Monday, August 3, 2020
Ryan McCreery, Ph.D.
Director of Research, Boys Town
Dr. McCreery was nominated by his colleagues, including ASHA Fellow Mary Pat Moeller, Ph.D. Among his many leadership strengths, Dr. Moeller emphasizes that “Dr. McCreery brings a rare combination of clinical and scientific expertise, people skills, management knowledge, the ability to make tough decisions and a strong vision for the future of the organization he is leading.”
Ryan joined Boys Town National Research Hospital in 2004 as a research audiologist. He worked with Pat Stelmachowicz, Ph.D., former Director of Audiology at Boys Town Hospital, who realized that Ryan would make an excellent researcher and encouraged him to pursue his doctorate. Ryan earned his Ph.D. from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 2011, researching hearing and top-down processing of auditory information in children.
Along with being Director of Research, Dr. McCreery is also Director of the Audibility, Perception, and Cognition Laboratory. His current research is advancing our understanding of the importance of auditory experience, including optimal hearing amplification in kids with hearing loss, for the proper development of language.
Dr. McCreery’s research helps families and clinicians understand the importance of consistently wearing hearing aids to facilitate a rich sound environment that supports healthy brain development. Ryan also recently published guidelines that emphasize language understanding and development when fitting hearing aids in children. Dr. McCreery also notes that “children who lack sufficient sound exposure early on, may not attain their full language potential even if they get that experience later in life.”
One of Dr. McCreery’s regular collaborators, Beth Walker, Ph.D., at the University of Iowa describes his research by saying, “Ryan McCreery has accomplished more in terms of promoting evidence-based practice in pediatric audiology in 10 years than most people accomplish in a lifetime.”
To understand why Dr. McCreery deserves this award, you simply need to look at how versatile he is as an investigator, leader and administrator. Brenda M. Ryals, Ph.D., is a professor at James Madison University and a colleague of Dr. McCreery. She sums up her support for his award with: “A brief review of Dr. McCreery’s resume provides easy evidence for his skill and success at administration. It is nothing less than astounding to review the speed with which Dr. McCreery moved from Research Audiologist in the Boys Town Hospital Hearing Aid Research Laboratory (2007) to Director of Research in 2017. Such a speedy advancement is a strong indication of his superior skills in administration, as well as the high degree of regard with which he is held by peers and higher administration.”
Ryan also takes a special interest in mentoring researchers who are at the beginning of their careers and helping them to meet their full potential. Many of his peers would likely agree with Adam Bosen, Ph.D., who said, “He is willing to commit resources, both institutional and his own time, to ensure the success of researchers at Boys Town. Despite his numerous responsibilities, he has never turned down a request to meet with me and has always provided high quality advice on anything I have asked him about. I have said numerous times that I think Boys Town National Research Hospital is the best place in the world for me to start my career, and I believe that Ryan's leadership is an essential component of what makes Boys Town excel in hearing science.”
Dr. McCreery is highly sought after for his ability to communicate clinical and scientific information. He has given over 160 talks. His schedule is always full but never too full to find time to look out for the needs of his colleagues. Perhaps most importantly, Dr. McCreery remains energetic and committed and likely has many years ahead in a career that has already benefitted so many.
On behalf of Boys Town National Research Hospital, we would like to congratulate Dr. McCreery for being recognized for his research, clinical care and leadership and for his contributions to advancing the fields of audiology and speech-language pathology to improve the lives of children and families.
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