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Our Clinical Faculty
Meet our Faculty:
Caitlin Al-Mutawa, M.S., CCC-SLP
Caitlin Al-Mutawa joined the USF Communication Sciences and Disorders Department in June 2022 as a Clinical Instructor. She completed both her Bachelor’s in Communication Sciences and Disorders and Master’s in Speech-Language Pathology at the University of South Florida. Caitlin has over ten years of experience working in public school districts in Florida, Georgia, Missouri, and Pennsylvania with a wide variety of student populations. She is experienced in delivering both in-person and telehealth services to school-age children. Her primary areas of expertise include evaluation and treatment of school-age children with developmental language disorder, language-based learning disabilities such as dyslexia, and phonological speech sound disorder.
Alexandra E. Brandimore, Ph.D., CCC-SLP
Dr. Alexandra Brandimore, Ph.D. CCC/SLP joined the USF Communication Sciences and Disorders department faculty in May 2017. She completed her doctoral studies at the University of Florida where she also received her Master's and Undergraduate education. After obtaining her Ph.D in Speech-Language Pathology, Dr. Brandimore completed a post-doctoral fellowship in the Laboratory for Upper Airway Dysfunction within the Department of Biobehavioral Sciences at Teachers College, Columbia University. During her post-doctoral work she established and coordinated the Clinical Research Neurorehabilitation Center at Teacher's College, served as co-investigator and/or study coordinator for various large-scale NIH and MJ Fox funded projects, and provided mentorship and teaching to Master's level SLP students. As an academician, Dr. Brandimore interfaces her passions for teaching, research, and clinic. Her primary research goals target the development of evaluative techniques and therapeutic paradigms to improve upper airway dysfunction, primarily dysphagia (disordered swallowing) and dystussia (disordered cough), in persons with neurodegenerative diseases (i.e. Parkinson's disease). Her clinical work has mainly been in the area of Movement Disorders where she has evaluated and treated the motor speech, voice, AAC, and airway protective needs of hundreds of patients. She currently participates in a collaborative, multidisciplinary clinic for the management of patients with ALS. Dr. Brandimore has teaching expertise in the areas of: respiratory physiology, cognitive-motor relationships, neural/myogenic adaptations to exercise and training, with emphasis on the swallowing, coughing and respiratory systems, and clinical disorders of motor speech, voice, and airway protection. Dr. Brandimore's teaching interests include dysphagia, voice disorders, motor speech disorders, speech anatomy and physiology, neuroanatomy, and SLP management of complex movement disorders.
Kathryn Johnson, M.S., CCC-SLP
Katie Johnson is a Visiting Clinical Instructor on the Language/Phonology Team in the USF Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders. She received her Bachelor of Sciences in Communication Sciences and Disorders from Florida State University in 2013 and her Master of Science in Speech Language Pathology from University of South Florida in 2018. She has worked on Pasco County Schools from 2014 to 2018 serving students with speech and language needs in general education and self-contained classrooms. Katie has been employed by USF since 2022, she was previously employed at Vanderbilt University Medical Center serving on their Augmentative Alternative Communication (AAC), pediatric TBI and early intervention teams. Katie’s areas of interest are in early intervention, AAC, pediatric TBI, ASD and complex language needs.
Emily Glass, M.A., CCC-SLP is currently a Visiting Assistant Instructor and practicing Speech-Language Pathologist in the USF Speech-Language Clinic for the Voice, Fluency, and Neurogenics Practicum. She completed her undergraduate and graduate studies at the University of Central Florida in Orlando, FL. During her professional career as a Speech-Language Pathologist, Emily has provided skilled evaluation and intervention services to adult and geriatric populations in the inpatient rehabilitation, skilled nursing, assisted living, and acute care settings. Her areas of clinical specialty include neurogenic communication disorders (dysarthria, aphasia, acquired apraxia of speech), cognitive-communication disorders, and dysphagia, with primary interest in rehabilitation following stroke, traumatic brain injury (TBI), and mild TBI/concussion. In clinical practice, Emily has developed a passion for patient/client-centered care with use of functional and evidence-based therapeutic approaches to maximize outcomes and improve quality of life. Since joining the team at USF, Emily has further developed clinical expertise in progressive neurodegenerative diseases including Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), Multiple System Atrophy (MSA), and Parkinson’s Disease, and other neurological movement disorders such as Orofacial Dystonia. She also holds specialty certifications in the SPEAK OUT! Program for clients with Parkinson’s Disease, McNeill Dysphagia Therapy Program (MDTP), and VitalStim (Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation) treatment for dysphagia.
Kelli Gorajec, MA, CCC-SLP joined the USF Communication Sciences and Disorders department as an assistant instructor in the Fall of 2019. She obtained a Master of Arts degree in Speech-Language Pathology from Central Michigan University in May of 2011. She has vast experience in evidenced-based practice evaluating and treating a variety of medical diagnoses in acute care, inpatient rehabilitation, and outpatient therapy settings. Her areas of clinical specialty include adult neurogenic communication disorders with a primary interest in traumatic brain injury, post-concussion, and neurodegenerative diseases, such as Parkinson’s Disease and ALS. She is a licensed SPEAK OUT!® Therapy Program provider, maintains certification in the Lee Silverman Voice Treatment – LOUD, and McNeal Dysphagia Therapy programs. She is an ASHA LMP mentor and a recent graduate of the ASHA Leadership Development Program (LDP). She is also the primary clinical SLP for the USF SPEAK OUT!® Therapy & Research Center. She enjoys sharing her passion for the field of Speech-Language Pathology with her students, engaging them in clinical research, and prioritizes a life participation approach to intervention for all clinical populations!
Kathryn Hunnings, M.S., CCC-SLP
Kathryn Hunnings, Speech-Language Pathologist, is a Visiting Clinical Instructor at the USF Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Communication Sciences and Disorders from the University of South Florida in 2014. She then continued at USF for graduate school and received her Master of Science in Speech-Language Pathology in 2016. Kathryn is excited to be back at her alma mater to share the knowledge and experience gleaned from her years working with diverse client populations across settings that run the gamut. From public schools and private practice to hospitals and skilled nursing facilities, Kathryn has developed and refined her clinical expertise. In addition to her diverse work experience, Kathryn has had the pleasure of traveling to London and Ecuador to visit universities, clinics, and hospitals while shadowing local SLPs to see the field of Speech-Language Pathology through different cultural lenses. As a member of the Language/Phonology team within the CSD Clinic, Kathryn now emboldens graduate SLP students to use their clinical problem-solving skills to best meet the individual needs of their clients.
Marian A. Lowther, M.S., CCC-SLP
Marian A. Lowther, MS CCC-SLP, is currently a Clinical Instructor at the University of South Florida. She obtained her BS in Speech Pathology and Audiology from California University of PA and MS in Communication Disorders from Baylor University. She has worked as an SLP since 1987 in school settings, rehab hospitals, private practice, mentoring, and program development. She has worked in Texas, Washington, and Florida. She most recently worked in Pinellas County Schools as a SLP mentor. Marian’s clinical areas of interest include developmental delays, neurological impairments, genetic disorders, degenerative diseases, mental/emotional disorders, dual language influences, and voice disorders. She has participated in research on accessing higher education and computer-based interventions. She has presented at state and national conferences and is a blogger for ASHA Leader on school-based interventions and advocacy. Marian is an ASHA Student to Empowered Professional (S.T.E.P) Mentor. She is an affiliate of ASHA Special Interest Groups 2, Neurophysiology & Neurogenic Speech and Language Disorders; 5, Speech Science and Orofacial Disorders; 11, Administration and Supervision; and 16, School-Based Issues. Marian is also an ASHA Grasstops Envoy for federal advocacy.
Nathan Maxfield, Ph.D., CCC-SLP
Dr. Maxfield joined our faculty in August 2005. He earned his Ph.D. at the City University of New York, Graduate Center. His research focus is on cognitive neuroscience investigations of speech, language and hearing processing. A portion of his work, funded by the National Institutes of Health, focuses on language and cognitive processing in people who stutter. In this line of research, Dr. Maxfield uses brain electrophysiological measures alongside more traditional behavioral measures to investigate how people who stutter process language in real time in preparation for speech production. Dr. Maxfield's clinical focus is on working with people who stutter. Among other people, Maxfield trained under Pat Richard Sacco who, for many decades, directed a residential treatment program for stuttering at the SUNY-Geneseo campus (with Dr. Harold Starbuck) before bringing that program to USF in the early 1990's. Both Sacco and Starbuck were students of Dr. Charles Van Riper, and many of Van Riper's core treatment principles make-up the intensive treatment program developed by Sacco and Starbuck. Sacco retired in the late 1990's, but Dr. Maxfield recently revived Sacco's summer intensive treatment program for stuttering (now called the Program for Advanced Treatment of Stuttering, or PATS). Dr. Maxfield also supervises preschool and school-age fluency clinics at USF. Dr. Maxfield enjoys clinical teaching and mentoring students in research; he supervises undergraduate and graduate thesis projects, as well as doctoral student projects.
Natalie Mikkelson, M.A., CCC-SLP, BCS-CL
Natalie Mikkelson is a Visiting Clinical Instructor in the USF Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Communication Sciences and Disorders from the University of Florida in 2006 and her Master of Arts in Communication Disorders from Louisiana State University in 2010. She has worked with the Bay Area Early Steps program both as a contract and internal provider since 2010. Natalie has been employed at USF since 2014, previously working in the Department of Pediatrics as a Speech-Language Pathologist/Early Interventionist with the Bay Area Early Steps program. In this role, Natalie participated in developmental evaluations, and provided natural environment-based treatment of speech, language and feeding/swallowing disorders. She also served as a peer mentor to other Early Steps therapists. Natalie’s areas of interest are in the use of routines-based intervention and caregiver coaching in the birth-3 population.
Felicia Pastore, M.S., CCC-SLP
Felicia Pastore, M.S., CCC-SLP is currently a Visiting Clinical Instructor and practicing Speech-Language Pathologist in the USF Speech-Language Clinic for the Voice, Fluency, and Neurogenics Practicum. She completed her undergraduate and graduate studies here in the Communication Sciences and Disorders program at the University of South Florida, Go Bulls! During her professional career as a Speech-Language Pathologist, Felicia has primarily served the adult and geriatric populations across a wide variety of skilled settings including, acute care, inpatient rehabilitation, outpatient rehabilitation, skilled nursing, assisted living, and home health. Her areas of clinical specialty include dysphagia, neurogenic cognitive-communication disorders (dysarthria, aphasia, acquired apraxia of speech, cognitive impairment) and voice, with a primary interest in neurodegenerative disease including ALS and Parkinsons. She also holds specialty certifications in MBSImP (modified barium swallow study impairment profile) and SPEAK OUT! Program for clients with Parkinson’s Disease. Felicia was appointed Externship Coordinator this year, and is responsible for placing our second year students in off-site placements to advance their clinical skills.
Charlotte Purcell, SLPD, CCC-SLP
Charlotte Purcell, SLPD, CCC-SLP joined the USF Communication Sciences and Disorders as a full-time clinical instructor for the fall of 2023. She completed her Clinical Doctorate in April 2022, during which time she completed a clinical research study comparing two different interventions for acquired apraxia of speech. Through this and past clinical research projects, she has had the opportunity to present at state, national, and international conferences. She has experience in the inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation settings, with a broad focus on adult neurogenic communication and swallowing disorders and primary interests in treating individuals with aphasia, motor speech disorders, and voice disorders. She has specialty certifications in LSVT LOUD and SPEAK OUT! therapy programs. She enjoys membership with the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) as a S.T.E.P. mentor and Program Development Committee member of SIG 2, and with the Academy of Neurogenic Communication Disorders (ANCDS) in the Clinical Research Committee. She enjoys sharing her passion with students for providing patient-centered and evidence-based care.
Marie Sepulveda, M.S., CCC-SLP
Marie Sepulveda joined the USF Communication Sciences and Disorders Department in February 2023 as a Clinical Instructor. She completed a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and a Master’s Degree in Speech-Language Pathology at the University of Puerto Rico. Marie has worked with individuals from a variety of linguistic and cultural backgrounds in Puerto Rico, Texas, and Florida for over 30 years. She has worked in many settings including schools, clinics, and early childhood programs. Before moving to Florida, Marie worked as a Research Director developing speech-language assessments for a major publishing company. She has presented at state and national conferences and mentored students through the S.T.E.P. program. Marie’s clinical areas of interest include the identification and treatment of speech-language impairments in second-language learners and the revision of content/bias in speech-language assessments.