF-SLP

    Speech-Language Pathologist

  • A woman with dark hair in a ponytail, wearing a beige sweater over a white collared shirt, smiling at the camera against a white background.

    Berenice Baltazar, A.S., SLPA

    Speech-Language Pathology Assistant

  • A woman with dark blonde hair, wearing a navy blue shirt and large hoop earrings, smiling at the camera against a white background.

    Michelle Gordon, A.S., SLPA

    Speech-Language Pathology Assistant

  • A woman with long dark hair wearing a maroon long-sleeve shirt, smiling, against a white background.

    Alicia Sanchez

    Clinic Manager

Awesome Resources for Super Parents!

When in doubt, research it out.

Speech Inquiry

Visit Us

Villa's Hjelte-Phillips Speech & Language Center

2088 E. Villa Street, Pasadena, CA 91107
Mail to: 2116 E. Villa Street, Pasadena, CA 91107

For more information about the programs or services offered at the Hjelte-Phillips Speech & Language Center, please contact:

Alicia Sanchez, Clinic Manager
(626) 214-8809