Professional Impact
Dr. Zedler's work had a profound impact on the treatment of speech, hearing and language disorders, as well as the broader field of special education.
Zedler succeeded in starting a program in the summer of 1952 to bring in visiting lecturers and instructors so her students could learn from prominent people in the field. As a result of their education at Texas State, Zedler's students were well-qualified to be hired in speech-language-hearing positions throughout the country.
By 1956, a mere eight years after her arrival, the speech clinic at Texas State was identified as one of 115 across the nation that was "qualified to train speech therapists and to grant basic certification in the American Speech and Hearing Association."
Texas State is now known as the rising star of Texas. Certainly the first true star of national prominence on our faculty was Empress Young Zedler.... She leaves to us an incredible legacy of professional accomplishments characterized by a true passion for her research and her teaching.
— Margaret Vaverek, "Thank You Dr. Zedler," Hillviews Spring 2007
She helped bring topics such as dyslexia and special education topics into the national spotlight. In 1958, she talked about the clinic on national television and demonstrated speech therapy techniques.
In the 1970s, her research along with her clinic work lead to the idea of "mainstreaming" special education students into the regular classroom. The concepts that started at Texas State contributed to the state's "shift of emphasis" mandate and impacted education on a national level.
Dr. Zedler was an active member in many professional organizations at the state and national level. She authored 14 books and 10 major articles based on her research, and was nationally known as a researcher, educator, speaker, and consultant.