Conference Presenters

Suzanne M. Adlof, PhD, is an associate professor in Communication Sciences and Disorders at the University of South Carolina. Her research investigates the relationship between oral language and reading development and disorders, with the long-term goals of preventing, identifying, and remediating reading comprehension difficulties. This research has been conducted with students ranging from preschool through high school. Current studies are examining screening methods for identifying children at risk for language and reading difficulties, comparing and contrasting word-learning abilities of children with language or reading impairment, and examining school achievement of children with different reading and language profiles (e.g., dyslexia; developmental language disorder; poor reading comprehension). This research has been supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the U.S. Department of Education Institute of Education Sciences (IES), and the American Speech-Language-Hearing Foundation (ASH Foundation). Dr. Adlof also teaches graduate courses and participates in community education on language and reading development and disorders.

Financial Disclosures:

• Employee of the University of South Carolina
• Grant funding from NIH
• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• None

Kenn Apel, PhD, is Distinguished Professor Emeritus in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders at the University of South Carolina, Columbia. Formerly, he was chair of that department. Dr. Apel has more than 30 years of experience conducting research in the areas of spoken and written language. His recent research focus is on the linguistic factors that contribute to the development of reading and spelling, including morphological awareness and orthographic knowledge. He currently is the principal investigator on a 3-year, $1.4M IES-sponsored grant (MATRS: Morphological Assessment for Reading and Spelling) to develop a morphological awareness assessment measure for students in the 1st through 6th grades. Dr. Apel is an ASHA Fellow and also received the Honors of the Association.

Financial Disclosures:

• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• Author on SPELL-2 and SPELL-Links to Reading and Writing (2nd ed.)

Elizabeth Buck, MA, CCC-SLP, is a clinical assistant professor in the Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences at Indiana University (IU), Bloomington. In this role, she serves as the building speech-language pathologist at William Penn School 49 in Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS), where she supervises graduate students doing school-based clinical practicum. Additionally, Elizabeth supervises undergraduate students in IU’s speech-language pathology assistant (SLPA) program and provides regular professional development to school-based SLPs. Elizabeth has been practicing in schools for 9 years, prior to which she worked in the medical setting. She received her bachelor’s degree from Butler University and her master’s degree from Indiana University. Her professional interests include language and literacy development and disorders and translational science as it relates to service delivery and treatment in schools.

Financial Disclosures:

• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• None

Elsa Cárdenas-Hagan, EdD, CCC-SLP, CALT, is a bilingual speech-language pathologist and a Certified Academic Language Therapist. She is the director of Valley Speech Language and Learning Center in Brownsville, Texas, and works with Texas Institute for Measurement Evaluation and Statistics for the University of Houston. Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan is the author of Esperanza (HOPE), a Spanish language program designed to assist students who struggle with learning to read. Her research interests include the development of early reading assessments for Spanish-speaking students and the development of reading interventions for bilingual students. She was the co-principal investigator of a longitudinal study funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and the Institute for Education Science that examined the oracy and literacy development in English and Spanish of Spanish-speaking children. She is the Chairperson of the National Joint Committee on Learning Disabilities and is the Immediate Past Vice-Chairperson of the International Dyslexia Association. Elsa has recently published a book entitled Literacy Foundations for English Learners: A Comprehensive Guide to Evidence-Based Instruction. It is her hope that professionals will be prepared to provide excellent language and literacy instruction for English learners.

Financial Disclosures:

• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• Past Vice Chairperson of International Dyslexia Association, Educator Training Initiative Member

Deborah Crawford, MS, CCC-SLP, is the manager for Kennedy Krieger Institute (KKI) Center for Autism and Related Disorders Outpatient Speech-Language Services. In addition to her supervisory responsibilities, she participates on diagnostic evaluation teams, conducts individual speech-language evaluations, and provides treatment in the clinic. Crawford graduated from Towson University with a master of science in speech-language pathology. She worked in the Baltimore County Public School system before joining the KKI Center for Autism and Related Disorders in 2008 as a research coordinator on a study investigating the developmental trajectories of children with autism compared to typically developing children and children with specific language impairments. She has served as a clinical reviewer for the CDC-funded Autism and Developmental Disabilities monitoring system (ADDM). Crawford is a board-certified speech-language pathologist in the state of Maryland.

Financial Disclosures:

• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• None

Kelly Farquharson, PhD, CCC-SLP, is an SLP, an associate professor, and director of the Children Literacy and Speech Sound (CLaSS) Lab at Florida State University (FSU). Her research interests include school-age children with phonological and language disorders, the effect of those disorders on the acquisition of literacy skills, and the cognitive, environmental, and academic factors that contribute to phonological and language disorders. Her work is published in the American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology; Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research; Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools; Journal of Communication Disorders; and International Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, among others.

Financial Disclosures:

• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation
• Salary from FSU

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• Affiliate faculty at Florida Center for Reading Research

Lakeisha Johnson, PhD, CCC-SLP, is an assistant professor in the Communication Science and Disorders program at Florida State University and an ASHA-certified speech-language pathologist. She is also affiliated faculty at the Florida Center for Reading Research. Her primary research interests include language, literacy, dialect, and executive function development in African American children. Dr. Johnson believes in building and leveraging research-practice partnerships to ensure children from vulnerable populations obtain strong language and literacy skills.

Financial Disclosures:

• Assistant Professor at Florida State University
• ​Author of DAWS program​
• Maya's Book Nook founder
• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• None

Dee M. Lance, PhD, CCC-SLP, is a professor in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders at the University of Central Arkansas, where she also serves as the department chair. She teaches and conducts research in the area of language disorders in school-age children and speech sound disorders. She has more than 30 years of experience working with children with language disorders and reading impairments.

Financial Disclosures:

• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation
• Employee of University of Central Arkansas

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• None

Melissa Malani, PhD, CCC-SLP, BCS-CL, is a practicing speech-language pathologist, a professional developer, adjunct instructor for UCF, and an AAC consultant for Saltillo Corporation. Dr. Malani is a clinical educator for several universities and has supervised graduate students ranging from beginning clinic to final externship experiences. She has also supervised numerous clinical fellows in the field of speech-language pathology and continues to provide ongoing clinical education to the SLPs and student clinicians she works with. Dr. Malani has participated in numerous research projects, co-authored peer-reviewed journal articles and presentations, and presented professional development workshops. She has been an invited author and presenter for several topics including adolescent language and literacy, digital literacy, and augmentative/alternative communication. As an adjunct instructor with UCF, Dr. Malani teaches numerous graduate and undergraduate courses and serves as a program coordinator with community organizations to promote experiential student learning. She is an active member of ASHA, the Florida Association of Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists (FLASHA), and the International Reading Association (IRA).

Financial Disclosures:

• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• None

Kimberly Murza, PhD, CCC-SLP, received her doctorate in Communication Sciences and Disorders from the University of Central Florida, where she specialized in literacy. She is currently an associate professor in the Department of Audiology and Speech-Language Sciences at the University of Northern Colorado, teaching undergraduate and graduate courses primarily in language and evidence-based practice. Dr. Murza has worked privately and in the public school system as a speech-language pathologist with children and adolescents in preschool through high school and more recently with adults with autism spectrum disorder. She is currently the University of Northern Colorado Scottish Rite Program Director and a member of the Colorado Department of Education Speech-Language Advisory Committee. She previously served on the ASHA School Issues Advisory Board. Dr. Murza has participated in numerous research projects and coauthored peer-reviewed journal articles and presentations. Her main research area is social communication and engagement assessment, intervention, and professional learning support for school-based practitioners. Additional research interests include community engaged learning, systematic review and meta-analysis, and the delivery of high-quality professional learning. More recently, she’s been involved in the development and program coordination of the Greeley Treasure Chest Program and Project L.I.F.E. (Literacy for Immigrant Families Everyday).

Financial Disclosures:

• Associate Professor at the University of Northern Colorado

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• Member of the Colorado Department of Education Speech-Language Advisory Committee

Nickola Wolf Nelson, PhD, CCC-SLP, BCS-CL, is a Board Certified Specialist in Child Language and Professor Emerita at Western Michigan University. Nelson studies language/literacy development and disorders in school-age children and adolescents, including ways to be relevant to their language learning needs in school settings. She chaired the ASHA Committee that produced the ASHA position statement and technical reports on SLP Roles in Reading and Writing and is an author of the Test of Integrated Language and Literacy Skills. Nelson was the editor of Topics in Language Disorders in 2005-2018. She is an ASHA Fellow and received Honors of the Association as well as the Kleffner Clinical Career Award from the ASHFoundation.

Financial Disclosures:

• Royalties for Test of Integrated Language and Literacy Skills and Student Language Scales from Brookes Publishing
• Federal grant funding for much of the research behind this presentation, but the views presented will be my own and not the U.S. Government's

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• None

Ann-Marie Orlando, PhD, CCC-SLP, is a research assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry, and associate director for the Center for Autism and Related Disabilities (CARD) at the University of Florida (UF). Dr. Orlando works with educators, service providers, and families, and provides community outreach services and professional development related to autism and other developmental disabilities. Dr. Orlando’s research interests include literacy and communication for individuals with complex communication needs, and inclusive education. She has published journal articles and book chapters and taught both undergraduate and graduate courses related to these topics. Through her work at UF, Dr. Orlando has coordinated agency-funded grants focused on promoting communication for individuals with autism and other developmental disabilities, and coordinated federal- and state-funded grants focused on teacher preparation, doctoral/postdoctoral preparation, and research in inclusive education for students with autism and other developmental disabilities. She also has presented nationally and internationally on literacy and communication for individuals with autism and other developmental disabilities. Dr. Orlando is a member of ASHA and TASH, an international disability advocacy organization.

Financial Disclosures:

• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation
• Salaried employee as research assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry in the College of Medicine at the University of Florida

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• ASHA member
• ASHA SIG 12 (Augmentative and Alternative Communication) affiliate

C. Melanie Schuele, PhD, CCC-SLP, is a professor in the Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences, Vanderbilt School of Medicine. Her scholarly efforts aim to advance the practices of speech-language pathologists in the schools. She conducts research on phonological awareness and complex syntax. She directs the School Speech-Language Pathology Specialty Track that provides specialized training to master's students preparing for a career as a school speech-language pathologist. She has been the director of three personnel preparation grants from the U.S. Department of Education, providing specialized training in language and literacy to master's SLP students and PhD students.

Financial Disclosures:

• Book royalties from Brookes Publishing
• Presenter royalties from Northern Speech Services
• Salary from Vanderbilt University Medical Center
• Salary support from MCHB, ED, and NIH
• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation
• Grant support from Predators Foundation, Dollar General Foundation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• None

Donna Thomas, PhD, CCC-SLP, is an associate professor in the Communication Sciences and Disorders Program, Department of Health and Human Sciences at Southeastern Louisiana University. Donna has published and presented on a variety of topics in the areas of language, literacy, and augmentative communication. Donna has over 30 years of experience in working with children who exhibit language and reading deficits.

Financial Disclosures:

• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• None

Teresa Ukrainetz, PhD, S-LP(C), is an ASHA Fellow and a professor, assistant department head, and SLP Division Chair at Utah State University (USU). She has an MS in speech-language pathology from the University of British Columbia, and was employed for several years as a school SLP before obtaining her PhD from the University of Texas at Austin. Her research and scholarship pertain to the framework, procedures, and tools of school-age language intervention. Dr. Ukrainetz investigates how to intervene at the intersection of skill and context to optimize language learning. Her work is driven by the need for effective, practical interventions that tap the distinctive expertise of SLPs. Topics of investigation have included standardized testing, dynamic assessment, phonemic awareness, narrative and expository discourse, text comprehension, and the role of the school SLP. Her work has appeared in many quality journals, including her favorite, Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools. Her work comes together in two books published by Pro-Ed: School-age Language Intervention: Evidenced-based Practices and Contextualized Skill Intervention: Scaffolding PreK–12 Literacy Achievement. Dr. Ukrainetz's current interests are in how SLPs can make a difference in language and learning success for older students.

Financial Disclosures:

• Salary from USU
• USU Internal research grant
• Book royalties from Pro-Ed

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• None