On May 14, 2012, Dean Martin Ferguson-Pell announced the appointment of Dr. Deryk Beal as the new Executive Director for the Institute of Stuttering Treatment and Research (ISTAR), effective September 1, 2012.
Dr. Beal joins the University of Alberta from Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences at Boston University, where he is currently a Canadian Institutes of Health Research Fellow and Visiting Scientist. He holds a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Psychology and Linguistics, a Master of Health Science in Speech-Language Pathology and a PhD in Speech-Language Pathology.
He is clinician-scientist who specializes in the study of speech motor control, developmental stuttering and their associated neural correlates. In addition to working as a speech-language pathologist in Ontario, he spent seven years at Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children as an adjunct project director in the Brain and Behavior Program and as a clinician-scientist in the Speech Fluency Laboratory and Collaborative Program in Neuroscience at the University of Toronto. He also served as a research affiliate with the Speech Communication Group in the Research Laboratory of Electronics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Over the course of his career, Dr. Beal's research has focused on understanding the structure and function of the brain network for speech production for the express purpose of developing new treatments for people who stutter. He is experienced in the use of magnetoencephalography as well as functional and structural magnetic resonance imaging, including diffusion imaging. He has received several prestigious research fellowships, has a strong background as a clinical educator, has numerous publications in peer reviewed journals, has given several keynote lectures, and has prepared more than 50 posters and presentations on his research.
About ISTAR
The Institute for Stuttering Treatment and Research (ISTAR) is a self-funded institute of the University of Alberta's Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine, offering specialized treatment to children, teens and adults who stutter. ISTAR also conducts research into stuttering, offers advanced professional training for speech-language pathology students and clinicians, and promotes public awareness of stuttering and its treatment.
About the University of Alberta Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine
As the only free standing faculty of rehabilitation in Canada, the University of Alberta Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine balances its activities among learning, discovery and citizenship (including clinical practice). A research leader in musculoskeletal health, spinal cord injuries and common spinal disorders (back pain), the Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine aims to improve the quality of life of citizens in our community. The three departments, Occupational Therapy (OT), Physical Therapy (PT) and Speech Pathology and Audiology (SPA) offer professional entry programs. The Faculty offers thesis-based MSc and PhD programs in Rehabilitation Science, attracting students from a variety of disciplines including OT, PT, SLP, psychology, physical education, medicine and engineering.