Shilpa Shamapant, M.S., M.A., CCC-SLP— Co-founder, President, Speech-Language Pathologist

Email: shilpa@austinspeechlabs.org

Shilpa is the co-founder and president at Austin Speech Labs and is a clinical assistant professor in the Department of Neurology at the Dell Medical School. She is licensed by both the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and Texas Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Shilpa specializes in working with young and elderly clients who have aphasia, apraxia and cognitive impairments due to brain injury. She designs and develops treatment protocols along with her team to improve word finding and reading post-stroke. 

Shilpa has developed academic studies, presented at the International Stroke Conference, American Speech and Hearing Conference and Texas Speech and Hearing Conference. A notable study of hers includes Intensive Speech Therapy and Phonology which focused on improving single word reading and picture naming post-stroke.  

Shilpa collaborates with experts across the country to advance stroke research. Austin Speech Labs won the RAISE Award in 2016 under her guidance for raising awareness about stroke in the community. She won the New Investigator Award in 2006 and ASHA’s First Author Award in 2007. 

Throughout her career, Shilpa has trained and supervised clinical fellows as well as graduate and undergraduate interns. Shilpa believes that language defines humanity and long-term, intensive speech therapy promotes language recovery post-stroke.

Shelley Adair, M.S., CCC-SLP—Co-founder, Vice-President, Speech-Language Pathologist

Email: shelley@austinspeechlabs.org

Shelley is the co-founder and morning clinical director at Austin Speech Labs. She has extensive background in the field of speech pathology, working in schools, long-term acute care, outpatient rehabilitation, inpatient rehabilitation, acute care, home health, private practice and nursing home settings over the past twenty-four years. 

Shelley holds her Certificate of Clinical Competence from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, has been involved in several research studies across various therapy settings, contributed to treatment protocols for multiple organizations and developed training programs for caregivers and medical providers alike. Much of her career has been spent training and supervising graduate students, undergraduates and clinical fellows. 

Within her capacity as vice-president, she is in charge of marketing and communications at Austin Speech Labs. She believes that stroke recovery can be improved with long-term, intensive speech therapy.

Lauren King, M.A., CCC-SLP, Speech-Language Pathologist

Lauren joined Austin Speech Labs in 2021 as a bilingual (Spanish speaking) SLP. She received her undergraduate degree from Brigham Young University and her graduate degree from Utah State University. She was born and raised in Austin and is happy to be part of the Austin Speech Labs team from afar as she is now living in Irvine, California. Prior to her employment at Austin Speech Labs, Lauren worked with both children and adults in an outpatient clinic. She loves providing therapy to stroke survivors because it is inspiring to see the way their lives change as a result of their determination, resilience, and hard work. She loves being a small part of her clients' journey to recovery by providing individualized treatment tailored to their specific needs. When she is not working, she enjoys baking, trying new restaurants, going on walks, and spending time with her husband and baby girl.

Mayra Carrera, B.S.—Bilingual Program Lead, Speech-Language Pathology Assistant

Mayra joined Austin Speech Labs in 2012 as a licensed bilingual speech-language pathology assistant. She received her undergraduate degree from The University of Texas at Austin. She helps run our Caregiver Education Program and uses a holistic approach when providing treatment for both clients and caregivers. Mayra enjoys watching the Food Network & HGTV, playing volleyball and spending time with her new husband and cute puppy Kodie.

Suzanne Farrell, M.A., CCC-SLP, CBIS —Speech-Language Pathologist

Suzanne is a licensed Speech-Language Pathologist and a Certified Brain Injury Specialist. She received her undergraduate degree from The University of Texas at Austin and graduate degree from The University of Houston. Suzanne previously volunteered at Austin Speech Labs from 2016-2017 and is thrilled to join the team full time in 2021. Professionally, she has primarily worked with adults in the field of medical speech-language pathology, with experience in every health care setting from acute care to inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation to home health. She also spent several years working outside of the speech therapy world, as a marketing and communications director for a local nonprofit, but her love of helping stroke survivors drew her back into therapy. Suzanne holds her Certificate of Clinical Competence from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Personally, Suzanne is married to her high school sweetheart and is a proud mom to a Texas Ex and a current Longhorn student. In her spare time, she can be found cheering on her beloved Longhorns at any sporting event, hiking the Austin hills, listening to Austin live music, or petting her very old, very blind dog.

Isabel Noland, M.S., CCC-SLP -- Speech-Language Pathologist

Isabel received her undergraduate degree and masters' degree from The University of Texas at Austin. She volunteered at Austin Speech Labs as an undergrad from 2018 to 2020, and has now joined the team as a clinician. Isabel has experience working with various populations, including stroke, traumatic brain injury, and cognitive-communication disorders. She feels privileged to begin her career at the organization that bolstered her passion for Speech-Language Pathology. In her free time, she enjoys playing board games with her fiancé, going thrift shopping around Austin, and spoiling her cat Matilda.

Cassandra McGrath, M.A., CCC-SLP—Assistant Director, Speech-Language Pathologist

Email: Cassandra@austinspeechlabs.org

Cassandra is a speech therapist at Austin Speech Labs. She joined the team in 2013 to provide intensive speech therapy to stroke survivors. Cassandra has over twenty years of experience as a speech therapist. She has a diverse background working in schools, rehabilitation settings, private practice and outpatient clinics. She worked with children primarily and now is focusing on adults with aphasia and dysarthria. Cassandra holds her Certificate of Clinical Competence from the American Speech-language Hearing Association. 

Santana Stevens — Director of Development

For over five years, Santana has been a noteworthy leader in the philanthropic community. She can also be credited with contributions to the Veterans Yoga Project, Safe Haven Healing Inc, and Sports Philanthropy Network.

Santana takes great pride in helping those in her community. She further pushes Austin Speech Labs' mission of helping stroke survivors and their loved ones rebuild their lives by providing intensive, affordable, innovative speech and cognitive therapy. She holds a Sports Philanthropy degree from George Washington University.

Lindsey Pollan, M.S., SLP-CCC

Lindsey received her undergraduate degree in Youth and Community Studies from the University of Texas at Austin and her Master of Science in Communication Sciences and Disorders from Texas A&M University Kingsville. She spent time abroad teaching English in Thailand and South Korea before pursuing her career in speech-language pathology. After completing her internship at ASL, she discovered her passion for the assessment and treatment of brain injury and was thrilled when she was offered a position to complete her Clinical Fellowship at ASL! She enjoys cooking Korean food, reading and listening to audiobooks, and playing with her boston terrier named Minnie.

Austin Weaver M.Ed., CCC-SLP, Speech-Language Pathologist

Austin taught ESL and managed private language schools abroad for ten years before becoming a speech therapist.  He got his masters’ degree from the University of Virginia and joined Austin Speech Labs as a Clinical Fellow in 2023 after completing his internship here.  He also completed internships in Virginia public schools and at the University of Virginia Voice and Swallowing Clinic. Austin is thrilled to begin his new career with a passionate team of people dedicated to helping stroke survivors communicate effectively and efficiently.  

Victoria Ratliff M.S., CF-SLP

Victoria received her undergraduate degree in Psychology at LeTourneau University followed by a year of prerequisites in Communication Sciences & Disorders at the University of North Texas. She completed her masters degree in Speech Language Pathology from Abilene Christian University in May of 2023 and jumped at the opportunity to join the team at Austin Speech Labs for her CFY. During her graduate studies, Victoria had opportunities to work with both children and adult populations in the hospital, outpatient, and school settings. She is incredibly passionate about serving others and cultivating a space for clients and their loved ones to share experiences and work hard to achieve their goals. In her free time, Victoria enjoys exercising, being outdoors, reading, crafting, and spending time with the people and furry friends she loves most. She is in constant admiration of her clients for their perseverance and is excited to be an active member in their healing journey.

Tina Clark—Admin and Communications Coordinator

Email: staff@austinspeechlabs.org

Tina joined Austin Speech Labs in 2022. She is a native of Virginia and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Broadcast Communications from Liberty University. Tina has worked as a communications professional corporately and as a freelance Ghostwriter in the Austin area for ten years. She has always been passionate about offering her skillset to help others and improve the community.

Christy Oliver, B.S., J.D.—Grants Manager

Christy joined Austin Speech Labs as the Grant Manager in 2019. She received her undergraduate degree from The University of Texas at Austin and her law degree from Suffolk University Law School in Boston. She practiced law for a number of years in Boston before returning to Austin and joining the Austin Speech Labs team. She has been affiliated with the organization since 2009, as her father was one of the earliest clients, and continues to volunteer on the fundraising committee.

Jaime Philip — Accountant

Email: jaime@austinspeechlabs.org

Jaime joined Austin Speech Labs in August 2020. Jaime relocated to Austin from MA 5 years ago with her family. She has over 18 years of accounting and administrative experience, 5 years of which were working for non-profits. Jaime is excited to be a part of Austin Speech Labs, and is looking forward to carrying out the mission of helping stroke survivors and their families.