Kendell Adson, B.S.
Research Assistant, Project 2

Kendell is a graduate student in the Audiology program at the University of Maryland College Park. His research interests include EEG, use of questionnaires in the audiologic test battery, use of virtual reality in auditory/vestibular rehabilitation, and hearing and cognition in older individuals. He will be graduating in 2026 and plans to open a private practice.

Olivia Bermudez-Hopkins, B.S. 
Research Assistant, Project 3

Olivia graduated with a degree in Psychology from the University of California, Santa Barbara in 2016 and with a degree in Speech and Hearing Sciences from the University of Washington in 2018. She is currently pursuing her masters in speech-language pathology here at the University of Maryland. She has worked on research projects with the Neurodevelopment Disorders Language and Learning Lab and Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences Lab at the University of Washington in Seattle, and abroad in Spain. She has been working with the P01 project since 2020, gaining experience with cognitive assessment tools, magnetoencephalography (MEG), and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Her research interests include bilingual language development and developmental neurology in infants with autism. She hopes to be a pediatric speech language pathologist after graduating in 2023.

Vrishab Commuri, B.S.
Research Assistant, Project 3

Vrishab is a doctoral student in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department at the University of Maryland, College Park. He received his Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University in 2021. His research interests include neurological processing of auditory stimuli through magnetoencephalography (MEG) and electroencephalography (EEG).

Kelsey Dutta
Research Assistant, Project 1

Kelsey is currently a graduate student in Electrical and Computer Engineering. She has worked with Dr. Shamma's lab as a graduate student since Summer 2016.

Brisia Gonzalez, B.A.
Research Assistant, Project 2

Brisia Gonzalez graduated from Baylor University with her B.A. in CSD. Since then, she joined the University of Maryland to continue her education and get her doctorate of Audiology. Now as a rising third year, she was recently hired on to the P01 project as of May 2022 and really enjoys it! She truly values the electrophysiologic experience that she receives as a graduate researcher and hopes to apply these skills as a future Audiologist.

Sydney Hancock, B.A. 
Research Assistant, Project 3

Sydney Hancock is a doctoral student in the Clinical Audiology program at the University of Maryland, where she also graduated with a degree in Hearing and Speech Sciences in 2019. She has worked with the P01 project since 2018, helping with outreach and scheduling of new participants, administration of auditory testing and training, and facilitation of neuroimaging techniques such as magnetoencephalography and magnetic resonance imaging. Her research interests include auditory training and the effects of working memory capacity on speech-in-noise performance. She hopes to emphasize patient education and accessible audiological care after her graduation in 2024.

Neha Joshi
Research Assistant, Project 1

Neha is currently a graduate student in Electrical and Computer Engineering. Her interests lie in representation of human speech in the auditory cortices, specifically in the cocktail party paradigm and investigating the neural correlates of stream segregation in the ferret primary and higher auditory cortices. She is also interested in stream segregation and differential processing of streams for math and language in humans using Magnetoencephalography (MEG). In her spare time, she loves reading, exploring food and rock climbing. She joined Dr. Shamma's lab in Fall 2015.

Dushyanthi Karunathilake, B.S.
Research Assistant, Project 3

Dushyanthi Karunathilake is a doctoral student in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department at the University of Maryland, College Park. She received her Bachelor of Science degree in Electronic and Telecommunication, specialized in Biomedical Engineering from University of Moratuwa, Sri Lanka in 2017. She has worked with the P01 project since 2018, focusing on magnetoencephalography (MEG). Her research interests include understanding neural mechanisms in speech comprehension and age related hearing impairments.

Alexandra Papanicolaou, B.A.
Research Assistant, Human Subjects Research 

Alexandra Papanicolaou graduated with a degree in Hearing and Speech Sciences from the University of Maryland College Park in 2020. She has worked with the P01 project since 2019. She is the first person who comes to contact with all of our participants to determine their eligibility and scheduling needs. Her research interests include effects of age-related hearing loss on cognition, central auditory function and socio-emotional health. She hopes to pursue pediatric and/or educational audiology after she graduates from the Doctoral Program of Clinical Audiology in 2024.

Madison Rolf, B.A.
Research Assistant, Project 2

Madison Rolf is currently a graduate student in the Clinical Doctorate of Audiology program at the University of Maryland. Previously, she graduated from UMD in 2021 with her bachelor’s of arts in Hearing and Speech Sciences. Maddie’s current research interests include implantable hearing technology and the auditory effects of aging. 

Allie Vance, B.A. 
Research Assistant, Project 2

Allie is a doctoral student in the Clinical Audiology program at the University of Maryland, College Park. She received her Bachelors of Arts degree in Hearing and Speech Sciences with a minor in Disability Studies from the University of Maryland in Spring 2022. Allie is interested in working with the aging population and helping them with the use of assistive devices. 

Mary Zhou, B.A.
Research Assistant, Project 2

Mary Zhou is a Doctoral student in the Clinical Audiology program at the University of Maryland, College Park. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Hearing and Speech Science with a double major in Psychology from UMD in Fall 2019. Mary has worked with the P01 project since 2018 conducting auditory training as well as electroencephalography. Her current research focuses on the effects of hearing aid signal processing delay times on the brain’s ability to encode a stimulus' temporal envelope. Mary's clinical interests include hearing aids and vestibular testing, and she is interested in working with patients of all ages as an audiologist upon her graduation in 2024.    

Binghan Xue, B.S. 
Research Assistant, Project 1
Binghan Xue is a doctoral student in the Biological Science program at the University of Maryland. She has worked with the P01 project since 2019, focusing on in-vitro patch clamp recording and in-vivo 2-photon imaging. Her research interests include auditory circuit plasticity in development and cortical circuit changes in aging. She hopes to help with assistive listening devices after
graduating in 2023.