Presenters for Rethinking Pediatric Feeding and Swallowing

Joan C. Arvedson, PhD, CCC-SLP, BCS-S, is Feeding and Swallowing Specialist at Children’s Wisconsin – Milwaukee. She is a Clinical Professor in the Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Pediatrics, Medical College of Wisconsin. She has three books in publication and numerous articles in peer-reviewed journals. Dr. Arvedson is an internationally recognized expert in pediatric dysphagia. She was awarded Honors of ASHA in 2016 and is an ASHA Fellow.

Financial Disclosures:

• Royalties from Plural Publishing Co., Northern Speech Services, and Medbridge
• Honoraria from Education Resources, Inc.
• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation
• Salary from Children's Wisconsin 

Nonfinancial Disclosures:    

• Program committee member for Society for Ear, Nose, Throat Advances in Children (SENTAC) and Dysphagia Resource Society for World Dysphagia Summit

Laura Brooks, MEd, CCC-SLP, BCS-S, is a clinical specialist in speech-language pathology at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, and is Board Certified in Swallowing Disorders. She specializes in management of pediatric dysphagia and Passy Muir Valve use with tracheostomy and ventilator-dependent patients. She has published research, case studies, and textbook chapters related to both topics. She serves on the Bioethics Committee, Global Tracheostomy Committee, and ICU liberation/ECMO Committee.

Financial Disclosures:

• Financial compensation from ASHA for these presentations

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• Wrote the pediatric chapter of the textbook Communication and Swallowing Management of Tracheostomized and Ventilator Dependent Individuals

Hema Desai, MS, CCC-SLP, BCS-S, CLE, NTMTC, is an inpatient speech-language pathologist at CHOC Children’s Hospital, working with infants and children with feeding and swallowing disorders. She has a board certified specialty in swallowing and swallowing disorders, is certified in neonatal touch and massage, and is a clinical lactation educator. She has presented at several ASHA Conventions and California state conferences, as well as co-authored publications in peer-reviewed journals and co-authored a book chapter.

Financial Disclosures:

• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• None 

Dipti Dev, PhD, is an Associate Professor and Extension Specialist at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln. Dr. Dev is a social and behavioral scientist who studies methods to facilitate the diffusion of evidence-based responsive feeding practices into rural childcare settings for improving children’s dietary intake and prevention of obesity and chronic conditions. She has developed the EAT Family Style responsive feeding program that has received national recognition for improving the childcare environment and children’s dietary intake. 

Financial Disclosures:

• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• None 

Pamela Dodrill, PhD, CCC-SLP, BCS-S, is an SLP specializing in the area of pediatric feeding and swallowing. She has worked in this area for over 20 years. Before relocating to Boston to work at Boston Children’s Hospital and Brigham and Women’s Hospital NICU, she trained and worked at the Royal Children’s Hospital in Australia. Pamela has numerous publications in this area and regularly presents at international scientific conferences on this topic.

Financial Disclosures:

• Salary from Brigham and Women's Hospital
• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• None 

Louisa Ferrara-Gonzalez, PhD, CCC-SLP, BCS-S, CNT, NTMCT, is a pediatric speech-language pathologist with 15 years of clinical experience working with neonates, medically fragile infants, and children with a myriad of complex medical/developmental needs. She is a Board Certified Specialist in Pediatric Feeding and Swallowing Disorders, a Certified Neonatal Therapist, a Neonatal Touch and Massage Certified therapist, and a Trauma-Informed Professional. Dr. Louisa has worked in numerous pediatric settings. For 10 years she served as an advanced clinical specialist and manager of a Level 3 NICU feeding program. Since stepping down from that role, she now provides parent education and neonatal care through her private practice, manages the NICU dysphagia research team at NYU Langone Hospital on Long Island, and serves as Chief Clinical Officer at Innara Health, developer of the NTrainer. Dr. Louisa’s research in the field of neonatal swallowing disorders has been published in high-standing peer-reviewed journals and is recognized worldwide. In 2020, she received the peer-nominated award for Excellence in Research through NANT. Furthermore, she is an internationally sought out speaker on the topic of neonatal feeding and swallowing development and disorders. She is a proud mom to her son, Mario, and dog, Sadie, and is happily married to her husband, Joe.

Financial Disclosures:

• Employee of NYU Langone Hospital - Long Island
• Employee of Innara Health
• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• Board Member of the Neonatal Therapist Certification Board

Raquel Garcia, SLPD, CCC-SLP, CNT, BCS-S, is a trained craniofacial and feeding specialist who has worked in infant critical care units for the past 11 years. She has lectured at the national and state level on infant and pediatric feeding disorders. She graduated with her MS in communication disorders from Nova Southeastern University and her doctorate of speech-language pathology from Northwestern University. Her clinical interests include neonatal care, congenital heart disease, upper airway disorders, infant FEES, and parental health literacy.

Financial Disclosures:

• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• ASHA Hispanic Caucus, Vice President of Professional Practices
• ASHA SIG 13 Coordinating Committee, Member at Large 
• Feeding Matters, Conference Committee
• NANT, Peer Reviewer 
• Dysphagia Outreach Project (DOP), Director of Pediatric Affairs
• Dysphagia Research Society, Social Media Committee

Catherine Watson Genna, BS, IBCLC, has been an IBCLC since 1992. Her educational background in biomedicine led to a special interest in medically complicated breastfeeding and a research collaboration with Columbia University studying tongue kinematics, nipple biomechanics, and analysis of cervical auscultation in breastfeeding children. Supporting Sucking Skills in Breastfeeding Infants, her transdisciplinary textbook, is in its fourth edition. She served as the founding associate editor of Clinical Lactation, USLCA’s official journal.

Financial Disclosures:

• Royalties on textbooks from Jones & Bartlett Learning and Praeclarus Press
• Translational Research Grant from Columbia-Coulter Foundation
• Speaker honoraria from various sources for continuing education lectures throughout the world
• Clinical Mentor
• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• Research Collaborative with Columbia University and Tel-Aviv University Departments of Biomedical Engineering, studying infant sucking using ultrasound, nipple biomechanics, and suck:swallow:breathe coordination
• Peer reviewer for various journals
• La Leche League Leader
• Consultant to student breastfeeding projects and breastfeeding product start-ups

Memorie M. Gosa, PhD, CCC-SLP, BCS-S, is a pediatric speech-language pathologist and board certified specialist in swallowing and swallowing disorders. She has worked with infants and children with feeding and swallowing difficulties for 20 years. She is an associate professor at The University of Alabama and maintains a small clinical caseload. Dr. Gosa has published peer-reviewed manuscripts and book chapters and presented nationally and internationally on the topic of pediatric dysphagia diagnosis and management.

Financial Disclosures:

• Salary from The University of Alabama, Druid City Hospital, and LeBonheur Children's Hospital
• Royalty from Thieme
• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• Editorial board member of American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology
• CAA elected board member

Carly Hillburn, MS, RD, LMNT, is a registered dietitian pursuing a master’s degree in Community Nutrition and Health Promotion at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. She is the project manager for the Ecological Approach to Family Style program, which is a responsive feeding program for childcare providers. Her research focuses on promoting responsive feeding practices in family childcare homes and adapting resources to meet the specific needs of different childcare communities and environments.

Financial Disclosures:

• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• None

Kara Fletcher Larson, MS, CCC-SLP, is a pediatric speech-language pathologist at Boston Children's Hospital, where she has worked for 21 years. She is the Clinical Coordinator of the Outpatient Feeding & Swallowing Program. Kara is also the lead clinician in the Aerodigestive Center. She conducts research in the area of pediatric aerodigestive disorders and dysphagia. She also is part-time faculty at Boston University and Emerson College at the graduate level. She resides south of Boston with her family and enjoys skiing, boating, and cooking.

Financial Disclosures:

• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• None

Maureen A. Lefton-Greif, PhD, CCC-SLP, BCS-S, is Professor in Pediatrics, Otolaryngology Head-Neck Surgery, and Physical Medicine-Rehabilitation at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Dr. Lefton-Greif’s clinical practice and research focus on feeding/swallowing development as well as evaluation and management of disorders in patients diagnosed with complex aerodigestive or rare conditions having pediatric origins. She participates in the multidisciplinary clinical and research group studying the natural history of ataxia-telangiectasia, and her work on clinical trial readiness is NIH/FDA supported. In collaboration with Cure SMA, she’s developing an SMA-specific bulbar scale to quantify disease progression and outcome measures. Her R01-funded research led to the development of the first standardized, reliable, and valid scale for the videofluoroscopic assessment of swallowing function in bottle-fed children. As an extension of this work, she is co-investigator on an R01 to study Radiation Exposure in Infants and Children from Videofluoroscopic Swallow Studies. She developed the Feeding/Swallowing Impact Survey, the first outcome measure to assess the impact of children’s feeding/swallowing problems on their caregivers, which has been translated into multiple languages. She is a Fellow of ASHA, and founding member/past Vice-Chair of Board of Certified Specialists in Swallowing and Swallowing Disorders. She's Associate Editor for the Dysphagia Journal.

Financial Disclosures:

• Salary from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Ataxia-Telangiectasia Children’s Project
• Author/editor royalties from Plural Publishers
• Presenter/author royalties from MedBridge
• Grant funding from NIH/NIDCD, NIH/NIDDK, NCATS, and FDA Orphan Products Development
• Financial compensation from ASHA for this and prior presentations

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• None

Casey Lewis, MS, CCC-SLP, CNT, CLC, NTMTC, is the owner of TexScope LLC, a mobile FEES company that services the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex. She is also an avid advocate for fragile infants that require hospitalization in the NICU and realizes that family-centered care is vital for best developmental outcomes as well as family well-being. She is the developer and copyright owner of the NICU Oral Feeding Algorithm© and speaks nationally and internationally regarding neonatal therapy and dysphagia management across the life span.

Financial Disclosures:

• Owner of TexScope LLC
• Salary from HCA Healthcare
• Copyright owner of NICU Oral Feeding Algorithm©
• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• None

Jamie Mahurin-Smith, PhD, CCC-SLP, IBCLC, has been a credentialed speech-language pathologist since 1995. Her early experiences with pediatric feeding concerns in infants whose mothers had hoped to breastfeed spurred her to seek certification as a lactation consultant; she has been an IBCLC since 2004. She is on the faculty at Illinois State University; her research focuses in part on the experiences of breastfeeding dyads who encounter feeding challenges.

Financial Disclosures:

• Associate professor at Illinois State University
• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• Researcher studying families’ experiences with breastfeeding challenges

Bonnie Martin-Harris, PhD, CCC-SLP, is the Alice Gabrielle Twight Professor in the Roxelyn and Richard Pepper Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, and Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs in the School of Communication at Northwestern University. Her research interests include swallowing impairment and respiratory-swallowing interactions, assessment, and treatment approaches for patients with head and neck cancer, and neurologic and pulmonary diseases. Dr. Martin-Harris’s research is funded by the NIH, VA, Bracco Diagnostics, and Mark and Evelyn Trammell Foundation.

Financial Disclosures:

• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• None

Katlyn E. McGrattan, PhD, CCC-SLP, is an Assistant Professor at the University of Minnesota with a clinical appointment at Masonic Children’s Hospital. She completed doctoral training in Health & Rehabilitation Science at the Medical University of South Carolina and post-doctoral training in Neonatal Gastroenterology at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. Her research focuses on the use of refined physiologic assessment to identify impairments in neonatal upper aerodigestive physiology and apply targeted therapeutic interventions to maximize treatment effect.

Financial Disclosures:

• Grant funding from NIH, NICHD
• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• None

Brianna Miluk, MS, CCC-SLP, CLC, is a speech-language pathologist and certified lactation counselor from Greenville, SC, who provides home and outpatient-based services to infants and medically complex children. She specializes in pediatric feeding disorders, which she enjoys talking about in her continuing education courses and mentorship programs and on her podcast. Bri strives to provide collaborative and compassionate family-centered care.

Financial Disclosures:

• Salary from Pennsylvania Western University
• Owner of Pediatric Feeding Therapy, LLC
• Contract SLP for Earthshine Speech and Language and My Little Eater
• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• President of Pediatric Feeding Disorders Foundation
• Conference committee for Feeding Matters

Kimberly Morris, MS, CCC-SLP, BCS-S, IBCLC, is a pediatric speech-language pathologist with over 16 years of experience assessing and treating children with dysphagia in both the acute care and outpatient settings. She is a board certified specialist in swallowing and swallowing disorders and an international board certified lactation consultant. She leads the cardiac and aerodigestive feeding programs at Rady Children’s Hospital San Diego and is involved in national research initiatives to optimize feeding and swallowing outcomes.

Financial Disclosures:

• Employee of Rady Children's Hospital San Diego
• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• None

Karli Negrin, MS, CCC-SLP, is a speech-language pathologist with over 15 years of experience dedicated to the evaluation and treatment of pediatric dysphagia in infants born with congenital heart defects. She is actively involved in multicentered quality improvement initiatives, publishing, and speaking events addressing cardiac infant neuroprotection. Ms. Negrin serves in cardiac infant collaboratives including the Cardiac Newborn Neuroprotective Network, the Cardiac Neurodevelopmental Outcome Collaborative, and National Pediatric Cardiology Quality Improvement Collaboration.

Financial Disclosures:

• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• None

Jenny Reynolds, MS, CCC-SLP, CLC, CNT, BCS-S, is currently practicing as Advanced Clinical Specialist at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, Texas, in the Level 4 Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Jenny is a board certified swallowing specialist, certified lactation counselor, and certified neonatal therapist. Jenny’s research focus is pediatric dysphagia, specifically infant FEES, which is published in high-standing, peer-reviewed journals. Jenny is an adjunct speaker at several speech therapy graduate programs in the DFW area.

Financial Disclosures:

• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• None

Megan Richmond, DHA, CCC-SLP, has 20 years of research, clinical, and leadership experience. She provides services in the NICU and pediatric outpatient settings, specializing in feeding disorders, and serves as a Clinical Fellowship Mentor. Dr. Richmond’s research interests focus on neonatal outcomes and service delivery models. As an active member of the value-based care member advisory group, she engages with ASHA staff and leaders to develop resources for clinicians.

Financial Disclosures:

• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• None

Erin S. Ross, PhD, CCC-SLP, received her PhD from the University of Colorado in 2007, which was followed by a 2-year post-doctoral fellowship in the Section of Nutrition at the University of Colorado Denver. Her master’s degree is in Speech and Language Pathology, which she received in 1988. Dr. Ross is currently a Clinical Instructor at the University of Colorado Denver and on faculty at the Rocky Mountain University of Health Professions. She has authored several book chapters and publications related to feeding preterm infants, infants with medical comorbidities, and children with pediatric feeding disorder (PFD). Dr. Ross provides clinical consultation to several NICUs within the HealthONE system in Denver, in addition to providing professional education and research consultation through Feeding Fundamentals. She created SOFFI®, a training program for caregivers in the NICU and in Early Intervention. Dr. Ross also teaches the SOS Approach to Feeding, created by Dr. Kay Toomey. Across her career she has treated infants and young children in hospital, clinic, and home settings and brings 30 years of experience. Her perspective crosses over the initial hospitalization through the first 5 years of life.

Financial Disclosures:

• Owner of Feeding Fundamentals, LLC, including intellectual property (inclusive of SOFFI®), and receives a salary
• Salary as a faculty member of the Rocky Mountain University of Health Professions and as a Developmental Specialist for the HealthONE Hospital Systems
• Assistant Clinical Professor at the University of Colorado School of Medicine
• Paid consultant for Gerber Baby Foods (Nestec) and Intertek
• Paid as a speaker for Toomey and Associates, Inc. and receives royalties for content
• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• Chair of Advocacy Pillar for Feeding Matters
• Member of the Consensus Committee – Developmental Care Standards for Infants in Intensive Care and has written related book chapters for Elsevier and Thieme Publishers

Rebecca Smith, MS, CCC-SLP, CNT, CLC, BCS-S, is a clinical educator at Appalachian State University in the Beaver College of Health Sciences Interprofessional Clinic. She works in outpatient and acute care settings through ASU and teaches their pediatric dysphagia course in the graduate program. Rebecca is pursuing her PhD in Health Sciences with an anticipated completion date of May 2024. Over the last 5 years, she has specialized in evaluating and treating infant feeding and swallowing in the neonatal intensive care unit and assessing adult dysphagia in medical and surgical intensive care units. She is a certified neonatal therapist, a certified lactation counselor, and a board certified specialist in swallowing and swallowing disorders. Rebecca has served on various local, state, and national committees. She served on the executive medical committee for Texas Speech-Language-Hearing Association; ASHA Special Interest Group 13 (Swallowing and Swallowing Disorders) Professional Development Committee; Dysphagia Research Society’s Website, Communications, and Public Relations Committee; and Dysphagia Research Society’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion committee. She has presented on numerous occasions through state associations and ASHA on neonatal intensive care and clinical supervision.

Financial Disclosures:

• Employee of Appalachian State University
• Honorariums from Pediatric Feeding Therapy LLC as content creator for ongoing CE courses
• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• ASHA SIG 13 Professional Development Committee member
• Dysphagia Research Society Website, Public Relations Committee Member

Alyson Ware, MS, CCC-SLP, CLC, is a pediatric speech-language pathologist based out of Austin, Texas. She has worked in a variety of settings, including private practice, a children's hospital, and early intervention. Alyson is a volunteer for Dysphagia Outreach Project and TSHA and an affiliate of ASHA SIG 13. She currently works in early intervention and serves infants and toddlers with developmental delays and disorders. Alyson is a doctoral student at Texas Woman's University and her research interests include understanding barriers to feeding and swallowing services in Texas for infants and young children.

Financial Disclosures:

• Employee of Any Baby Can 
• Employee of Medical SLP Collective
• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• Volunteer for Dysphagia Outreach Project
• TSHA volunteer
• ASHA SIG 13 affiliate

Emily Zimmerman, PhD, CCC-SLP, is an Associate Professor of Communication Sciences & Disorders at Northeastern University. She directs the Speech & Neurodevelopment Lab, which examines the cross section of sucking, feeding, and speech emergence across environmental, maternal, physiological, and genetic factors. Dr. Zimmerman is the principal investigator on several NIH grants examining these themes across patient populations.

Financial Disclosures:

• Salary from Northeastern University
• Grant funding from NIH
• Financial compensation from ASHA for this presentation

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• None