Joanna Davis

Joanna (Jody) Simon Davis died in Little Rock on Tuesday, April 19, 2011. She was born July 13, 1926 to Gladys and Ernest Simon of Rockford, Illinois, graduating in 1944 from East Sr. High School. For the next four years, she attended Carleton College in Northfield Minnesota, majoring in Biology and Psychology. In the fall of 1948, she enrolled as the first graduate student at Rockford College, Rockford, Illinois, pursuing a Master’s Degree in then relatively new field of Speech/Language Pathology. Her Master’s completed, she continued her studies the next two summers at Northwestern University, Evanston Illinois, and earned her Certificate of Clinical Competence. Jody was offered the position of director of the Little Rock Junior League’s Speech School in 1949 and remained at that post through 1951. Subsequent positions were with Easter Seals, and then the directorship of the Speech and Hearing Clinic at Arkansas Children’s Hospital, a facility under the auspices of that institution and the Arkansas Department of Public Health. In 1968, she was invited to be the Language Development Specialist for the new Child Study Center, a part of UAMS Department of Child Psychiatry. The focus of the Center was on children with emotional problems, as well as those exhibiting short attention span and hyperactivity syndrome, relatively new fields in education and child psychiatry. She remained in that position for 23 years. Because Speech-Language Pathology/Audiology were newer disciplines, practioners were few. To help alleviate the shortage of therapists, Jody and three others initiated the first few courses in Speech-Language Pathology/Audiology at UALR in 1960. The program grew, and now there are many students graduating in these areas. Jody helped organize the Arkansas Speech-Language Hearing Association, and she was also a founding member of Children’s Hospital Cleft Palate Association. Though given awards and honors throughout her career, those she treasured the most were the remarks of former clients. As adults, these people often recognized her and thanked her for helping them to speak more clearly. She is survived by her husband, William E. Davis. Arrangements by North Little Rock Funeral Home, 758-1170. Online obituary and guest registry at www.nlrfh.com.

Joanna Davis

July 13, 1926 - April 19, 2011