Welcome to our Lab

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Meet our Staff

Heidi Sindberg, MS, CCC-SLP

Speech-Language Pathologist

Heidi came to the lab from the Dodge County Birth to Three program. Heidi's background includes both clinical and research services. She has worked with diverse populations including children and adolescents who have autism, adolescents who have Down syndrome, and adolescents and adults who have sustained brain injuries. Heidi has a special interest in the area of augmentative and alternative communication (methods for supplementing or replacing speech for individuals who have difficulty communicating with their own voice.)

Corey Ray-Subramanian, PhD

Licensed Psychologist

Corey joined the Language Processes Lab in 2008 and has been involved in conducting diagnostic evaluations and psychological testing for the lab's research projects. She also participates in data analysis and dissemination of study results through conference presentations and publications. Corey earned her Ph.D. in Educational Psychology, with a specialization in School Psychology, at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She also provides clinical services in several of the Waisman Center Clinics.

Sara Kover, PhD

Postdoctoral Fellow

Sara is a post-doctoral researcher in the Language Processes Lab. She earned her Ph.D. in Educational Psychology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2012 and her B.A. in Cognitive Science and German at Johns Hopkins University in 2005. Sara's dissertation examined syntactic comprehension in boys with fragile X syndrome and boys with autism spectrum disorder using eye gaze measures of language processing.

Courtney Venker, MA, CCC-SLP

PhD Student, Department of Communicative Disorders

Courtney is a speech-language pathologist and a doctoral student in the department of Communicative Disorders. She earned her B.A. in Communication Disorders from Truman State University and her M.A. in Speech and Hearing Science from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. Her research focuses on characterizing the learning mechanisms that underlie atypical language acquisition, in the hope of better understanding why some children have such difficulty acquiring language. She is interested in a variety of clinical populations, including children with autism spectrum disorders and children with language delay. As a licensed and certified speech-language pathologist, she is also interested in understanding the impact of linguistic input on language development. Her dissertation focuses on statistical word learning and non-social visual attention in children with autism using eye-gaze methodology.

Meghan Matthews, MS, CF-SLP

PhD Student, Department of Communicative Disorders

Meghan is a doctoral student in the Department of Communicative Disorders. She finished her bachelor's at the University of Arizona in 2008. Meghan was a recipient of the ASHA SPARCC award in 2008. She received her Master's degree in 2011 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and currently works as a clinician with children with autism as part of her clinical fellowship. Meghan's primary areas of interest are the interrelationships of language and literacy in typically developing, language impaired, and particularly children with autism. Meghan worked on the longitudinal Toddler Talk study for several years, and is excited to continue to work in the lab on the new study of executive function and language.

Eileen Haebig, MS, CF-SLP

PhD Student, Department of Communicative Disorders

Eileen is a doctoral student in the department of Communicative Disorders. She earned her B.S. in Communication Sciences and Disorders from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and her M.S. in Communicative Disorders from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In addition to coursework and research, she is the Student Representative of the Wisconsin Speech-Language and Hearing Association. Eileen is interested in the development of language in children with autism and language delays.

Maddy Swenson, BS

Master's Student, Department of Communicative Disorders

Maddy is a master's student in the Department of Communicative Disorders. She earned her B.S. in Communication Sciences and Disorders and Child Development from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2012. Maddy began working for the lab as an undergraduate in 2010 and completed a senior thesis under the mentorship of Courtney Venker and Dr. Ellis Weismer in 2012. She is interested in the development of language in children with autism.

Sarah Allen, BS

Master's Student, Department of Communicative Disorders

Sarah is a master's student studying speech and language pathology. She joined the lab in 2010 as an undergraduate student and completed her senior thesis with the Toddler Talk Project in 2012. She studied communicative disorders and educational policy at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and she is particularly interested in child language disorders and autism.

Anna Dorrance, BS

Master's Student, Department of Communicative Disorders

Anna is a master's student in the Department of Communicative Disorders. She earned her B.S. in Communicative Disorders and a certificate in Educational Policy Studies from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2010. Anna has worked at the Waisman Center on projects focused on language development in children with fragile X syndrome and autism spectrum disorders and joined the lab in 2011. Anna is interested in child language disorders associated with children on the autism spectrum, in order to better support social communication skills.