Dr. Rosemary Lester Smith

Biography

Rosemary Lester-Smith is an Associate Professor in the Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences at the University of Texas at Austin and the Director of the UT Voice Lab. She received her B.A. in Speech and Hearing Sciences from the University of New Mexico, an M.A. in Speech and Hearing Sciences from Indiana University, an M.S. in Clinical Investigation from Northwestern University, and a Ph.D. in Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences with a minor in Neuroscience from the University of Arizona. Dr. Lester-Smith completed postdoctoral training at the Mayo Clinic, Boston University, Northwestern University, and Shirley Ryan AbilityLab. A certified speech-language pathologist, she has worked in a variety of clinical settings, primarily evaluating and treating adults with voice and swallowing disorders. Her research focuses on improving the diagnosis and treatment of neurogenic voice disorders and vocal tremor, as well as understanding the factors that impair and improve vocal control. She employs acoustical, perceptual, and physiological methods in her research and utilizes computational models to simulate vocal tremor and vibrato, including auditory feedback studies to examine auditory-motor control. Her research is funded by the National Institutes of Health.

Research Interests