Who We Are

FRIENDS is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to providing support and education to young people who stutter, their families, and professionals, through annual conferences, one-day workshops, and outreach. FRIENDS events provide workshops for children, adolescents, parents and adults who stutter. Some topics addressed during our workshops include self-advocacy, self-disclosure, navigating middle school, navigating high school and college, bullying, teasing, successful academic outcomes, successful career outcomes, navigating employment issues, interviewing skills, diversity in the workplace, educating our peers in academic and employment environments. Workshops for parents include discussing how best to support your child, advocating for your child, working with schools to ensure academic success, how to talk about stuttering with your child, family, school and extended families. Our vision is to help build a world in which all young people who stutter feel empowered to communicate whenever, wherever, and however they want to. FRIENDS is directed by Lee Caggiano, the mother of a son who stutters and a Speech Language Pathologist (SLP).