Postdoctoral and Doctoral Trainees
Laura Friedman
Ph.D. CCC-SLP
Postdoctoral Fellow
Dr. Laura Friedman is a postdoctoral fellow in the SC Family Experiences Lab. She completed her Ph.D. at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she worked with adolescents with autism spectrum disorder and fragile X syndrome. During her doctoral studies, Dr. Friedman worked with families of children with autism spectrum disorder as a certified speech-language pathologist in a pediatric private practice. Dr. Friedman’s research interests include characterizing the language skills of adolescents and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, as well as examining the broader impact of language on later adulthood outcomes, including friendship development, employment, and self-advocacy skills.
Thomas Christensen
M.S. CCC-SLP
Ph.D. Student
Thomas is a doctoral student in the Communication Sciences and Disorders department at the University of South Carolina. He received his B.A. in Communication Disorders from Utah State University and his M.S. in Speech-Language Pathology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Before returning for his doctorate, Thomas practiced as a speech-language pathologist in a retirement community as well as in an outpatient pediatric clinic. His research interests include understanding aging in those with neurodevelopmental disorders and how best to support them and their caregivers.