Kristen Secora, PhD

Assistant Professor, Communication Disorders, Deaf Studies & Special Education

Biography

Kristen Secora is an assistant professor in communication disorders, deaf studies, and special education. She is a licensed Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP) with her Certificate of Clinical Competence (CCC) from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA). She worked as an SLP in a public elementary school for three years before joining the faculty at the University of Tennessee. Professor Secora has a passion for equipping pre-service teachers and speech-language pathology/audiology students with the tools to prepare them for graduate school and their professional lives.

Professional Background

Research

Professor Secora’s research focuses on developing tools for fostering and assessing language development for deaf and hard of hearing children, particularly those who use American Sign Language.

• Visual perspective-taking abilities in deaf signers
• Theory of Mind development for deaf signers