Faculty & Staff
Theresa Alexander, M.S., CCC-SLP Assistant Clinical Professor
Areas of Specialization: Clinical Specialist in Aphasia. Areas of specialization include work with adults who have neurogenic swallowing and communication disorders including aphasia, apraxia, dysarthria, cognitive-communication disorders, dysphagia, tracheostomy/ventilator, in acute medical and rehabilitation settings.
Full-time clinical supervisor for the adult neuro rotation at the Loyola Clinical Centers at Belvedere Square.
Full-time clinical supervisor for the adult neuro rotation at the Loyola Clinical Centers at Belvedere Square.
Andrea Atticks, M.A., CCC-SLP Clinical Professor
Areas of Specialization: Adult neurology, specifically aphasia, traumatic brain injury, dysphagia and technology/apps for the adult neurology population.v
Jennifer Beard, CCC-SLP Assistant Clinical Professor
LaToiya Billy Program Assistant
Lena Caesar, Ed.D., Ph.D. Professor Emerita
Areas of Specialization: Dr. Caesar’s research interests focus on language and literacy assessment in bilingual and bi-dialectical populations. Specifically, the over-arching focus of her research has been to advance clinical practice by addressing the challenges faced by SLPs as they attempt to provide appropriate services to individuals who are culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD). The adequate preparation of SLP personnel for serving CLD children and their families is also an area that she investigates.
Sara Cornett, Ph.D., CCC-SLP Assistant Professor
Areas of Specialization: Augmentative and Alternative Communication, literacy assessment and interventions, alternative assessment, early intervention, school-based language, individualized care for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, implementation science
Jordan Differding, M.S., CCC-SLP Assistant Teaching Professor
Areas of Specialization: Areas of clinical interests include dysphagia, speech, language and voice diagnostic and rehabilitation, with a specialty in head and neck cancer. Clinical experiences include adult inpatient, acute rehabilitation and outpatient settings at the Milton J. Dance Jr., Head and Neck Center at Greater Baltimore Medical Center (GBMC), the Johns Hopkins Voice Center at GBMC and Mayo Clinic-Rochester.
Tepanta Fossett, Ph.D., CCC-SLP Assistant Professor
Areas of Specialization: Adult Neurogenic Communication Disorders, Aphasia, Motor Speech Disorders
Elizabeth Franchino, M.S., CCC-SLP Assistant Clinical Professor
Areas of Specialization: Areas of clinical interest include evaluation and treatment of neurogenic communication disorders, voice disorders and dysphagia. Clinical experience includes inpatient and outpatient at The Greater Baltimore Medical Center and Inova Fairfax Medical Center, as well as community-based settings including adult private practice and assisted living facilities.
Sally Gallena, Ph.D., CCC-SLP Associate Professor Emerita
Areas of Specialization: Disorders of Voice (including Paradoxical Vocal Fold Motion; Chronic Cough), Respiration, Resonance
Brianne Higgins Roos, Ed.D., CCC-SLP Undergraduate Program Director, Assistant Professor
Areas of Specialization: Areas of clinical interest/specialization include adult acute care, dysphagia and neurology. Clinical experience in acute care, acute rehabilitation, subacute rehabilitation, and outpatient rehabilitation at the University of Maryland Medical Center, R. Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center, Good Samaritan Hospital, Good Samaritan Nursing Center, Union Memorial Hospital, and the Greater Baltimore Medical Center (GBMC). Areas of pedagogical interest include educating the whole student, fostering community and belonging in face-to-face and online courses, and Ignatian integration.
Kathleen Holden, CCC-SLP Assistant Clinical Professor
Jill Keller, M.S., CCC-SLP Assistant Clinical Professor
Areas of Specialization: Sound Speech Disorders (SSD) for school age children and Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) for teens and young adults with complex language requirements.
Libby Kumin, Ph.D., CCC-SLP Professor Emerita
Areas of Specialization: Working with families; individuals with Down syndrome infancy to adulthood; language disorders in infants, toddlers, and children; speech and language development; articulation and phonology; speech intelligibility; childhood apraxia of speech
Colleen McElroy, M.S., CCC-SLP Graduate Program Director, Assistant Clinical Professor
Areas of Specialization: Adult Acute Care, dysphagia, cognitive communication, language disorders
Alexis Nikitopoulos, M.S., CCC-SLP Assistant Clinical Professor
Areas of Specialization: Providing comprehensive interdisciplinary (IAC) speech- language evaluations and recommendations for children ages 6-18; assessment and treatment of children from birth to 21 years of age with various speech-language disorders including: receptive-expressive language delay, Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), global language delay, pragmatic language delay, cortical visual impairment, and conditions associated with cerebral palsy; pediatric traumatic brain injury treatment and community re-entry; pediatric feeding disorders
Donna Pitts, Au.D., CCC-A, M.P.H. Associate Professor
Areas of specialization: Auditory Processing Disorders in Children; Aural Rehabilitation in Children and Adults; Identification of hearing deficits in children with a special interest in children with multiple disabilities, including blindness,and autism spectrum disorders
Janet Preis, Ed.D., CCC-SLP Department Chair, Associate Professor
Areas of Specialization: Autism Spectrum Disorders, Language Development, Ignatian Pedagogy, White Privilege
Ann Rentschler Director of Program Operations
Kathleen Siren, Ph.D., CCC-SLP Associate Professor
Areas of Specialization: Dr. Siren’s areas of clinical and research interest include the acoustic analysis of speech and voice and the use of technology to remediate articulation and phonological disorders. Her scholarship also focuses on best practices in speech science education, with a particular focus on inclusive classroom strategies to facilitate learning of complex topics.
Tom Thompson, M.S., CCC-SLP Clinical Faculty, Brain Injury Assessment Program Coordinator
Areas of Specialization: Neurological rehabilitation of cognitive-communication and swallowing disorders
Kathleen Ann Kelliher Ward, Au.D., CCC-A Clinical Professor
Areas of Specialization: Areas of interest include Auditory Processing Evaluation and Treatment, Interprofessional Team Evaluation and Intervention, Amplification and Aural Rehabilitation, American Sign Language, Identification of School Age Children with Hearing Deficits