Shauna Huguley, Hannah Martin, and Hillary Erp are second year speech-language pathology graduate students and the 2022-2023 recipients of the Scottish Rite Research and Clinical Service Scholarships. Each of them are committed to contributing to the field of speech-language pathology through research and serving their communities here in VA after graduation.

Shauna’s clinical service, supervised by Dr. Millar, seeks to educate families and daycare workers on introducing new foods to children. Her research specifically applies to the eating habits that can be seen in picky eaters or children with autism. Shauna became interested in the field when her cousin was born with hearing loss and received early intervention. She saw the impact the SLP had on not only her cousin, but his parents and wanted to help others in that same way. In her free time, she enjoys playing with her dogs, cooking, shopping, and spending time with her family.

Hannah is working with clinical supervisor, Rachel Greene, to review current research related to self-regulation in children with communication disorders. Additionally, she is using her research to disseminate clinically applicable self-regulation strategies to first year graduate students as they help RUSLHC clients regulate their behavior and emotions during sessions.  As a graduate student, Hannah says it has been rewarding to work with children with autism and their families, but she enjoys gaining experience with patients across the lifespan. In her free time, she enjoys going to concerts, binge-watching TV shows, reading, and spending time with family.

Hillary’s project, also supervised by Dr. Diane Millar, was developed to educate daycare workers on early detection and screening of autism symptoms using the Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers (M-CHAT). She is also providing daycare workers with tools and strategies to better serve their autistic clients. Hillary changed her career path from respiratory therapy to speech pathology after seeing patients who suffered strokes in the hospital and the impact their SLPs had on their quality of life and well-being. In her free time, Hillary enjoys hanging out with her family, taking her kids to the playground, attending church, and playing tennis with her husband. 

Paige Waddell recently stopped by the COSD department as the field representative for Starkey Hearing.  We were excited to have her in the audiology suite!

Paige is a Radford University alum who graduated with a bachelor’s in science in COSD in 2013, while also minoring in Spanish and Psychology, before attending East Tennessee State University to obtain a Doctor of Audiology Degree in 2017. She has worked as an audiologist for almost six years. Beginning at an ENT practice in Raleigh, NC, Paige worked with adult patients performing hearing evaluations, hearing aid fittings, and vestibular evaluations for four years, and performed newborn hearing screenings one-day a week. She currently works for Starkey Hearing as the field representative for the state of Virginia. There, Paige works closely with hearing care professionals. She trains professionals on current products, assists with challenging patient appointments, and provides basic business management advice. As an audiologist, Paige understands the immense feelings of isolation and frustration caused by hearing loss, but says “there is no better feeling than helping someone hear and understand their loved ones after years of struggling to communicate”.

Paige emphasized the importance of finding a hearing care professional that you trust and follows best practice protocols. “There are about 28.8 million American adults who could benefit from using hearing aids, but only around 30% of these people are actually using hearing aids. Hearing loss and treatment get put on the backburner, but the sooner hearing loss is treated, the better the outcomes!”

In her free time, Paige enjoys trying new restaurants, attending concerts, reading, catching up on pop culture, and spending time with friends and family