SPEECH NEUROPHYSIOLOGY LAB

at the University of Michigan

Fall 2024

News and Updates

A message from our director


This fall is an energizing time in the lab as we welcome students back to Ann Arbor for the school year and watch the leaves change to brilliant colors from our windows. In recent months, we've been hard at work publishing new papers and presenting our findings at conferences around the world. Closer to home, we remain active in local community events to help educate about the brain and stuttering.


Later this month, we are partnering with the Ann Arbor Stuttering Awareness and Research Club (A2STAR) to host a free screening of the critically-acclaimed film The King's Speech at the State Theatre in downtown Ann Arbor. I hope you'll join us on November 16th for what is sure to be a fun event. All are invited, so please bring your friends and family with you.


Keep reading to see what our lab has been up to this fall. As we continue to share these lab activities, as well as our stuttering research findings, I'm reminded of what an honor it is to work with all of our research participants. You're making a difference, contributing to groundbreaking neuroscience research that we hope will improve people's lives. Thank you for all you have done and continue to do to support this important cause!

Headshot of Dr. Soo-Eun Chang

Soo-Eun Chang, Ph.D., CCC-SLP

Principal Investigator and Director

Speech Neurophysiology Lab

Rosa Casco Solano-Lopez Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry

Michigan Medicine

University of Michigan

New publication in Brain and Language


Dr. Emily Garnett and Dr. Soo-Eun Chang are co-authors of a new paper, Evidence for planning and motor subtypes of stuttering based on resting state functional connectivity, published in Brain and Language. Their paper identifies for the first time that people who stutter can be organized into two to three groups based on each person's brain connectivity patterns. This could have big implications in the field of stuttering research, helping to find brain bases for variable stuttering symptoms across different individuals. This research could one day inform individualized treatment interventions.

Learn more about these findings

New publication in International Journal of Speech-Language Pathology


Dr. Soo-Eun Chang co-authored a commentary in the International Journal of Speech-Language Pathology with another university neuroscientist and two speech-language pathologists. Their article, Contemporary clinical conversations about stuttering: What does brain imaging research mean to clinicians?, discusses what impact, if any, neuroscience research has on clinicians working with people who stutter. Their conversation offers a glimpse into the nuances related to stuttering research and treatment.

Read the article

You're Invited: Free Stuttering Film Screening


Join us for a free screening of the critically-acclaimed movie The King's Speech and a panel discussion that pushes back against stuttering stereotypes in media. The event will be held at the State Theatre in Ann Arbor on November 16, 2024 at 3:30p.m. Panelists will include members of the student organization Ann Arbor Stuttering Awareness and Research Club (A2STAR) as well as the U-M Speech Neurophysiology Lab.

Learn more 

Stuttering Support Group


In conjunction with the Ann Arbor Stuttering Awareness and Research Club (A2STAR ⭐) at the University of Michigan, we co-host monthly support group meetings open to teens and adults who stutter. The group serves as a safe space for folks to connect with one another, share experiences, and navigate challenges together. If you'd like to be part of the group, click below for full details.

Learn more about the support group

Research Participant Spotlight: Sydney Bollinger


Have you ever wanted to meet a fellow research participant, or wondered what it's like to participate in research if you haven't before?


We interviewed Sydney Bollinger who has participated in multiple studies in our lab and is helping to make a difference in the stuttering community! We asked her perspectives on current research, including what role it can play in the lives of people who stutter.

Read the interview

Speech Neurophysiology Lab Highlights

This fall, our lab members have been busy traveling around Michigan and abroad to further stuttering research! Here are a few photos from our recent adventures.

Members of our lab volunteering at the first Alexander M. Mashour Pediatric Stuttering Day Camp in Ann Arbor, Michigan Left to right: Sophia Hogan, Courtney Jones, Megan Sheppard, Kassie Smiggs, Quan Zou

Dr. Soo-Eun Chang speaks at the first annual Alexander M. Mashour Pediatric Stuttering Symposium in Ann Arbor, Michigan

Dr. Yanni Liu presents a poster at the Organization for Human Brain Mapping Annual Meeting in Seoul, Korea

Dr. Soo-Eun Chang and Dr. Hasini Weerathunge at the Brisbane Koala Sanctuary

Left to right: Soo-Eun Chang, lounging kangaroo, Hasini Weerathunge


Dr. Hasini Weerathunge presents a poster at the Society for the Neurobiology of Language Conference in Brisbane, Australia

Ryann Lowe represents the lab at Eastern Michigan University's STEM Night

Spotlight: get to know our lab members

Marrian Tan

Research Technician Intermediate

Read our interview with Marrian

Kassie Smiggs

Research Technician Intermediate

Read our interview with Kassie

Participate in our research


Are you or someone you know interested in participating in stuttering research? We are searching for participants of all ages to help us with our research studies and would love your help spreading the word. Our study procedures include surveys, speech and language screenings, and non-invasive brain activity recordings using electroencephalography (EEG) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Our participants are compensated for their time and are helping to advance the field of stuttering research!


Get Involved
Yellow award ribbon that reads "Brain Scientist"

Find us online:

Facebook  Twitter  Email  Web

Make a gift to support our research