Melanie Shultz, M.A., CCC-SLP is the President of Specialized Speech Technologies, Inc. She earned her Master's Degree in Speech-Language Pathology from The Ohio State University.

She is a member of the American Speech Language Association and the International Association of Orofacial Myology.

She is licensed by the Ohio Board of Speech-Language Pathology. Melanie specializes in Myofunctional Therapy (Tongue Thrust Correction and Thumb Sucking Elimination). She has been in practice since 1997 where she worked for a contract company and private practice until October 2001 at which time she opened Specialized Speech Technologies as her own private practice.

You may contact Melanie at Info@specializedspeech.com.

Sharon Izzi joins Specialized Speech in July 2007 as our Receptionist. She attended college at Mt. St. Joseph in Cincinnati in 1966.

Throughout her career history, she has always been affiliated with medical professionals in an administrative and secretarial manner.

What is most rewarding to Sharon is seeing patients heal and seeing their goals met through progressive
treatment.

You may contact Sharon at sharon@SpecializedSpeech.com

Marla Marrero, B.A. joins Specialized Speech Technologies as the Billing Supervisor in May 2010. She graduated Cum Laude from the University of California, Irvine with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology and Social Behavior.

Marla was the Director of Insurance and Finance for a nationally renowned eye surgeon prior to leaving California.  Marla has over eight years of billing experience and looks forward to helping patients meet their personal goals through assisting with their therapy claims. Marla is always available to answer your questions and concerns regarding insurance coverage and benefits.

Holly Fiala, OTR/L joins Specialized Speech in July 2010.  She is a 2003 graduate of Ohio State University with a B.S. of Allied Medical Professions in Occupational Therapy.  She is certified by the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy and is a member of the American Occupational Therapy Association.

Since she began her career, Holly has focused her experience in a variety of pediatric settings including practicing OT with infants in the NICU, early intervention programs, outpatient clinics, and in a preschool for special needs children.  She also enjoys working with older adults in the home health setting.  She is a Certified Infant Touch and Massage Instructor and has extensive experience in infant motor development and feeding.  She has a special interest in sensory integration, children with handwriting difficulties, feeding therapy, and neurodevelopmental treatment.

You may reach Holly at holly@specializedspeech.com

Lauren Budziak, M.A.,CCC-SLP joined Specialized Speech in June 2009. She earned her B.A. in French and International Studies from the University of Dayton in 2006, and her M.A. in Speech-Language Pathology from The Ohio State University in 2008. She is currently working on a PRN basis in our facilities.

Lauren is a certified member of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. She is licensed by the Ohio Board of Speech-Language Pathology and the Ohio Department of Education. Lauren enjoys working with clients of all ages.

You may contact Lauren at lauren@specializedspeech.com.

Megan Fitzpatrick, M.A., CCC-SLP joins Specialized Speech in September 2006. She earned her undergraduate degree in Hearing and Speech Science in 2004 at The Ohio State University and her Masters Degree in Speech Language Pathology at The Ohio State University in 2006.

She has an Ohio Department of Education license, and is currently working in the clinic, nursing homes, and preschools. She has a special interest in AAC devices and swallowing disorders.

You may contact Megan at megan@SpecializedSpeech.com

Katie joined the Specialized Speech Technologies team in January 2004 as a part-time speech pathologist and is happy to have returned on a full-time basis in August 2007. She currently splits her time between the clinic and extended care facilities.

Katie came to the field with a background in vocal performance and health sciences. She has particular interest in voice and swallowing disorders but also enjoys working with speech and language. Katie's work has included swallowing therapy, articulation therapy, accent modification, voice and language therapy.

Katie is a certified member of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and licensed by the Ohio Board of Speech-Language Pathology and the Ohio Department of Education. She enjoys working with clients of all ages.

You may contact Katie at katie@SpecializedSpeech.com.

Amy Keller, M.A., CCC-SLP joins Specialized Speech in December 2008 as an Independent Contractor for Speech Pathology. She graduated from Indiana University with a B.A. in Speech and Hearing Sciences in 1994. She received her M.A. in Speech-Language Pathology from The Ohio State University in 1996.

After 5 years with Columbus Public Schools, Amy started a private practice focusing on early intervention, phonology, autism, and stuttering. In 2002, Amy became the regional provider for SpeechEasy, an anti-stuttering device. Amy is very excited to be partnering with SST to continue to bring the SpeechEasy to clients of all ages who are seeking an advanced therapy tool for stuttering.

You may contact Amy at amy@specializedspeech.com.

Ashley Lindvall, M.A., CCC-SLP comes to Specialized Speech in April 2010 and has be in practice since 2008.  She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Speech-Language Pathology from Ball State University in 2006 and her Master’s Degree in Speech-Language Pathology from The Ohio State University in 2008. 

Ashley is a certified member of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and licensed by the Ohio Board of Speech-Language Pathology.  She also has an Ohio Department of Education license.  Ashley enjoys working with clients of all ages with a special focus with the pediatric population. 

You may contact Ashley at ashley@specializedspeech.com

Kimberly Martin, M.A., CCC-SLP joined Specialized Speech in January 2009. She earned her Bachelor's Degree in Speech-Language Pathology from Eastern Michigan University in 2003 and her Master's Degree in Speech-Language Pathology from The Ohio State University in 2006.

Kimberly joins us as a therapist and will also be utilizing her past experiences as an Assistant Clinic Director to assist in marketing Specialized Speech Technologies' outstanding reputation and services to the Greater Columbus area.

She is certified by the American Speech and Hearing Association and is licensed with the Ohio Board of Speech-Language Pathology. She is also a member of the Ohio Speech, Language and Hearing Association. She has extensive clinical and volunteer experience in the field and completed a pre-doctoral fellowship in Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities throughout graduate school. She has worked with all age groups with a variety of speech, language and hearing related disorders. She particularly enjoys working with the Early Intervention population and their families.

You may contact Kimberly at kimberly@SpecializedSpeech.com

Mona Mehta, M.A., CCC-SLP comes to Specialized Speech in November 2008. She earned her undergraduate degree in Mumbai, India and graduated with a Master’s Degree at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. She has experience working in schools, outpatient clinics and in nursing homes. She has worked with children of all age groups with a wide variety of speech and language disorders.

She is particularly interested in infant feeding and swallowing disorders and has continued to gain knowledge and experience in this area throughout her career. She is certified in DPNS and Vital Stim, both which are techniques used in the treatment of swallowing disorders. She is certified with the American Speech and Hearing Association, and is licensed by the Ohio Board of Speech and Hearing Association. She is also a member of the Ohio Speech, Language and Hearing Association (OSHLA).

You may contact Mona at mona@SpecializedSpeech.com

Alison Ray, M.A., CFY-SLP joined Specialized Speech in May 2010.   She received her Bachelor’s Degree in Hearing Speech and Language Sciences (with minors in Linguistics and Psychology) from Ohio University in 2008. She received her Master’s Degree from the University of Pittsburgh in 2010.  

Alison is licensed with the Ohio Board of Speech-Language Pathology and the Ohio Department of Education.   She is also a member of the Ohio Speech-Language Hearing Association.   She has experience working in the public schools, skilled nursing facilities, veteran’s hospitals, the Cleft-Craniofacial Center, and Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh.

Although Alison enjoys working with all clients of all ages, she is particularly interested in fluency, articulation, language, autism, and children with special needs.

You may contact Alison at alison@specializedspeech.com

Allison is a certified member of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and licensed by the Ohio Board of Speech-Language Pathology. She enjoys working with clients of all ages.

You may contact Allison at allison@specializedspeech.com.

Kristen Workman, M.A., CFY-SLP will be joining Specialized Speech Technologies in May 2010. Kristen has earned her Bachelor’s Degree with Honors through the department of Speech Language Pathology of the University of Akron in 2008. She has recently received her Master’s Degree in Speech Language Pathology from the University of Akron and will have a conditional license from the Ohio Board of Speech-Language Pathology and the Ohio Department of Education.

She has experience working in clinics, schools, early intervention programs and short-term nursing facilities in clinical work towards identification and rehabilitation of speech/language disorders. Kristen looks forward to expanding her knowledge and skills by working with people of all ages and speech/language disorders.

Kristen may be reached at: kristen@specializedspeech.com