Graduate Students

  • Daniela Fanta, MA

    PhD Student in Speech & Hearing Science

    Daniela is a Speech-Language Pathologist from Chile who is currently completing her PhD in the Speech and Hearing Sciences department. She completed her Master’s in Speech & Hearing Science in 2022. She was previously involved in the Applied Psycholinguistics Lab and the DND Lab as a Collaborator Investigator. Daniela’s research interests include the acquisition and development of communication and social skills in children with neurodevelopmental disorders and the role of caregivers in children’s language development.

  • Emily Falcon

    MA-SLP Student

    Emily is a graduate student in the MA-SLP clinical program. She received her undergraduate degree in Linguistics from Duke University in May of 2021. Emily’s interests lie in working with Spanish-English bilingual children diagnosed with ASD. After receiving her master’s degree from UIUC, she hopes to work as an SLP in an early intervention or school setting. 

  • Kai-Yun (Karen) Huang

    MA-SLP Student

    Karen is a graduate student in Speech and Hearing Science. Her research interests include early intervention and language development in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Down Syndrome. After graduation, Karen hopes that she can work with both the pediatric and adult populations in a medical setting for her clinical fellowship. Pursuing a PhD degree in the field of Speech and Hearing Science and conducting her own research in the future are Karen’s long term goals.

  • Kate Desbiens

    MA-SLP Student

    Kate is a graduate student in the MA-SLP clinical program. She completed her undergraduate degree in Communication Sciences & Disorders at Butler University. Her previous research experience investigated the use of improv theater as a social skills intervention for neurodivergent teens. Currently, she is interested in researching early intervention and language development in children with neurodevelopmental disorders. After obtaining her master’s, she hopes to continue working with children as a speech-language pathologist.

  • Sarah Maue

    MA-SLP Student

    Sarah is a graduate student in the MA-SLP clinical program. She received her undergraduate degree in Linguistics from Cedarville University. She has a strong interest in language development and working with children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. After graduation, she hopes to work as an SLP in a school or hospital setting.

  • Sarah Woodford

    MA-SLP Student

    Sarah is a graduate student in Speech and Hearing Science. She completed her undergraduate degree in Speech-Language Pathology at Texas Christian University. Sarah’s research interests include speech and language development and acquisition in individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders. After earning her master’s degree, Sarah hopes to continue research and work with pediatric populations.