Dr. Peter C. Hauser is a deaf clinical neuropsychologist with an interdisciplinary research background. He is currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Research and Teacher Education at ntid @ rit and the Research Initiative Director of Neurocognitive Foundations of Visual Language and Visual Learning at the NSF Science of Learning Center on Visual Language and Visual Learning at Gallaudet University.

View Dr. Peter Hauser's CV

dsl at rit collaborates with other universities and centers on different projects to research and improve the lives of deaf individuals. Partnerships with institutions, such as Gallaudet University, University of Rochester; and organizations, such as the Center for Visual Language and Visual Learning (vl2); help facilitate and improve our research here at dsl.

Here are links to some of our partnering research labs:

Brain and Vision Laboratory
Center for Visual Language and Visual Learning (vl2)
Center for Education Research Partnerships (cerp)
Sign Language Research Center (slrc)

A diverse group of individuals work at dsl including undergraduate and graduate students, staff research associates and research fellows.

Here's a short biography of each of our members: (ordered alphabetically)

Name
Cindy Sanders

Designation
Affiliated Researcher

Academic & Work Experience

• Assistant Professor, RIT-NTID
• D.A. State University of New York at Albany, Communication (2001)
• M.A Syracuse University, Communication (1996)
• B.S Syracuse University, Communication (1995)
• A.S Rochester Institute of Technology, Medical Laboratory Technology (1986)

Name
Danielle Previ

Designation
Research Assistant

Academic & Work Experience
Currently pursuing a bachelors in Clinical Psychology at RIT

Research Interest
Cross-cultural studies in literacy development with
deaf children.

Name
Daphne Bavelier

Designation
Research Collaborator

Academic & Work Experience

• Professor, Brain & Cognitive Sciences; Center for Visual Science; Center for Language Studies
• Adjunct faculty in Imaging Science, University of Rochester Medical Center
• Associate Director, Rochester Center for Brain Imaging
• Director, MindSpace Virtual Reality Laboratory
• Baccalaureate in Mathematics, 1983, Paris, France
• Ecole Normale Superieure de Paris, Ulm, in Biology, 1985, Paris, France
• B.S. Cellular Biology, 1987, Universite Paris VI,
  Paris, France
• M.S. Neuroscience, 1988, Universite Pierre and Marie Curie, Paris, France
• Ph.D. Brain and Cognitive Sciences, 1992, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston

Name
Elizabeth Hirshorn

Designation
Doctoral Student

Academic & Work Experience
Research assistant at the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience at Penn for 2 years, and 4 years as a student at University of Rochester

Research Interest
I am interested in how language experience affects reading ability in profoundly deaf. I am also interested in how information is organized in short-term memory in deaf individuals.

Name
Erin Spurgeon

Designation
Research Associate

Academic & Work Experience

• Master of Science in Secondary Education for the Deaf, RIT-NTID (2008-2009)
• Early Prevention Therapist, North Shore Autistic Resource Center – Danvers, MA (2006-2008)
• Paraprofessional, Beverly School for the Deaf – Beverly, MA (2006-2008)

Research Interest
Language and Cognition – Impact of Bilingualism (Bimodal and Unimodal) on Executive Functioning Deaf individuals

Name
Geo Katheiser

Designation
Research Assistant

Academic & Work Experience

• Perceptual and Cognitive Plasticity Lab, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Name
Jennifer Lukomski

Designation
Research Collaborator

Academic & Work Experience

• School Psychology Faculty Member, and Internship Coordinator
• Ph.D. School Psychology – University of Arizona
• M.A. Rehabilitation Counseling for the Deaf, Gallaudet University
• B.A. History, Williams College

Name
Jesse Black

Designation
Programmer

Academic & Work Experience
College of Computing and Information Sciences –
Computer Science

Name
Lisa Velez

Designation
Research Assistant/ASL-SRT Rater

Academic & Work Experience
CAST – Human Resource Management, Deaf Studies Minor

Research Interest
Analyzing Sign Fluency

Name
Matt Dye

Designation
Research Collaborator

Academic & Work Experience

• Brain and Vision Laboratory
• Brain and Cognitive Science
• B.Sc. (Hons) Psychology, Manchester Polytechnic, UK
• M. Sc. Neural Computation, Stirling University, UK
• Ph.D. Psychology, University of Southampton, UK

Research Interest
Cortical plasticity in the visual system, especially as it relates to deafness and video game experience; visuo-spatial attention; literacy acquisition in deaf children and adults; sign language processing.

Name
Peter Hauser

Designation
Laboratory Director

Academic & Work Experience

• B.A. Philosophy and Psychology – Central Conneticut State University
• M.A. American Sign Language Linguistics – Gallaudet University
• M.A. Psychology – Gallaudet University
• Ph.D. Clinical Psychology – Gallaudet University
• Post Doctoral: University of Rochester Medical Center, Departments of Neurology and Psychiatry – Neuropsychology fellowship

Research Interest
Neuropsychological assessment of language and memory in Deaf children and adults and sign language neurolinguistics.

Name
Sabrina Speranza

Designation
Research Assistant

Academic & Work Experience
College of Liberal Arts – Professional and Technical Communications

Name
Sumit Paul

Designation
Web Designer

Academic & Work Experience
Bachelors Degree in Printing and Media Engineering. Currently pursuing an MFA in Computer Graphics Design at Rochester Institute of Technology

Name
Tara Hillman

Designation
Laboratory Manager

Academic & Work Experience

• MA Cert. Developmental Disabilities (1998),
  University of Rochester
• BA International Studies (1994), Saint John Fisher

Name
Ted Supalla

Designation
Research Collaborator

Academic & Work Experience

• PhD. University of California at San Diego (1982)
• Associate Professor, Brain & Cognitive Sciences, Linguistics, and American Sign Language
• Director, Program in American Sign Language and the Sign Language Research Center

Research Interest
Sign language structure and creolization, psycholinguistics