Nadia Calderon (mentored by Dr. Nagano)

Nadia Calderon is a senior at Hunter College, majoring in English: Linguistics and Rhetoric with a concentration study in mathematical sciences. She immigrated to the United States at the age of 2 years old and had trouble overcoming insecurities surrounding her accent. She attended speech for five years in elementary school and was never pleased with her results. Nadia overcame her insecurity through her discovery of communication sciences. Enlightened, she continued her journey by taking additional courses that covered linguistics, phonology, and audiology. As a bilingual in English and Spanish, Nadia hopes to cover bilingualism in her research. After graduation, Nadia plans on taking a gap year to work in early intervention, with the desire to gain more experience before applying to graduate school for speech pathology. As a recipient of the Hispanic Brotherhood Scholarship, TheDream.US, and as a member of the ILLC 2021, Nadia hopes to inspire other underprivileged Hispanics to enter the field of communication sciences.

See Nadia’s final research presentation here:

Nariba Cintron (mentored by Dr. Barrière)

Nariba Cintron hails from the beautiful twin island of Trinidad and Tobago and migrated to the U.S. in 2004. She is a first-generation college student at LaGuardia Community College and a self-proclaimed Trini Brooklynite. Currently, she majors in Education and intends to transfer in pursuit of a dual major— focusing on Communication Sciences and Disorders and Linguistics. Afterward, she will acquire her Master’s and eventually her Ph.D. As a former DREAMer recipient, Nariba understands the need for multi-cultural inclusivity and is passionate about de-stigmatizing the elitist assumption that ethnic and minority dialects are inferior to their formal counterparts. Her interests lie within cross-cultural learning, code-switching, and language acquisition. Nariba’s love for diverse languages, cultures, and dialects transcends into possibly treating and diagnosing speech disorders. When she is not studying, she enjoys reading dystopian and sci-fi novels and spending relaxing days at the beach. No matter where life takes her, Nariba believes her purpose is to assist individuals and communities who are disadvantaged, marginalized, and most vulnerable in society.

See Nariba’s final research presentation here:

Faizeh Hammood (mentored by Dr. Nissenbaum)

Faizeh Hammood is a senior at Brooklyn College double majoring in communication sciences and disorders and linguistics, as well as minoring in children and youth studies. Her research interests include sociolinguistics and different varieties of the Arabic language. Being a bilingual Arabic speaker, she looks forward to diving into researching the language further with the help of the ILLC program. Currently, she assists Brooklyn College professor, Dr. Fuse in a systematic review about minority parents perceptions on their children with autism. Upon graduation, she plans on pursuing a master’s degree in speech-language pathology and begin working with children with special needs. She is the Vice President for Brooklyn College’s National Student Speech Language Hearing Association (NSSLHA) Chapter.

See Faizeh’s final research presentation here:

Lema Majdalawieh (mentored by Dr. Nissenbaum)

Lema Majdalawieh is a Senior at Brooklyn College. She is pursuing a Bachelor of Arts with a primary major in Communication Arts, Sciences, and Disorders, and with a secondary major in Linguistics. She was drawn to the field of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences by a desire to work with geriatric populations and the personal experience of a family member receiving therapy after suffering a stroke. She has shadowed SLP’s at two different hospitals in adult rehab units. After graduation she plans to continue her education by pursuing a Master’s Degree in Speech Language Pathology.

See Lema’s final research presentation here:

Christa Mathew (mentored by Dr. Moya-Gale)

Christa is a senior at Brooklyn College in the Macaulay Honors program. She is pursuing a BA in Chemistry, BS in Psychology, and BBA in Business Administration with a concentration in Health Professions on the pre-medical track. She speaks both English and Malayalam, and has been interested in how social factors can affect the level of communication spoken within their respective language. Having had family members with different neurological diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, she is also intrigued to learn more about different speech treatments that can be used to help those with such diseases. Following graduation, Christa wishes to pursue a career in medicine. 

See Christa’s final research presentation here:

Jaylene Mendoza (mentored by Dr. Moody)

Jaylene Mendoza is a senior at Brooklyn College majoring in Communication Sciences and Disorders and Linguistics. Her passion for the SLP field began when she accompanied her brother to his speech therapy sessions. She is currently working as an Applied Behavioral Analysis Assistant Teacher, for a Jumpstart program. She has built relationships with her students that have been extremely rewarding for her and drives her towards her goals everyday. She is excited to see what the future holds after she pursues her Masters degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders so that she can work in an elementary school setting as an SLP. 

See Jaylene’s final research presentation here:

Farida Olaleye (mentored by Dr. Barrière)

Farida is a Sophomore at SUNY Stony Brook University, where she is pursuing a B.S in Psychology and a B.A in Linguistics with a minor in Spanish Language and Literature. Raised in Nigeria, she migrated to American when she was 10 years old. She is particularly interested in code-switching and language acquisition in children. She hopes for a career where she can work with infants and children, hoping to make a difference. In her spare time, she loves to paint minimalistic art, travel, dance, and work tirelessly to bring awareness to mental health issues.She is not afraid to try new things and learn from new experiences.

See Farida’s final research presentation here:

Mauela Perea (mentored by Dr. Reilly)

Manuela Perea is a senior at Queens College pursuing a double major in Communication Sciences and Disorders and Psychology. Her undergraduate and professional encounters have encouraged her to pursue higher education to make significant contributions to the field of speech pathology.  Manuela has had the privilege to work for the Department of Education, aiding in the education of elementary school children as a paraprofessional. As a bilingual Latina and an immigrant, Manuela celebrates diversity and recognizes the importance of representation within professional and academic spaces. Manuela believes that if a client has a provider that resembles them or comes from a similar background, an instant connection occurs, which results in increased involvement, comfort, and most importantly, a sense of empowerment. As Manuela continues to pursue Speech Language Pathology, she looks forward to educating her community and peers through her diversity. 

See Manuela’s final research presentation here:

Havi Pham (mentored by Dr. Vermeire and Dr. Nissenbaum)

Havi Pham is a junior in the Macaulay Honors Program at Queens College. She is currently pursuing a dual major in Communication Sciences & Disorders (CSD) and English. Growing up, Havi’s favorite pastimes have always involved words; from reading books, to writing short stories and, finally, to creating music have all solidified language into a prominent part of her identity. Havi’s passions have inspired her to take a path that meets her interests in the middle—Audiology. She is particularly interested in being able to implement her Vietnamese-speaking background into future research within the field. After graduation, Havi intends to pursue an Au.D to help those struggling with different kinds of hearing disorders and to add her own potential research to the growing field of Audiology.

See Havi’s final research presentation here:

Melanie Rosa-Chaves (mentored by Dr. Baigorri)

Melanie Rosa-Chaves is a Long Island native in her fourth year of undergraduate studies at Adelphi University, NY. She is a Levermore Global Scholar pursuing a dual degree in Communication Sciences & Disorders and Spanish with a certificate in Translation Studies. In addition to her coursework, Melanie serves as the president of the Levermore Global Scholar Student Leadership Council and treasurer of the National Student Speech-Language-Hearing Association, Adelphi University Chapter. She previously worked as a research assistant at her university’s Dialect, Development, and Language Disorders Lab, where she studied executive functioning in bilingual and bi-dialectal children. Throughout her undergraduate career, Melanie gained international experience studying sustainable development at the UN University for Peace in Costa Rica, Spanish language and phonology at the University of Seville in Spain, and completed fieldwork in Belize. Upon graduation, Melanie plans to attend graduate school to obtain an M.S. in Speech-Language Pathology with a bilingual extension in Spanish and Portuguese. In the future, she hopes to become a certified speech-language pathologist and work with diverse populations to create therapy strategies that are both accessible and sustainable to all communities.

See Melanie’s final research presentation here:

Angel Shaji (mentored by Dr. Barrière)

Angel Shaji is a junior at Macaulay Honors Brooklyn College pursuing a double major in Communication Arts, Sciences, and Disorders; and Creative Writing, with a minor in Psychology. She speaks both English and Malayalam, and has always been intrigued by the vastly unexplored territory of people such as herself. As a bilingual, Angel is heavily influenced by the way languages shape our relationships, inner monologues, and ever-evolving culture. Following graduation, Angel wishes to pursue a Masters and PhD in Speech Language Pathology. In her spare time, she can be found bullet journaling or reading a fantasy novel!

See Angel’s final research presentation here:

Sara Tafur (mentored by Dr. Barrière)

Sara Tafur is a junior at Molloy College majoring in Speech Pathology. She was born in Bogota, Colombia, then migrated with her family to the United States. She quickly learned the English Language with the help of her older brothers. Along the way Sara had to push herself to learn new concepts at home since she was home-schooled during her early childhood. Her interest in the speech sciences was sparked when she saw the progress her younger cousin was making once he started seeing a speech therapist. This inspired Sara to enter the field. Her research interests include language acquisition and code switching. After this program, she plans to continue studying in graduate school to receive a Master’s degree in Speech Pathology.

See Sara’s final research presentation here:

Victoria Torregrossa (mentored by Dr. Datta)

Victoria Torregrossa is a third-year Communication Sciences and Disorders student at Molloy College with a minor in psychology. She gravitated towards this field due to her passion to assist people in rising to their fullest potential. Victoria always knew her purpose was to work with others, and her speech therapy sessions as a child pushed her towards choosing this career path. Her experiences being in speech therapy showed her the profound effect speech has on an individual’s life. Additionally, Victoria’s enjoyment of science and the social sciences aligns with her research interest in neurology and how impairments on our cognitive abilities affect the ability to comprehend speech and communicate effectively. Her openness to work with anyone despite age or ability will lead her to a multitude of possibilities as she wishes to attain her master’s degree in Speech-Language Pathology.

See Victoria’s final research presentation here:

Genesia Watters (mentored by Dr. Shafer)

Genesia Watters was born and raised in a small city called Belmopan which is located in Belize, Central America. Watters self identifies as Creole, which is one of the several ethnicities that can be found in various parts of Belize. She obtained her associate degree in English at the University of Belize and is currently a senior attending Queens College majoring in Communication Sciences and Disorders. Watters aspires to earn her Master’s and PHD in Speech Language Pathology. The realities of limited research and lack of diverse clinicians specialized in speech, language and hearing impairments in Central America and the Caribbean; sparked Watters’s interests of working with a wide range of populations, including speakers of Caribbean English Creoles (CEC) ranging from pediatrics to geriatrics. Watters serves as a peer counselor for Queens College students and is the co-founder of BLASK-LCD, a support group for Black, Latinx, Asians and students of color in her CSD program. With an unending passion for empowering women, she is also a JFEW Scholar (Jewish Foundation for Education of Women) at Queens College.

See Genesia’s final research presentation here: