2026 Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Conference
March 15-17, 2026 • Jacksonville, FL
| Swaddling Ear to Ear – Conceptualizing and supporting early intervention enrollment
Swaddling Ear to Ear – Conceptualizing and supporting early intervention enrollment
In the United States during 2019, 5,934 infants were identified as D/deaf or hard of hearing via Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) programs (CDC, 2019a). However, over 1/3 of those children and their families are lost to intervention (LTI) and not documented as having accessed to early intervention services (CDC, 2019a). The most commonly known reason for not accessing services, besides those that are logistical in nature, is that the child’s family refused services (CDC, 2021b). Not having access to early intervention is concerning, as it places children at a developmental disadvantage due to a lack of linguistic access. This presentation explores the contributors to this service refusal including the accessibility of information, EHDI policy, and personal decision making followed by a discussion of a novel intervention to address service refusal. This is a unique line of programmatic inquiry focuses on understanding and addressing the individual needs of families beginning to navigate early intervention and their journey with hearing.
- Learners will be able to describe the barriers for families of children who are D/deaf or hard of hearing to accessing early intervention.
- Learners will be able to critique the Swaddling Ear to Ear program as a means of supporting early intervention access for children who are D/deaf or hard of hearing.
- Learners will be able to modify the guiding principles of Swaddling Ear to Ear to meet the needs of their EHDI program.
Presentation:
3478265_16203Torri AnnWoodruff-Gautherin.pdf
Handouts:
Handout is not Available
Transcripts:
CART transcripts are NOT YET available, but will be posted shortly after the conference
Presenters/Authors
Torri Ann Woodruff-Gautherin
(Primary Presenter,Co-Presenter,Author,Co-Author), University of Connecticut, torri.woodruff@uconn.edu;
Torri Ann Woodruff-Gautherin, PhD is a Research Scientist in the HELLO Lab of Dr. Derek Houston at UCONN. Passionate about bolstering the voices of stakeholders, Torri Ann implements qualitative methods to highlight the power and value of individual voices in making change. Torri Ann is interested in the intersection of public health, early intervention, and family support.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
• Receives Grants for Other activities from EAA.
• Receives Salary,Grants for Employment,Other activities from UConn.
Nonfinancial -
• Has a Professional
(Co Chair)
relationship for Board membership.
• Has a Professional
(Board memeber)
relationship for Board membership.
AAA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
Financial relationship with UConn
EAA
NIH
CT EHDI Taskforce
CT Hands & Voices.
Nature: UConn - employee and a grant on this topic
EAA - grant for related work
NIH - employed on grant
CT EHDI Taskforce - co-chair
CT Hands & Voices - board memeber.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
Kathleen Cienkowski
(Author,Co-Author), University of Connecticut, cienkowski@uconn.edu;
Kathleen M Cienkowski, Ph.D. CCC/A is an Associate Professor and Department Head of SLHS at the University of Connecticut. Dr. Cienkowski studies the benefits of AR among patients with acquired hearing loss and their families. Her work has been funded by National Institutes of Health and the Veterans Administration. She is the Past-President of the Academy of Rehabilitative Audiology, Past-Coordinator for the American Speech, Language and Hearing Association (ASHA) Special Interest Group 7: Aural Rehabilitation and Its Instrumentation. She currently serves a audiology discipline coordinator for the UCONN LEND and co-investigator for the UCONN Pediatric LEND Supplement grant.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
• Receives Grants for Employment,Other activities from UCONN-LEND.
• Receives Salary for Employment,Teaching and speaking from University of Connecticut.
Nonfinancial -
• Has a Professional
(Board member)
relationship for Board membership.
AAA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
Financial relationship with University of Connecticut
University of Connecticut LEND
Eastern CT HLAA.
Nature: University of Connecticut - employee
UCONN LEND - Grant funds, discipline coordinator for audiology; Eastern CT HLAA board member.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
Emily LaSpada
(Co-Presenter), University Of Connecticut , emily.laspada@uconn.edu;
Emily LaSpada is an Au.D. student at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. She completed undergraduate studies at the University of Connecticut where her interest in research was piqued. She continues to support work in the UConn Aural Rehabilitation Lab centered around family education and access to early intervention services. Emily’s passion for working with individuals that are D/deaf and Hard of Hearing stems from fluency in ASL and a history with the American School for the Deaf.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
• Receives Salary for Employment from University of Connecticut .
Nonfinancial -
• Has a Professional
(Executive Board Member of the Student Academy of Audiology )
relationship for Board membership.
AAA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
Financial relationship with I am employed by the University of Connecticut through a grant received by Dr. Torri Ann Woodruff-Gautherin. .
Nature: I am an Executive Board Member of the University of Massachusetts chapter of the Student Academy of Audiology. .
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.