George Barnes, MS, CCC-SLP, BCS-S, is a board certified specialist in swallowing and swallowing disorders and has developed an expertise in dysphagia management focusing on diagnostics and clinical decision-making in the medically complex population. George yearns to make education useful, research clinical-focused and quality care accessible.
Lisa Bedore, PhD, CCC-SLP, is professor and chair in the Communication Sciences and Disorders Department at Temple University. She is a speech-language pathologist by training and a Fellow of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Her research interests focus on the nature of developmental language disorders and way that children connect language knowledge across linguistic domains. She is a co-author on the Bilingual English Spanish Assessment (BESA) designed to identify speech and language impairments in children who have exposure to Spanish and English.
Randy Dubin, MA, CCC-SLP, is the speech pathology team leader for Good Shepherd Penn Partners/Penn Medicine. He evaluates and treats patients with swallowing and communication disorders in the acute care, long-term acute care (LTACH) and acute rehab settings. Over the past several years, he has focused both his clinical and research work on the chronic critically ill patient population while investigating quality of life, goals and outcomes. He has worked closely with physicians and other allied health professionals in specialized inpatient units and outpatient clinics. Randy serves as a site visitor for the Council on Academic Accreditation (CAA) of the American Speech Language Hearing Association (ASHA). He also serves on a professional advisory committee for a home health company and is adjunct faculty at Salus University Department of Speech-Language Pathology.
Charles Ellis, Jr., PhD, CCC-SLP, is a professor and chair of the Department of Speech Language and Hearing Sciences at the University of Florida. Dr. Ellis is a licensed and certified speech-language pathologist who received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from The University of Georgia and Doctor of Philosophy degree from the University of Florida. Dr. Ellis’ academic concentration focuses on adult neurogenic disorders, and he teaches courses related to aphasia and cognitive disorders. His research is designed to understand outcomes associated with adult neurologically based disorders of communication and factors that contribute to the lack of equity in service provision and outcome disparities that exist among African Americans and other underrepresented minority groups. Dr. Ellis has authored or co-authored 140 peer-reviewed journals articles, five book chapters and has more than 150 presentations to his credit related to neurological disorders and health disparities and minority health issues.
William S. Evans, PhD, CCC-SLP, is an assistant professor at the University of Pittsburgh in the Department of Communication Science and Disorders with a joint appointment in the Clinical and Translational Science Institute. He completed his undergraduate and graduate training at UMass Amherst and Boston University in the areas of psychology, linguistics and speech-language pathology, and has practiced clinically at Mass General Hospital and the Pittsburgh VA. At the University of Pittsburgh, he directs the Language Rehab and Cognition Lab and is a member of the multi-PI Pittsburgh Translational Aphasia Research Initiative. He teaches graduate coursework in the areas of counseling, aphasia and cognitive-communication disorders, and his federally funded aphasia clinical research is focused on counseling, therapeutic games and adaptive computer-based interventions.
Erin Forward, MSP, CCC-SLP, CLC, is a speech-language pathologist and certified lactation counselor. Erin works as a speech-language pathologist at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. She has advanced training in pediatric feeding and swallowing disorders, early language, augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) and trauma, specifically for medically complex children. Erin holds a Proficient DIR®Floortime Provider Certification and is a TBRI® Trained Practitioner. She graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a bachelor’s degree in communication sciences and disorders (CSD) and psychology and graduated from the University of South Carolina with her master’s degree in speech pathology. She is the regular co-host of First Bite: A Speech Therapy Podcast with Michelle Dawson, MS, CCC-SLP, CLC, where she shares her experiences and evidenced-based practices from her time working in early intervention/home health, NICU/PICU, GI clinic and outpatient clinic settings. For her dedication to the field, she was awarded an ASHA Distinguished Early Career Professional Certificate in 2021, and is a current member of the ASHA Leadership Development Program graduating in February 2023
AC Goldberg (he/him), PhD, CCC-SLP, is an intersex/transgender speech-language pathologist and DEI consultant. AC began his career in hospitals where he faced various forms of workplace discrimination due to his transgender identity. For the past 18 years, he has been a school clinician, specializing in social communication and working with adolescents with complex profiles. He strives to create safe, affirming environments for everyone in his care. AC also provides gender affirming voice services and is dedicated to ending the mistreatment and discrimination trans* and gender nonconforming people face in educational, medical and clinical settings. AC is ASHA certified, SAC affiliated, a member of the WPATH and a member of the Trans Voice Initiative. AC provides consulting services through his business, Transplaining, and continuing education through his platform the CREDIT Institute.
Kelly Salmon, SLPD, CCC-SLP, BCS-S, CLT-LANA, NDC, is a speech-language pathologist specializing in the treatment of adults with communication and swallowing disorders across the continuum of care. She has been a board certified specialist in swallowing and swallowing disorders (BCS-S) since 2011, and earned designation in 2014, as a Lymphology Association of North America Certified Lymphedema Therapist (CLT-LANA) specializing in the treatment of head and neck lymphedema. Over the course of her career, Kelly has focused on becoming an expert in the treatment of swallowing disorders resulting from many medical conditions including head and neck cancer, stroke and progressive disease. The use of modalities and device-driven treatments for dysphagia as well as oncology rehabilitation, including rehabilitation post-total laryngectomy, have become focused areas of clinical practice for Kelly over the years. Kelly takes pride in contributing to the field of speech-language pathology through teaching and supervising graduate-level students, presenting posters and lectures at national conferences and engaging in multidisciplinary research initiatives. She has recently transitioned from full-time clinical practice to the academic setting as an assistant professor at Salus University in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania. She also maintains a small clinical private practice and a medical speech pathology consulting business.
Kathleen Scaler Scott, PhD, CCC-SLP BCFS, is a practicing speech-language pathologist, ASHA Fellow, board certified fluency specialist, and associate professor of speech-language pathology at Monmouth University. Her research interests are largely in child language and literacy, cluttering, atypical disfluency and speech and fluency development in individuals with autism spectrum disorders. She is the co-editor of Cluttering: A Handbook of Research, Intervention, and Education, co-author of Managing Cluttering: A Comprehensive Guidebook of Activities, and author of the therapy manual Fluency Plus: Managing Fluency Disorders in Individuals with Multiple Diagnoses. Dr. Scaler Scott has spoken nationally and internationally on the topics of fluency and social pragmatic disorders. She was the first coordinator of the International Cluttering Association, and is the recipient of the 2018 Deso Weiss Award for Excellence in the Field of Cluttering, and the 2018 Professional of the Year Award from the National Stuttering Association.
Laura K. Sibbald, MA, CCC-SLP, ASDCS, CYMHS, is co-author of the Trauma-Informed Social-Emotional Toolbox for Children & Adolescents (PESI, 2020) and the Parenting Toolbox (PESI, 2018). She was an invited speaker and moderator at PESI’s 2022 and 2021 Autism Symposiums, where she also had the privilege of interviewing Dr. Temple Grandin in the keynote Different… Not Less. She is an active member of PSHA and ASHA committees as well as the College Autism Network and Neurodiversity Employment Network, and is currently the chair of the Alumni Advisory Council for the Speech-Language Hearing Science Department at George Washington University (GWU). Laura graduated from GWU in 2011, with master’s degree in speech-language pathology. She resides in Philadelphia and works at Chestnut Hill College as the inaugural associate director for the Neurodiversity College Program.
Hali Strickler, MA, CCC-SLP, is an AAC services coordinator for TechOWL at the Institute on Disabilities at Temple University. Her work at TechOWL includes providing AAC supports and services to individuals with complex communication needs throughout Pennsylvania. She received both her Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts degrees in speech, language and hearing science from Temple University. Hali is a licensed (in Pennsylvania and New Jersey) and ASHA (the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association) certified speech-language pathologist with experience in public schools and adult community-based settings. Throughout her career, Hali has developed a passion for assistive technology and AAC. She has spoken at national and statewide conferences and has been a featured guest on several disability advocacy podcasts.
Joanne Wisely, MA, CCC-SLP, is a distinguished fellow and vice president of public policy for the National Academies of Practice. Having served CMS as a Technical Expert and Clinical Medical Expert, she now serves ASHA’s Interoperability Work Group and Value Based Care Member Advisory Group. She is PSHA’s StAMP and Widener University adjunct faculty.