Conference Planning Committee

Leanna Lawrence is an associate clinical professor at the University of Missouri in the Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences. She has served as the director of the MU Speech and Hearing Clinic since 2015 and has been a clinical supervisor at MU since 2006. She also teaches courses at the undergraduate (i.e., Clinical Observations) and graduate (i.e., Issues in Professional Practice, Clinical Methods, Clinical and Diagnostic Practicums) levels and coordinates the outplacements for their program's graduate students. She enjoys being on CAPCSD's Conference Planning Committee and is currently serving as chair of that committee.   

Michael J. Bamdad has focused his clinical and research activities on patients with traumatic brain injuries and their families for over 30 years.  He has been published and speaks nationally and internationally on the topics of executive functioning deficits and pragmatic disorders.  He is currently working as the Director of Clinical Education in the Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences at The George Washington University in Washington, D.C.

Danielle Osmelak EdD, MS, CCC-SLP/L, FNAP is an Associate Professor in the Department of Communication Disorders at Governors State University. As a licensed and certified speech-language pathologist (SLP), the majority of Danielle’s experiences have been in medical settings. Her clinical focus has centered around medically complex populations: neurodegenerative diseases, tracheostomy and mechanical ventilation, and head and neck cancer. Her background as a practicing medical SLP has shaped her current research, which is clinically driven, collaborative, and interdisciplinary. Danielle’s research interests include interprofessional dysphagia management, interprofessional education and curriculum implementation, and ethical clinical decision-making.

Professionally, Danielle is a Fellow of the Illinois Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ISHA) and a Distinguished Fellow of the Speech-Language Pathology Academy of the National Academies of Practice. Danielle enjoys volunteering for ISHA, ASHA, & CAPCSD. Danielle is the President-Elect of ISHA. She also serves a four-year term as an ASHA Board of Ethics member. Danielle is also a member of the CAPCSD Conference Planning Committee.

Donna Pitts is an Associate Professor in the Department of Speech Language Hearing Sciences at Loyola University Maryland, where she has been teaching undergraduate and graduate courses for 26 years. She currently is serving as the Graduate Program Director. She loves being a clinician and a researcher and tries to incorporate clinical issues/outcomes into her research. She especially loves mentoring students in research and her interests include recreational noise exposure and the relationships between diabetes mellitus and dementia on hearing loss. She received her Au.D. from Central Michigan University, and is currently completing her Master of Public Health with a specialty in health services.

Erin Redle Sizemore, Ph.D. CCC-SLP is an Associate Professor and Department Chair at Mount St. Joseph University. Her clinical experience and research have largely focused on the conditions that impact children and families in early intervention, including feeding and swallowing disorders and in-utero opioid exposure. Additionally, Dr. Redle Sizemore is part of a research team investigating current and best practices in supporting graduate students with disabilities in clinical placements. She is involved with her state association (Ohio Speech-Language-Hearing Association) and is currently serving on the CAPCSD Conference Planning Committee.

Devon Weist, AuD is an associate professor and AuD program coordinator at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.  At UNC, she practices clinically, precepts students, and teaches within the AuD program. Her primary areas of interest include audiologic and vestibular diagnostics, audiology education, and counseling individuals with hearing and balance disorders. She holds clinical appointments within the UNC Thrive (Transforming Health and Resilience in Veterans) Program and the Center for the Study of Retired Athletes Brain and Body Program. These programs are multidisciplinary research and clinical outreach dedicated to treating traumatic brain injuries and related health conditions, as well as promoting overall wellness in veterans, first responders, concussion patients, and retired National Football League players.  Dr. Weist is actively involved in her state audiology association (North Carolina Audiology Association) and at the national level within AAA (American Academy of Audiology. 

Heidi Verticchio, EdD, CCC-SLP is the Clinic Director and Director of Advisement in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders at Illinois State University. Her primary responsibilities include managing the business operations of the on-campus Eckelmann-Taylor Speech and Hearing Clinic.  Additionally, Heidi is the academic advisor for graduate students in speech-language pathology and audiology. Heidi has taught CSD 432: Professional Issues. Heidi has served as the Chairperson of the Conference Planning Committee for CAPCSD and volunteered in several capacities for CAPCSD. Additional contributions include presentations and publications in the discipline. 

Mandie began working in the role of Director of Professional Development for CAPCSD in June 2023. She has had extensive opportunities managing meetings, events and conferences in a destination management company, nonprofit organization, city government agency, and two professional associations, in both professional and volunteer capacities.

In 2010, she joined Meeting Professionals International (MPI) and began serving as a volunteer with the North Florida Chapter. Mandie served on the Board of Directors, and worked with other Florida chapter leaders on a statewide committee for the state's regional conference. She earned her Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) professional designation through the Events Industry Council in 2014 and recertified in 2019 and 2024. She is a member of the American Society of Association Executives.

Outside work, Mandie enjoys spending time with her husband and their two children. She loves reading, watching true crime shows, creating table settings, and cheering on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.