About the professionals (in alphabetic order by first name):
Ana Karina Espinoza is a Speech-Language Pathologist at the University of Chile, and Specialist in Stuttering and Cluttering. She’s also the Director of Fluir+ Clinical Approach to Stuttering and a member of the Practice Committee of the World Stuttering and Cluttering Organization (WSCO), as well as a secretary of the International Cluttering Association (ICA).
Carrie Kerstein, M.S., CCC-SLP, BCS-SCF is a speech-language pathologist and board-certified specialist in stuttering, cluttering, and fluency disorders practicing in Massachusetts, United States. She co-owns a pediatric private practice focused on a broad range of communication profiles. She is an instructor for Emerson College’s online graduate program (Speech@Emerson), an ambassador for Spero Stuttering, Inc. (a nonprofit organization that seeks to help, empower, and advocate for the stuttering community and their families by equipping those who work with people who stutter), and the topic chair for the Massachusetts Speech-Language Hearing Association’s stuttering advisory group.
Hilda Sønsterud, PhD, is a speech-language therapist and researcher based in Norway. She serves as a Senior Advisor at Statped, the National Service for Special Needs Education, and holds an Associate Professorship at Nord University’s Faculty of Education and Arts. Her work predominantly focuses on the treatment and research of stuttering and cluttering. In her professional role, Hilda conducts courses and workshops on these subjects and offers clinical practice and supervision to both speech-language therapy students and professionals.
Beyond her hands-on work, Hilda is extensively involved in pioneering research, including the MIST-study (Multidimensional Individualized Stuttering Therapy), and has explored the therapeutic alliance within speech-language therapy. She leads the interdisciplinary research project “Living with Cluttering,” aimed at furthering understanding and treatment in this area. Hilda is particularly passionate about how research in stuttering and cluttering shapes the definition of evidence within the field. As an ESS-certified European Stuttering and Cluttering Specialist, Hilda represents Norway as a national delegate in the International Cluttering Association (ICA).
Joeri van Ormondt, MSc, SLT, CESS-certified stuttering specialist from The Netherlands, owns private practice De Stotterpraktijk, specialised in stuttering and cluttering. He is a person who stutters. He co-founded Stotterconnect, an organization dedicated to Camp Dream. Speak. Live. and the training of SLT’s.
Manon Spruit, MSc, is a Dutch speech-language therapist and stuttering specialist working in Germany. Stuttering has been one of the main areas of her clinical work for more than 30 years, working with children, adolescents and adults. She has a particular interest in looking beyond speech itself and in finding an approach that fits the individual person and their everyday life. Manon is actively involved in the international stuttering community, presents regularly at conferences, and is a global partner for the Camp Dream. Speak. Live. initiative. In addition to her work in stuttering, she specialises in FASD and communication and is an author of books and professional publications in both fields.
Nicole Kulmaczewski, M.S., CCC-SLP, is a speech-language pathologist, clinical educator, and advocate with a strong focus on stutter-affirming care. She teaches graduate students how to provide evidence-based, stutter-affirming therapy that centers autonomy, identity, and the client’s lived experience. Nicole is also the creator of The Stutter Ally, a platform dedicated to advocacy, professional education, and resources for clinicians. Her work emphasizes collaborative goal setting, counseling competencies, and the therapeutic alliance as essential components of effective stuttering treatment.
Nora A. O’Connor is a long-time member of the stuttering self-help community and a licensed clinical social worker. Through her work in addiction treatment and co-occurring disorders, she recognized parallels between the trauma experienced by her clients and her own lived experience as a person who stutters. This insight into the impact of cumulative trauma on people who stutter shaped her clinical focus, leading her to work with people who stutter in private practice for over 10 years using trauma-informed, somatic, and behavioral approaches. She is the author of the workbook Navigating the Emotional Response to Stuttering (to be published next year). She lives in San Pedro, California with her wife, son, and black cat.
Steff Lebsack is a wife, mother and Speech-Language Pathologist. She is also someone that lives with chronic lung disease. Steff is a speech-language pathologist with Crandall Independent School District in Texas, United States, and a fourth-year PhD student at Idaho State University. Steff is currently researching child agency as displayed in caregiver interactions with children who stutter (CWS). Steff is delighted to be a participant in this year’s ISAD Online Conference.
