Lauren is a pediatric speech language pathologist. Her clinical specialties include cleft palate, velopharyngeal dysfunction, childhood apraxia of speech, and pediatric feeding and swallowing disorders. She is a team member of the Craniofacial and Cleft Palate Program and the Pediatric Feeding and Swallowing Disorders Program. She provides speech/language evaluations, nasopharyngoscopy to evaluate velopharyngeal insufficiency, feeding evaluations, instrumental swallow studies and treatment.­

Lauren’s primary clinical interest is in working with children who have cleft palate or velopharyngeal dysfunction, in which air leaks into the nose during talking. She is fascinated by how differences in anatomy affect speech. Her research interests include palate repair surgery outcomes, patient satisfaction after velopharyngeal insufficiency surgery and therapies for young children with cleft palate.

­Lauren enjoys exploring the Pacific Northwest outdoors with her partner and her beagle-mix canine companion. Most weekends, you can find her mountain biking or hiking. On rainy, cold days, Lauren enjoys many crafts, including embroidery, calligraphy and nail art.