A Charles Sturt University (CSU) speech pathology research student won the science leadership category of the 2015 NSW-ACT Young Achiever Awards announced on Saturday 21 March.

Ms Sarah Verdon has done a PhD through the CSU School of Teacher Education in Bathurst and the Research Institute for Professional Practice, Learning and Education (RIPPLE). She won the Australian National University Science Leadership Award.

Ms Verdon was unable to attend the Award's presentation ceremony because she was in Fiji on her honeymoon with her husband Dennis, having married one week earlier. Her award was accepted in her absence by her parents, Greg and Marie Verdon.

Ms Verdon said she was honoured to be selected as the winner of the 2015 Young Achiever Science Leadership Award.

"I feel truly honoured that my work has been recognised for its contribution to the field of science and for its contribution to promoting equality for children with speech, language and communication needs," she said. "This is a cause that I am so passionate about, and to have its importance recognised on such a level is truly encouraging and inspiring. I was so humbled to be considered among such an amazing list of finalists in this category, and I am delighted to have been selected to relieve this prestigious award."

Professor Sharynne McLeod, one of Ms Verdon's PhD supervisors and her mentor, said she was delighted that Ms Verdon had been chosen from such a talented field of nominees.

"Sarah is a dynamic speech pathologist and educator who is passionate about creating equality and embracing diversity," Professor McLeod said.

"She has recently completed and submitted her PhD at Charles Sturt University identifying key factors that support children's home language maintenance through her longitudinal studies of culturally and linguistically diverse Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australian children. Sarah has outlined six key principles for supporting culturally and linguistically diverse children with speech, language and communication needs as a result of her research across five continents including sites in Brazil, UK, Italy, Hong Kong, Canada and USA. Her research has been published and presented across the world."

Ms Verdon has conducted research on large scale longitudinal studies with over 5 000 Australian children as well as ethnographic studies around the world. Her research has produced important findings regarding the linguistic diversity of Australia's children in the early years as well as factors that support and inhibit the acquisition and maintenance of multiple languages among both Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australian children. She also collected data from 14 sites on four continents to investigate ways to support children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds to develop their speech, language and communication for positive lifelong outcomes in society, school and the workforce.

Her doctoral research and other initiatives have generated 13 peer review journal articles, a book chapter, a government report, a position paper to guide speech pathologists' practice with multilingual children, and 24 oral presentations at conferences in Australia, Italy, Sweden, Taiwan, the UK, and the USA. She has been selected to receive a 2015 Endeavour Research Fellowship worth $24 500 to undertake a project she has designed for building the capacity of parents and community members to support the speech, language and literacy development of children in Fiji.

Ms Verdon has also just completed and submitted her PhD thesis for approval, so it's already a very big year for her and a very promising start to her professional career.