Gary D. Lawson came to Western Michigan University in 1978 after studying all things sound related. During his 36 year career at WMU, Gary taught eight different courses in the fields of hearing science and clinical audiology; he wrote chapters, made conference presentations, and published conference proceedings and reviews.
Dr. Lawson also was involved in numerous student research projects and worked tirelessly to insure student success. His major accomplishments were launching the new Au.D. doctoral program and serving as its coordinator ever since 2003, and publishing the book Speech Audiometry (2011) with colleague Mary Peterson as part of the Core Clinical Concepts in Audiology Series.
He has been recognized at the state and national levels for considerable work on behalf of the Michigan Speech-Language-Hearing Association (MSHA), holding the office of President, and laying the groundwork for newborn hearing screening and licensure of speech and hearing professionals.
Dr. Lawson pursued excellence in all of his professional work and brought recognition to WMU through his devoted mentoring of future audiologists, his leadership in program development in the profession of audiology, and his clinical expertise reflected in scholarly and service achievements.
In honor of his retirement faculty and staff have initiated the Gary Lawson Audiology Scholarship to support a student’s education and carry on Gary’s legacy in the Department of Speech Pathology and Audiology.