2025 Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Conference
March 9-11, 2025 • Pittsburgh, PA
DAVID L. LAWRENCE CONVENTION CENTER
| HELLO Lab: Community Connections and Outreach
HELLO Lab: Community Connections and Outreach
The mission of The HELLO Lab is to bridge the gap between science and practical applications of research as it relates to language development, with a particular focus on children who are D/deaf or hard of hearing. While the HELLO Lab is deeply embedded within research including funded projects from the NIH, Educational Audiology Association, and internal UConn funds, outreach is a pilar of all work. This poster will review how the HELLO Lab is working within the community by collaborating with parent groups, clinics, schools, service providers, device manufactures, and community childhood education resources. Some of the outreach initiatives covered will include research education for families, parent support and efficacy, translation of research into family-friendly references, community arts and crafts with local D/deaf and hard of hearing parent groups, data management support for clinical service providers, and joint project/grant development with stakeholders on topics they feel need more research. We also work to engage in explicitly inclusive research practices such as mobile testing, flexible scheduling, sibling care during participation, travel support, and continuing work to include a wider range of languages in our testing procedures.
By collaborating with educators, parents, and communities, we aspire to bring about positive changes in language learning opportunities and outcomes for all children by fostering community engaged research, supporting the translation of research findings into clinical practice, and active engagement with the D/deaf and hard of hearing community. This poster will also present the outreach approach and methods used by the HELLO Lab to build trusting and genuine relationships with the community. At the end of the poster, visitors will be challenged to identify one actionable step that they can pursue to engage their community, with the support of the HELLO Lab by their side.
- Describe the philosophy of the HELLO Lab in engaging with their community
- Compare and contrast the differences between community and research engagement efforts
- Develop a single actionable step to engage with your community after EHDI
Presentation:
3545975_18212Torri AnnWoodruff-Gautherin.pdf
Handouts:
3545975_18212Torri AnnWoodruff-Gautherin.pdf
Transcripts:
CART transcripts are NOT YET available, but will be posted shortly after the conference
Presenters/Authors
Torri Ann Woodruff-Gautherin
(Primary Presenter,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.
Derek Houston
(Co-Presenter,Co-Author), University of Connecticut, derek.houston@uconn.edu;
Derek M. Houston, PhD, received his doctorate in cognitive psychology from Johns Hopkins University in 2000, focusing on how typically developing infants segment words from fluent speech and recognize words across different talkers. After graduating, he constructed the world's first laboratory to investigate the speech perception and language skills of deaf infants who receive cochlear implants at Indiana University. Since then, his work (supported by NIDCD) has investigated the role of early auditory experience and parent-child interactions on cognitive, linguistic, and social building blocks of language development. He also engages in community-based participatory research aimed at addressing barriers families face in obtaining high-quality early intervention services for their children.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
No relevant financial relationship exists.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
AAA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
No relevant financial relationship exists.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
Robert Bourque
(Co-Presenter,Co-Author), HELLO Lab at the University of Connecticut, robert.bourque@uconn.edu;
Robert Bourque is a Research Assistant in the Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences at the University of Connecticut. He works in the Hearing Experience and Language Learning Outcomes (HELLO) Lab and coordinates the one of the lab’s major projects, Parent-Infant Eye-tracking (PIE). He earned his B.A. in Neuroscience & Behavior and Italian Studies at Wesleyan University in 2023. He is interested in language acquisition, interaction design, and games as a tool for learning.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
• Receives Salary for Employment from University of Connecticut.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
AAA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
No relevant financial relationship exists.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
Courtney Melick
(Co-Presenter,Co-Author), HELLO Lab at the University of Connecticut, courtney.melick@uconn.edu;
Courtney received her B.A. in biochemistry from the Ohio State University in 2021. Following graduation, she worked as the lab manager for the Psychosocial Cognitive Lab at OSU. Courtney entered the doctoral audiology program at University of Connecticut in autumn of 2023 and is currently working as a graduate assistant in the HELLO lab. In her free time, Courtney enjoys reading, painting, and taking ballet classes.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
No relevant financial relationship exists.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
AAA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
No relevant financial relationship exists.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
Precious-Janae Romain
(Co-Presenter,Author,Co-Author), HELLO Lab at the University of Connecticut, precious-janae.romain@uconn.edu;
Precious-Janae Romain is a Ph.D. Student in the Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences at the University of Connecticut. She earned her B.A. in Linguistics with a Psychology minor at Rutgers University in 2023. Her previous research engagements include work in psycholinguistics, dialectal variation and lexical processing, and the role of family dynamics in language acquisition outcomes in deaf/hard-of-hearing children. She currently works in the Hearing Experience and Language Learning Outcomes (HELLO) Lab with current research projects on child temperament moderation in word learning. Her research interests include spoken language development and acquisition in children with hearing loss, bilingualism, auditory and speech perception in language learning, and child temperament.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
No relevant financial relationship exists.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
AAA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
No relevant financial relationship exists.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
Juliette Ranelli
(Co-Presenter,Co-Author), HELLO Lab at the University of Connecticut, Juliette.ranelli@uconn.edu;
Juliette is a graduate student from New Haven. She graduated from UConn in 2024 with a major in Speech Language & Hearing Sciences. She works as a graduate research assistant in the HELLO Lab. She is interested in learning more about the language experiences of kids with Cochlear Implants. In her free time, Juliette enjoys going on playing ball with her dog and going down Zillow rabbit holes.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
• Receives Salary for Employment from University of Connecticut .
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
AAA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
Financial relationship with University Of Connecticut .
Nature: Employed by University of Connecticut on NIH grant.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.