Collegiate Affiliation
Speech-Language-Hearing Sciences

Communication disorders that negatively impact the sound, feel, or safety of voice production will affect between 6-30% of the population over the lifespan. The long-term goal of my research is to understand the connections between (1) the vocal demands that speakers face during everyday communication, (2) the different physiological and psychological responses that speakers use to meet those demands, and (3) the functional consequences of those responses, both helpful (achievement of a person's communication goals) and harmful (effort, fatigue, or pain while speaking; development of voice disorders). Stated differently, if you wanted to climb a mountain, which path would you take to the top? How would your choice of path determine your condition when you got there--if you got there at all? My work engages with neuromuscular physiology, respiratory physiology, exercise physiology, radiology and nuclear medicine, and the psychology of effort and fatigue to better prepare speakers to climb their personal communicative mountains.

Educational Background & Specialties
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Educational Background

  • Postdoctoral: Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Iowa, 2023-2024
  • Visiting Scholar: Integrative Neurophysiology, University of Colorado-Boulder, 2022-2023
  • PhD: Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Delaware, 2018-2023
  • MS: Speech-Language Pathology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 2013-2015
  • BM: Vocal Performance, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 2008-2012

Specialties

  • Voice Disorders
  • Speech Science
  • Speech Anatomy
  • Neuromuscular Physiology
  • Respiratory Physiology
  • Exercise Physiology
  • Perceptual Psychology