The Listen to Me! 2021 Conference

The Listen to Me! Conference is an intensive training program for children, families, and professionals to learn how to maximize listening and spoken language development with cochlear implants. 

Therapists, audiologists, teachers, and administrators are encouraged to accompany your clients or come individually to continue your professional learning. 

During the Listen to Me! family conference (which runs concurrently), families receive a comprehensive training on how to teach their children to develop listening and spoken language skills.  If you know a family that might benefit from attending our family conference, email us to let us know.  

PLEASE NOTE:  These courses are designed for professionals who have beginning to intermediate skills in auditory habilitation.  Most of the content is not appropriate for LSLS Cert. AVTs/AVEds or other professionals with a similarly advanced level of listening and spoken language training.

Participants will demonstrate knowledge of the following topics: 

• Tele-intervention, parent coaching, & parent talk: practical tips, strategies, and resources
• Cochlear implantation: surgery, post-op, complications, bilateral implantation, EAS/hybrid, future directions, stem cell research (should we “save the ear” for future advances?), CI mapping
• Bimodal amplification: listening with one cochlear implant and one hearing aid
• Practical application of auditory skill development: intervention and assessment
• Implementing listening & spoken language intervention: rationale, strategies, & activities
• Special topics: Bilingualism, Pragmatic skills, & Disparities in care for children with hearing loss

Professional Development Hours:

16 contact hours (8 hours per day)

• AG Bell LSL Continuing Education Credits 
• ASHA Certificate Maintenance Hours (counts for CEUs)  
• CA Speech-Language Pathology & Audiology Board Provider # 242

Sayard Benvenuti, MA, CCC-SLP 

Sayard Benvenuti received a BS in Speech and Interpersonal Communications from New York University and an MA in SLP from Northwestern University with a specialization in Deaf and Hard of Hearing.  Sayard has had the pleasure of working as a speech, language and auditory therapist since 2008 for Child’s Voice, Weingarten Children’s Center, Baker Scholars Program at Stanford Ear Institute, and Listen to Me! Conference.  Additionally, she provided support as an educational consultant on Stanford’s cochlear implant team and consulted for Bay Area Deaf/Hard of Hearing public school PK-12 programs.  Sayard joined UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital’s team from 2017-2019 to assist with developing long term protocols for the Deaf/Hard of Hearing pediatric population, as well as clinical research efforts focusing on Auditory Neuropathy Spectrum Disorder and single sided deafness using LENA. She currently serves Deaf/Hard of Hearing children ages birth to 3 and their families through San Francisco Unified School District’s Early Start program and continues to help Baker Scholar families through teletherapy.  Sayard is passionate about empowering families and is optimistic for the impact of technology to help overcome geographic limitations. 

Nikolas H. Blevins, MD

Dr. Blevins is the Malcolmson Professor of Otolaryngology at Stanford and is Chief of the Division of Otology/ Neurotology. He has been the the director of the Stanford Cochlear Implant Center since 2003. He received his bachelor's degree from Stanford University in biology before traveling to Boston to complete his medical training at Harvard. He then completed his residency in Otolaryngology at the University of California at San Francisco, and he remained at UCSF for additional fellowship training in otology/neurotology. Dr. Blevins joined the Otolaryngology Department at Tufts University in Boston as Chief of the Division of Otology and Neurotology. In 2003, he returned to California to join the Stanford Department of Otolaryngology. He specializes in disorders of the middle ear, inner ear, facial nerve, and skull base, and he is dedicated to the application of the most advanced technology to hearing restoration. Dr. Blevins has an active research interest in innovative surgical methods and the application of computer technology to surgical education and preoperative planning. 

Dylan Chan, PhD, MD

Dr. Chan is a pediatric otolaryngologist at the University of California San Francisco Medical Center. He graduated summa cum laude from Yale University with degrees in Molecular Biochemistry and Biophysics, and in Music. Dr. Chan then completed his medical training at the Will Medical College of Cornell University, as well as a PhD in auditory physiology with Dr. A. James Hudspeth at the Rockefeller University. His post-graduate training has included a residency in otolaryngology-head and neck surgery at Stanford University as well as a fellowship in pediatric otolaryngology at Seattle Children’s Hospital. He has authored numerous peer-reviewed publications and presented his research on cochlear physiology and the genetics of hearing and deafness, especially congenital and acquired hearing loss, chronic ear disease, and cochlear implantation. In addition to his clinical practice, he runs a basic-science laboratory devoted to studying how genetic abnormalities lead to hearing loss and developing ways to treat deafness using gene therapy. 

Julie Cooper, MS, CCC-SLP, LSLS Cert. AVT 

Julie Cooper is the executive director of the Listen to Me! Conference and the Baker Scholars Program at Stanford Ear Institute. She was instrumental in the creation and development of LTM in 2009 and has directed the program every year. Julie is a listening and spoken language specialist, certified auditory verbal therapist and is passionate about empowering parents to teach their child to listen and speak. She earned a BA from Calvin College and an MS in SLP at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.  Julie served as the SLP on the cochlear implant team at Stanford Hospital from 2008 to 2013. She has been a therapist at the Weingarten Children's Center since 2007. Julie also directs the Baker Scholars Program, a tele-intervention program that provides parent coaching in listening and spoken language (LSL), via FaceTime, to families across California. Julie has enjoyed mentoring several professionals seeking to specialize in a LSL approach through the FIRST YEARS program at UNC, PPCI, and local SLP graduate programs, and she is currently mentoring several individuals in attaining the LSL certification in auditory verbal therapy.  She has presented at ACIA, ASHA, and San Jose State University. 

Michael Douglas, MA, CCC-SLP, LSLS Cert AVT 

Michael is a speech-language pathologist and a certified auditory-verbal therapist. He received his BA in speech-language pathology in 1994 and an MA in 1996 from the University of North Texas. He received his certification in auditory-verbal therapy in 2002. He has focused his career on teaching children with hearing loss to listen and speak in various settings including early childhood programs, schools, hospitals, private practice, and cochlear implant centers. He is the recipient of the Cochlear Americas Clinical Fellow Award and the Helen Beebe Scholarship. Michael served as the Director of the Speech Clinic and Director of Intervention Services at the Center for Hearing and Speech in Houston, TX from 2005 to 2012. There he managed the speech-language pathology clinic, an auditory-oral preschool and the family services department. He was an adjunct instructor at the University of Houston from 2010 to 2012. He served as the Principal of the Mama Lere Hearing School in the Bill Wilkerson Center at Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN between 2012 and 2016. Currently he is an employee of MED-EL as a Consumer Engagement Program Manager for (re)habilitation, lectures worldwide and has contributed to several peer review publications. He is the author of Dual-Language Learning for Children with Hearing Loss. 

Matthew Fitzgerald, PhD, CCC-A 

Dr. Fitzgerald is the Chief of Audiology at Stanford & LPCH, previously from the Department of Otolaryngology, NYU School of Medicine.  He obtained his undergraduate degree in Communication Disorders & Sciences from Wichita State University, followed by a Masters in Audiology from Vanderbilt University.  He is a certified audiologist, having completed his clinical fellowship year at the Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, Michigan.  He then obtained his Ph.D. from Northwestern University in 2005.  In late 2010, he joined the faculty at NYU School of Medicine.  Dr. Fitzgerald became Chief of Audiology at Stanford in 2015. His research interests are focused on how individuals adapt to altered sensory input, and what can be done to facilitate that process of adaptation.  He is particularly interested in developing new tools for mapping recipients of cochlear implants and the development of auditory training programs for individuals with hearing loss. 

Jannine Larky, AuD, CCC-A 

Jan Larky has specialized in cochlear implants since 1989, when she graduated from the University of Iowa with her Master of Art desire in Audiology and joined the House Ear Institute. There she was introduces to the world of cochlear implants in children and never looked back. During her tenure at both UC San Francisco and Stanford she has served as co-investigator in numerous FDA approved cochlear implant trials. Jan received her Bachelor of Arts in Speech and Hearing Sciences from UCSB, her Master of Arts degree from the University of Iowa and her AuD, professional doctorate in Audiology from AT Still University. Today Jan works in both the Pediatric Audiology Clinic at the Stanford Ear Institute where she provides the full range of services to cochlear implant candidates and recipients. She has expertise in programming all manufacturers of cochlear implants that are available.   

Kathy Mastrini, MA 

Kathy Mastrini is the Deaf & Hard of Hearing Specialist for Cupertino Union School District.  She has worked with children ages 3 years to 8th grade, their families, and the teachers throughout the district since 2007.  Previously, Kathy worked as a teacher, therapist, and principal at Weingarten Children’s Center for over 17 years.  She was the Coordinator of Professional Instruction for the Listen to Me! Conference from 2009—2020, as well as serving on the Listen to Me! development team each year.  Kathy has provided private therapy services as well as contracted by a school district to provide professional learning opportunities in the areas of hearing loss and cochlear implant habilitation. Kathy has presented on a variety of topics related to children with hearing loss to parents, professionals, and graduate students at AG Bell Conventions, Professional Preparation in Cochlear Implants (PPCI), American Cochlear Implant Alliance (ACIA), and San Jose State University.  

Eryn McHan, MA, CCC-SLP, LSLS Cert. AVT 

Eryn McHan is a Speech-Language Pathologist and certified Auditory Verbal Therapist who is the Coordinator of Professional Instruction for LTM.  She is also a tele-therapist for BabyTalk, a collaboration between Stanford and the Weingarten Children's Center. She is specialized in parent coaching centered early intervention and developing listening and spoken language skills for children who are Deaf and Hard of Hearing in partnership with their families. She has also provided Deaf and Hard of Hearing consultation and services for school districts, and has taught a variety of classes for students with hearing loss, including social skills and music classes. Beyond direct therapy services, she has served as a clinical supervisor for speech pathology graduate students and has worked as a practicum mentor for Professional Preparation in Cochlear Implants, which was a national training program for audiology and education professionals seeking specialization in working with children with cochlear implants. She truly loves what she does and is excited to learn and share with all of you as a part of this year's Listen to Me! Conference. 

Anna Meyer, MD

Dr. Meyer is an otolaryngologist and head and neck surgeon at UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital. She treats a variety of head and neck conditions in children, including children with airway disease; chronic ear disease and hearing loss; choanal atresia; velopharyngeal insufficiency; acquired and congenital head and neck masses; and craniofacial syndromes.  Dr. Meyer's key research interests are in cochlear implantation and hearing loss, health disparities and medical education. She completed medical school at UCSF in 2002 and a residency in otolaryngology and head and neck surgery at the University of Michigan in 2007. In 2008, she completed a fellowship in pediatric otolaryngology at Children's Memorial Hospital in Chicago. Dr. Meyer is a member of the American Academy of Otolaryngology and a specialty fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics. She received the prestigious Paparella Otologic Research Award during her residency. 

Sally Tannenbaum, MEd, CED, LSLS Cert. AVT 

Sally Tannenbaum is a Listening and Spoken Language Specialist Certified Auditory Verbal Therapist and has been working with the deaf and hard of hearing for over 35 years. Sally received the Helen Beebe Award for Outstanding Therapist.  She is currently a Consumer Engagement Manager for MED-EL, USA.  Before joining the MED-EL team, she was the Director of the Hearing Loss and Cochlear Implant Program at the University of Chicago Hospital and participated in Project ASPIRE, a parent-directed intervention for low socio-economic status children with hearing loss.  She is a consultant with the Global Foundation for Children with Hearing Loss and is a past board member of the American Cochlear Implant Alliance.  She has contributed to several books on hearing loss and has lectured world-wide.

• Please complete the online registration form and select the payment option you prefer.
• We strongly recommend paying online by credit card, if at all possible, considering the current circumstances.(Our offices are closed, and we are unable to receive paper mailings at this time).
• If you are unable to pay online, please contact us for alternative methods.
• Registration will NOT be guaranteed until payment is received.
• No refunds will be given after June 1, 2021.