Funding Awardees
2025 Awardees
Congratulations to this year’s recipients of Sargent College internal grants!
Clinical Faculty Scholarship Grant
Hayford Avezdi
Department of Health Sciences
Project Title: ObaaPa: Strengthening Maternal and Child Health Through Digital Innovation
Lisa Brown
Department of Physical Therapy
Project Title: Revising the Clinical Practice Guideline for the Use of Ankle Foot Orthosis and Functional Electrical Stimulation Post Stroke
Laura Driscoll and Anne Escher
Departments of Physical Therapy and Occupational Therapy
Project Title: Corrections Officers’ Experiences on an Older Adult Reentry Unit: Impact on Work Satisfaction and Quality of Life
Mary Beth Holmes
Department of Physical Therapy
Project Title: Examining Master Adaptive Learner Characteristics, Learning Strategies, and Academic Success in First-Year DPT Students
Innovations in Teaching and Learning Grant
Temor Amin-Arsala
Department of Occupational Therapy
Project Title: Enhancing Clinician-to-Client Reasoning Through a Multimedia Interpersonal Reasoning Library
Student Research Grant
Kaityn Contino
Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences
Project Title: Toddler Motor Planning at 2 years as a Predictor of Language Development
Deirdre Galvin-McLaughlin
Ph.D. program in Rehabilitation Sciences
Project Title: Improving Access to Augmentative and Alternative Communication Services in Early Intervention Through Tailored Implementation Strategies
Paris Gappmayr
Ph.D. program in Speech, Language, & Hearing Sciences
Project Title: Factors Influencing Gaze Patterns During American Sign Language Perception
Gil Grunfeld
Ph.D. program in Rehabilitation Sciences
Project Title: Daily Experiences of Loneliness in Early Psychosis Recovery: Exploring Stigma, Symptom Burden, And Social Connection
Xiwen Su
Ph.D. program in Rehabilitation Sciences
Project Title: Exploring Reaching Kinematics and Cortical Activation in Infants at Risk for Cerebral Palsy
2024 Awardees
Clinical Faculty Scholarship Grant
Jennifer Bentley, Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences
Project: Patient Perspectives on Auditory Training: Factors Influencing Awareness, Interest, and Adherence
Laura Driscoll, Department of Physical Therapy
Project: The Provision of Healthcare for Older Adults in a Massachusetts Jail: Perspectives from Providers
Mary Beth Holmes, Department of Physical Therapy
Project: Investigating the Nexus of Pain, Fatigue, Distress, and Patient Expectations: Implications for the Optimization of Physical Therapy Care
Leanne Yinusa-Nyahkoon,Department of Occupational Therapy
Project: Moving Occupational Therapy into Perinatal Care: A Proposed OT/OB Partnership
Innovations in Teaching and Learning Grant
Caroline Brinkert, Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences
Project: Teaching the Clinical Application of AI to SLP Graduate Students
Lisa Brown, Department of Physical Therapy
Project: Self-Directed Interactive Learning Modules in Neurologic Physical Therapy
Student Research Grant
Chi Whan Choi, Ph.D. program in Rehabilitation Sciences
Project: Application of Forward Simulation Framework to Predict Gait Biomechanics in Individuals with Obesity
Daria Dragicevic, Ph.D. program in Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences
Project: Quantifying Which Acoustic and Kinematic Metrics Drive Listener Perception of Articulatory Imprecision in People with Parkinson’s Disease
Yeook Kim,Ph.D. program in Rehabilitation Sciences
Project: Understanding the Associations between Community Participation and Well-being in Autistic Young Adults
Sharada Krishnan, Ph.D. program in Rehabilitation Sciences
Project: A Qualitative Investigation of Trauma and Mental Health in Autistic Adolescents
Juliana Ronderos, Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences
Project: Bilingual Parents’ Beliefs and Self-Efficacy Perceptions Influencing Parent-Child Shared Reading
Nicholas Siegel, Didactic Program in Dietetics/Master of Science in Nutrition & Dietetic Internship
Project: Modulation of the Gut Microbiome by Plant-Based Diets and the Associated Risk of Metabolic Syndrome
Faculty Collaborative Research Development Grant
Robin Newman and Dan Fulford, Department of Occupational Therapy
Project: Connection after Cancer: Social Isolation and Loneliness in the Daily Lives of Cancer Surviving Parents of Young Children
2023 Awardees
Tenure-Track Faculty Research Grant
Emily Rothman, Department of Occupational Therapy
Project: Abortion law changes and occupational therapy practice in the US
Clinical Faculty Scholarship Grant
Mary Beth Holmes, Department of Physical Therapy
Project: Exploring the relationship between the therapeutic alliance and patient reported outcome in physical therapy for individuals with knee osteoarthritis
Karen Hutchinson, Department of Physical Therapy
Project: Can cadence be a proxy measure for exercise intensity post-stroke?
Shannon Peters, Department of Health Sciences
Project: A pilot project exploring gender-competent care of folx with eating disorders in LGBTQ+ communities
Faculty Innovation in Teaching and Learning Grant
Alyssa Boucher and Anne Carney, Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences
Project: Mini modules: A just-in-time approach to clinical readiness
Jesse Moreira, Department of Health Sciences
Project: New course proposal: Clinical measurements of cardiovascular function
Student Research Grant
Erin Carpenter, Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences
Project: Bilingualism as a cognitive reserve factor: The behavioral and neural underpinnings of cognitive control in bilingual aphasia
Kelsey Davison,Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences
Project: Examining parental oral reading prosody in relation to children’s language and emergent literacy skills
Paris Gappmayr, Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences
Project: The role of sign type, sign familiarity, and signer proficiency on gaze patterns during sign perception
Soyoung Lee, PhD program in Rehabilitation Sciences
Project: Cortical function, gait automaticity, and central sensitization in people with knee osteoarthritis
Michael Scimeca, Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences
Project: Assessment of real-time written sentence processing in bilinguals with aphasia
2022 Awardees
Faculty Research Grant
Paula Quatromoni, Department of Health Sciences
Project: Building capacity for web-based dietary assessment methodology
Clinical Faculty Scholarship Grant
Lisa Brown, Department of Physical Therapy and Athletic Training
Project: Key challenges in functional electrical stimulation clinical practice guideline implementation
Karen Hutchinson, Department of Physical Therapy and Athletic Training
Project: Assessing exercise intensity while walking with sensor-driven musical stimuli post-stroke
Mary Beth Holmes, Department of Physical Therapy and Athletic Training
Project: How do patients participating in physical therapy for musculoskeletal pain conditions experience common non-specific factors in the patient-provider relationship and perceive their influence on outcomes?
Robin Newman,Department of Occupational Therapy
Project: Scholarship related to cancer rehabilitation
Pedro Almeida,Department of Occupational Therapy
Project: Developing a client-centered, occupational-based joint-protection protocol: the feasibility of the CO-OP approach for clients living with hand osteoarthritis
Faculty Innovation in Teaching and Learning Grant
Leanna Katz,Department of Occupational Therapy
Project: Video case studies to improve occupational therapy students’ clinical reasoning using the rehabilitation treatment specification system (RTSS)
Pedro Almeida, Department of Occupational Therapy
Project: Orthotics in real life: bridging the gap between classroom and clinic
Student Research Grant
Jessica Mow, Department of Occupational Therapy
Project: Neural correlates of social motivation and functioning in schizophrenia
Emily Braun, Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences
Project: Behavioral and neural examination of spoken discourse production in individuals with aphasia
Nirali Shah, PhD In Rehabilitation Sciences
Project: Telehealth exercise and mindfulness for pain in osteoarthritis (TEMPO): a feasibility study
Arti Gandhi, PhD In Rehabilitation Sciences
Project: Loneliness in schizophrenia: the role of maladaptive social cognitions
2021 Awardees
Clinical Faculty Scholarship Grant
Tatiana Pontes, Department of Occupational Therapy
Project: Psychometric evaluation of the Occupational Repertoire Development Measure: validity and reliability analysis
Shelly DeBiasse, Department of Health Sciences
Project: Dress Codes for Dietetics Programs: A Discourse Analysis
Mary Beth Holmes, Department of Physical Therapy and Athletic Training
Lisa Brown, Department of Physical Therapy and Athletic Training
Project: A Survey of Clinical Practice and Perceived Needs of Physical Therapist for the Use of Ankle Foot Orthosis and Functional Electrical Stimulation
Leanne Yinusa-Nyahkoon, Department of Occupational Therapy
Project: CLOTHES: Clinical Lab of Occupational Therapy and Health Equity at Sargent
Innovations in Teaching and Learning Grant
Alyssa Boucher, Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences
Project: From Infused Curriculum to Explicit Teaching: Toward Effective Pedagogy to Promote Antiracist and Inclusive Practices in Speech-Language Pathology
Dori Hutchinson, Center for Psychiatric Rehabilitation
Project: LEAD Español: A Collegiate Resilience Program for Spanish-speaking BU Students
Anne Sullivan-Soydan, Department of Occupational Therapy
Project: Empathy Everywhere
Shelley Brown, Department of Health Sciences
Project: Developing a Strategic Public Health Workforce at the Undergraduate Level
Student Research Grant
Anna Roto, PhD program in Rehabilitation Sciences, Department of Physical Therapy and Athletic Training
Project: Enhancing poststroke exercise intensity with a gait-restorative soft robotic exosuit: effects on brain-derived neurotrophic factor and motor learning
Katherine Marks, doctoral fellow, Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences
Project: Validation of a Novel Acoustic Outcome for Adductor Laryngeal Dystonia
Ran Li, PhD in Speech-Language Pathology, Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences
Project: Investigation of language impairment and treatment-induced recovery patterns between verbs and nouns in Mandarin-English bilinguals with aphasia
Alexandra Kapadia, PhD in Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences, Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences
Project: Intracortical myelin network organization in dyslexia
Jenna Zajac, PhD program in Rehabilitation Sciences, Department of Physical Therapy and Athletic Training
Project: MedRhythms: Analysis of Motor Learning and Impact on Gait Performance in Parkinson Disease
2020 Awardees
Faculty Research Grant
Simone Gill, Department of Occupational Therapy
Project: Increasing Physical Activity in Adults following Bariatric Surgery
Clinical Faculty Scholarship Grant
Dustin Allen, Department of Health Sciences
Project: Using a Heat Acclimation Protocol to Increase Simulated Firefighter Performance and Cardiovascular Health
Magdalen Balz, Department of Speech, Language & Hearing Sciences
Project: Predictability of cognitive impairment in Parkinson’s disease using discourse analysis
Lisa Brown, Department of Physical Therapy & Athletic Training
Project: A Survey of Clinical Practice and Perceived Needs of Physical Therapists for the Use of Ankle Foot Orthoses or Functional Electrical Stimulation to Improve Outcomes Post-Stroke
Malwina Carrion, Department of Health Sciences
Project: Chagas Disease in Massachusetts: Raising Awareness in At-Risk Populations through a Comprehensive Public Health Campaign
Mary Beth Holmes, Department of Physical Therapy & Athletic Training
Project: Empathy in Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) training
Elizabeth Hoover, Department of Speech, Language & Hearing Sciences
Project: Beyond complete utterances: A pilot study to explore the use of PICA scoring in narratives of people with aphasia
Robin Newman, Department of Occupational Therapy
Project: Eliciting Patient and Caregiver Perspectives to Guide Supportive Program Development in Community Based Oncology Settings
Innovation in Teaching and Learning Grant
Joan Salge Blake, Department of Health Sciences
Project: Plan, produce, and record episodes for the nutrition, health, and wellness podcast, Spot On!
Kaytlin Eldred, Department of Health Sciences
Project: HS 4** Advanced Research
Craig Slater, Department of Occupational Therapy
Project: Course development for a new ‘Interprofessional Leadership in Healthcare’ Certificate
Student Research Grant
Ariel Schwartz, Center for Psychiatric Rehabilitation
Project: Identifying socially valid content and intervention features for sexuality and sexual health education for young adults with intellectual/developmental disabilities