Speakers PAT

Susan Scollie, Ph.D.
Susan Scollie is a clinically trained audiologist and professor of audiology in Western University’s School of Communication Sciences and Disorders. She has served as the Director of the National Centre for Audiology since 2018 where she represents an interdisciplinary group of researchers who are interested in the technologies and evidence that change clinical practices and knowledge in hearing healthcare. Dr. Scollie is an award-winning teacher, having contributed to coursework in many facets of Western’s accredited professional program in audiology, which is among the largest in North America. As a member of the development team for the award-winning DSL hearing aid prescription software, she leads technology transfer to ensure its accurate implementation within the hearing industry globally.

Disclosure: Susan Scollie is employed by the University of Western Ontario, and they provide her salary. Many companies produce hearing aid verification equipment. She does not have any financial relationships to declare that are relevant to the course content.

Carlos Benitez-Barrera, Ph.D.
Carlos Benitez-Barrera’s is an assistant professor in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders at University of Wisconsin-Madison. His research focuses on the impact of early auditory experiences on behavioral and neural outcomes of children, particularly those with hearing loss. Dr. Benitez-Barrera is also interested in investigating neural correlates of speech-in-noise processing in the pediatric population. His research takes place at the Waisman Center, where he directs the Pediatric Auditory Experience and Brain lab.

Disclosure: Carlos Benitez-Barrera is employed by the University of Wisconsin-Madison as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders and has no relevant relationships to disclose.

Monita Chatterjee, Ph.D.
Monita Chatterjee is a Senior Scientist at Boys Town National Research Hospital. She was born and raised in Kolkata, India. Her work focuses on both basic and translational aspects of auditory and speech perception by patients with cochlear implants. She received an undergraduate degree in electrical engineering from Jadavpur University, Kolkata, India and a Ph.D. degree in Neuroscience from Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY, followed by postdoctoral training in cochlear implants at House Ear Institute in Los Angeles, CA. Dr. Chatterjee is a Fellow of the Acoustical Society of America and led NIH-funded research laboratories at House Ear Institute and at the University of Maryland College Park prior to her current position at Boys Town National Research Hospital. She is also the founder of the BIPOC-CSD network, an affinity space for Black, Indigenous and Other People of Color in the broad area of Communication Sciences and Disorders.

Disclosure: Monita Chatterjee receives a salary from Boys Town National Research Hospital. She receives grant funding from the National Institutes of Health. She is a volunteer Board member of the nonprofit organization, Auditory Implant Research.

Nicole E. Corbin, Au.D., Ph.D.
Nicole Corbin is a scientist at Boys Town National Research Hospital where she studies how children integrate sound from both ears to develop skills that are foundational for listening, language and learning. Her primary focus is on understanding how children who are deaf/hard-of-hearing in one ear learn to navigate complex listening environments and optimize auditory input to support their academic, communication, and social-emotional development. Prior to joining Boys Town Hospital, she was an assistant professor in the Department of Communication Science and Disorders and Audiology Faculty in the Leadership and Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (LEND) Center at The University of Pittsburgh. She received her Au,D. from Arizona State University in 2013 after completing her clinical externship at Boston Children's Hospital. Dr. Corbin received her Ph.D. in Speech and Hearing Sciences from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2019.​ ​

Disclosure: Nicole Corbin is employed by Boys Town National Research Hospital. She receives a stipend as Section Editor of the Journal of American Academy of Audiology. She is an unpaid volunteer member of the ASHA 2025 Annual Conference Topic Committee.

Tiana Cowan, Ph.D.
Tiana Cowan directs the Bilingual Speech Perception and Language Development Laboratory in the Center for Childhood Deafness, Language and Learning at Boys Town National Research Hospital. Dr. Cowan’s research program assesses how individual differences in dimensions of bilingual experience influence speech perception in challenging listening conditions and evaluates how speech perception and language are related in bilingual development.

Disclosure: Tiana Cowan receives a salary from Boys Town National Research Hospital. Drs. Leibold and McCreery received National Institutes of Health funding to support the data presented in this course.

Kristen Janky, Au.D., Ph.D.
Kristen Janky is lead audiologist of Vestibular Services and director of the Vestibular and Balance Laboratory at Boys Town National Research Hospital. Her Ph.D. is from the University of Nebraska. She completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Johns Hopkins University. Her research focuses on the prevalence and effects of vestibular loss in children and individuals with Down syndrome.

Disclosure: Kristen Janky is employed by Boys Town National Research Hospital. She is a Consultant for Interacoustics and Natus. She is Editor of the Balance Function Assessment and Management Textbook and is a National Institutes of Health grant recipient. She serves as Section Editor for Ear & Hearing and is a Board Member for the Pediatric Vestibular and Balance Network and the Vestibular Disorders Association.

Ashley Kauffman, Au.D.
Ashley Kaufman is a senior audiologist at Boys Town National Research Hospital in Omaha, Nebraska. She works with pediatric and adult patients for their hearing, vestibular and balance assessments, evoked potential testing and amplification needs. She is the lead audiologist for the Boys Town Pediatric Hearing Clinic and for the Auditory Osseointegrated Device program. Dr. Kaufman received her bachelor's degree from the University of Colorado at Boulder and her doctorate in audiology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Disclosure: Ashley Kaufman is employed by Boys Town National Research Hospital. She is a volunteer member of the AAA Resume Review Committee.

Elizabeth Kelly, M.D.
Elizabeth Kelly, M.D., is a neurotologist/otologist at Boys Town National Research Hospital. Her practice spans the breadth of neurotology including both adult and pediatric patients. Specifically, with involvement in the cochlear implant program and pediatric hearing loss clinic at Boys Town National Research Hospital. Undergraduate: University of Wisconsin- Eau Claire., Medical school: Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee, WI, Otolaryngology residency: Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Neurotology Fellowship: University of Minnesota. Active member of American Academy of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery and American Neurotology Society

Disclosure: Elizabeth Kelly is employed by Boys Town National Research Hospital. She is a volunteer member of the Geriatric Committee of the American Academy of Otolaryngology- Head and Neck Surgery.

Lori Leibold, Ph.D.
Lori Leibold is the senior director of the Center for Hearing Research and leads the Human Auditory Development Laboratory at Boys Town National Research Hospital. She received​ her B.S. from McMaster University, M.Sc. in Audiology from the University of Western Ontario and her Ph.D. from the University of Washington. Her background is in audiology and developmental psychoacoustics. Her research is focused on understanding how and when hearing and speech perception develop across infancy and childhood.

Disclosure: Lori Leibold receives a salary from Boys Town National Research Hospital. She receives grant funding from the National Institutes of Health.

Dawna E. Lewis, Ph.D.
Dawna Lewis is a research scientist at Boys Town National Research Hospital. Dr. Lewis collaborates in research addressing issues related to amplification, including remote-microphone systems, and speech understanding in children. Currently, Dr. Lewis is involved in grants addressing listening skills in children who are hard of hearing, clinical tools for managing children with mild hearing loss, and emotion perception and production in children who use cochlear implants.

Disclosure: Dawna Lewis is employed at Boys Town National Research Hospital. She receives support from National Institutes of Health grants. She is a member of the Phonak Pediatric Advisory Board. Some of the studies to be discussed in this presentation received funding and/or equipment from hearing industry companies Oticon and Sonova Pediatric Advisory Board.

Ryan W. McCreery, Ph.D.
Ryan McCreery, Ph.D. is the Vice President of Research at Boys Town in Omaha, Nebraska. He is also the Director of the Audibility, Perception, and Cognition Laboratory, where his NIH-funded research examines outcomes for children with mild to severe hearing loss who use hearing aids. Ryan was the 2013 recipient of the Early Career Contributions to Research Award from the American Speech Language Hearing Association and received ASHA Fellow in 2020.

Disclosure: Ryan McCreery receives a salary from Boys Town National Research Hospital. He receives grant funding from the National Institutes of Health.

Karen Muñoz, Ph.D.
Karen Muñoz is department head and a professor of audiology in the Department of Communicative Disorders and Deaf Education at Utah State University. Her research focuses on person-centered care in audiology, factors that influence patient/caregiver engagement in hearing treatment and developing interventions that support health behavior change for parents of young children who use amplification.

Disclosure: Karen Munoz receives a salary from Utah State University. She receives funding from Sonova for development of a parent education and support app.

​Jessie Patterson, Au.D., Ph.D.​​
Jessie Patterson​ is a clinical and research audiologist at Boys Town National Research Hospital. Her Au.D. and Ph.D. are from the University of Nebraska – Lincoln. In the clinic, she provides vestibular and auditory diagnostics throughout the lifespan. The work in the Vestibular and Balance Research lab focuses on the prevalence and effects of vestibular loss in children and individuals with Down syndrome.​

Disclosure: Jessie Patterson is employed by Boys Town National Research Hospital and has no relevant relationships to disclose.

Krystal L. Werfel, Ph.D., CCC-SLP
Krystal L. Werfel is a research scientist and director of the Oral and Written Language Lab at Boys Town National Research Hospital. Her research focuses on understanding spoken language and literacy acquisition in children who are deaf and hard of hearing and using that knowledge to develop more effective assessment and intervention approaches.

Disclosure: Krystal Werfel receives a salary from Boys Town National Research Hospital. She receives grant funding from the National Institutes of Health.

Kathryn Wiseman, Au.D., Ph.D., CCC-A
Kathryn Wiseman is the director of the Child Auditory Technology Lab at Boys Town National Research Hospital. Her research interests include developmental outcomes in children who are deaf or hard of hearing who use hearing aids and/or cochlear implants. Dr. Wiseman received her B.S. from Brown University in Cognitive Neuroscience in 2011. She completed her Au.D./Ph.D. at the University of Texas at Dallas, where her research and clinical work centered on outcomes of children who use cochlear implants. She completed a postdoctoral research fellowship at Boys Town examining clinical outcomes in children with hearing aids. Her current work aims to study clinical outcomes and experimental measures across the continuum of auditory technology to enhance device candidacy, fitting and intervention for ​these children and their families.

Disclosure: Kathryn Wiseman receives a salary from Boys Town National Research Hospital. She receives grant funding from the National Institutes of Health.