RADLD is coordinated by a volunteer committee of professionals from Australia, Canada, China, UK & USA who give up their time to raise awareness of Developmental Language Disorder (DLD). The International Committee meets monthly and is supported by a casual administrative assistant. To get in touch with the RADLD international committee please email hello@radld.org.
Stephen Parsons
Chair | NAPLIC | UK
Stephen is a Speech and Language Therapist (SaLT), trainer and author of practical language development resources for teachers and SaLT. He has over 30 years’ experience in the field, including 1996–2017 in Hackney and the City of London where he was Speech and Language Therapy Service Manager for a number of years. Stephen is co-author of best-selling resources ‘Language for Thinking’ and ‘Word Aware’ (primary and Early Years), as well as the recently released ‘Language for Behaviour and Emotions.’
Stephen graduated in Speech Pathology from Flinders University in Australia, before attaining an MSc in Speech and Language Therapy from City University, London in 2000. He currently serves as Chair of NAPLIC, the UK organisation for professionals working with developmental language disorder, and UK representative of RADLD, the international campaign to raise awareness of developmental language disorder. He is active on Twitter at @WordAware.
E: stephen.parsons66@gmail.com
Shaun Ziegenfusz
Co-Founder of The DLD Project, speech pathologist & PhD Candidate, Griffith University | AUSTRALIA
Shaun Ziegenfusz is a certified practising speech-language pathologist with a Master of Special Education. In previous work, Shaun has been responsible for research into the delivery of education and therapy programs for children with DLD and developing services to ensure optimal outcomes. Shaun is currently researching the educational needs of students with DLD from the perspective of key stakeholders as a PhD candidate at Griffith University and Co-Founder of The DLD Project.
E: Shaun@thedldproject.com
Anita Mei-Yin Wong
Associate Professor/Discipline of Speech Pathology, Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of Sydney, Australia
Anita received professional training and has practiced as a speech-language pathologist in the United States and in Canada. Anita’s research in the last 20 years contributes to SLPs’ improved practice in norm-referenced language assessment, language sample analysis, and our collective understanding of the manifestations of DLD in children learning Cantonese, a popular variety of Chinese that is also her mother tongue.
Anita is currently researching on a new theory-driven approach for complex syntax intervention for pre-primary children with DLD. Anita’s move from Hong Kong to the University of Syndey in 2022 provides her the opportunity to further extend her research to Chinese speaking children in linguistically diverse contexts. Anita is also hosting a new website where she curates resources on language development and language disorders for Chinese speakers and readers around the world.
Natalie Turner
Co-Founder of The DLD Project | AUSTRALIA
Nat is one of the Co-Founders of The DLD Project and has worked internationally with many small to large not-for-profit organisations in marketing, fundraising, advocacy and volunteer mobilisation. She is also a qualified journalist having worked as a radio announcer in Australia and more recently, as a freelance writer/videographer. She is inspired by the families who make up the DLD community, their stories and the potential of what can be achieved when we pool our talents and resources.
E: nat@thedldproject.com
Chantal Mayer-Crittenden
Associate Professor for the School of Speech-Language Pathology at Laurentian University in Sudbury, Canada
Chantal Mayer-Crittenden is an experienced speech and language pathologist and researcher specializing in bilingualism, developmental language disorder (DLD) and ADHD. Her current research focuses on the acquisition of a minority language in an English majority community. She is an associate professor for the School of Speech-Language Pathology at Laurentian University in Sudbury, Canada, and has presented at both the national and international levels. Dr. Mayer-Crittenden is also the host of The Parlé Podcast where she interviews guests on various topics that touch on the importance of communication and what it means to have a disability that affects communication as well as the host for OAC Pleins Feux, a French podcast for School-based speech and language pathologists by Speech-Language and Audiology Canada. In addition, Dr. Mayer-Crittenden is the co-founder and co-director of the Laurentian University Speech and Language Clinic, a not-for-profit clinic that provides speech and language services to children and adults who have communication and swallowing difficulties.
Lizbeth Finestack
PhD CCC-SLP
Professor, Department of Speech-Language-Hearing Sciences, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities, USA.
Liza Finestack directs the Child Language Intervention Lab. Her research is focussed on identifying effective and efficient assessments and interventions for children with developmental language disorder as well as children with language impairment secondary to other conditions, such as Down syndrome and autism.