Find Academic Supervisors

Dani Byrd is a Professor of Linguistics at the University of Southern California's Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences. She has held significant administrative leadership roles including Interim Dean, Executive Vice Dean, and multiple Vice Dean positions focusing on research advancement, faculty affairs, and institutional matters. Her interdisciplinary research bridges linguistics, engineering, and neuroscience to investigate human speech production and articulatory coordination. Byrd earned her PhD in Linguistics from UCLA in 1994 with a dissertation on 'Articulatory Timing in English Consonant Sequences.' She received simultaneous MA and BA degrees from Yale University in 1990, graduating magna cum laude with Distinction in Linguistics. Following her PhD, she completed post-doctoral training at Haskins Laboratories in New Haven, Connecticut. Her research specializes in speech production and articulatory coordination, employing cutting-edge magnetometer and real-time MRI technologies to track vocal tract movements during speech. Byrd's work investigates language production from a dynamical systems perspective, examining how linguistic structures relate to temporal speech realization. She combines theoretical linguistics with experimental speech science to understand the cognitive representation of language through physical production. Byrd's recent publications demonstrate a strong interdisciplinary trajectory, integrating linguistics, neuroscience, and artificial intelligence. Her work increasingly focuses on mental health applications of speech analysis, using AI to detect depression and suicidal ideation from speech and eye movements. She continues advancing vocal tract imaging techniques while expanding into speech foundation models that characterize speaker traits and dialect variations across languages. USC Dornsife Dean's Award for Distinguished Service (2012) Fellow of the Acoustical Society of America (2008) R. Bruce Lindsay Award for scholars under 35 NSF Graduate Fellow (1990-1992) UCLA Graduate Woman of the Year Award (1994) Professor Byrd has chaired or served on numerous PhD thesis committees across Linguistics, Electrical Engineering, and Psychology departments at USC. Her research has been continuously funded for three decades by the National Science Foundation and NIH's National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders. Current major grants include NSF funding for structured variability in vocal tract articulation dynamics and an IARPA contract for spoken human signal anonymization, totaling over $5 million in active funding. Byrd's research takes place in the Dynamic Imaging Science Center at the USC Michelson Center for Convergent Bioscience. She leads the USC SPAN (Speech Production and Articulation kNowledge) Research Group, which combines real-time MR imaging, linguistic experimentation, and machine learning to advance understanding of spoken language. Her team includes engineers, linguists, and neuroscientists working collaboratively on speech production research.

• Linguistics
• Speech Science
• Phonetics
• +6 more

Dr. Amelia Tseng serves as Associate Professor of Spanish and Linguistics and Director of the Linguistics Program at American University. She holds affiliate appointments in Anthropology and the Center for Latin American and Latino Studies (CLALS), and previously directed the Bilingual Education program. Her scholarly profile integrates academic rigor with public engagement, evidenced by features in National Public Radio and WUSA 9. Her educational foundation includes: Ph.D. in Linguistics from Georgetown University M.S. in Linguistics from Georgetown University M.A. in Spanish Linguistics from Arizona State University B.A. in Spanish and English, Magna Cum Laude, from Wellesley College Dr. Tseng's research pioneers frameworks for understanding language-identity dynamics in Latinx diasporic communities, emphasizing multilingualism, dialect variation, and ethnoracial identity construction. Through ethnographic methods including interviews and surveys, she examines how Washington, D.C.'s Latinx population navigates cultural hybridity in a historically Black urban landscape. Her work reveals how language practices forge new forms of Latinidad while negotiating racialized cultural hierarchies. Analysis of her 15 most recent publications shows dominant trends in sociolinguistics of diaspora, with concentrated focus on heritage language insecurity, translinguistic practices, and raciolinguistic perspectives in educational contexts. Her scholarship consistently bridges theoretical innovation with community-centered research, particularly through the Washington, D.C. Latinx Language and Identity Project (DCLLIP). Recognition for her contributions includes: American University and Georgetown University teaching/research awards Society for Applied Anthropology and National Science Foundation honors 2020 American Association of Applied Linguistics (AAAL) Book Prize for co-edited volume As Principal Investigator of DCLLIP, Dr. Tseng leads interdisciplinary research examining language-identity intersections in the nation's capital. Her grants portfolio includes National Science Foundation support, while her academic leadership extends to directing the Linguistics Program and mentoring through CLALS. She actively shapes national discourse through keynotes at major conferences including NWAV and NSSHL. Dr. Tseng's institutional impact spans the Linguistics Program, CLALS, and Anthropology Department, where she cultivates cross-disciplinary collaboration. Her upcoming monograph with Georgetown University Press represents the first comprehensive linguistics study of D.C.'s Latinx community, synthesizing a decade of ethnographic work into transformative theoretical contributions.

• Sociolinguistics
• Language and Identity
• Multilingualism
• +6 more

Antonella D'Angelis serves as Professor in the Department of Integrated Philologies at the Faculty of Philology, University of Seville, where she teaches advanced Italian language courses (B2.2 level), specialized linguistics seminars, and scientific-technical translation from Italian to Spanish. Her research centers on Italian-Spanish comparative morphology, with particular emphasis on suffixation processes, diminutive formation, and linguistic variation in contact scenarios. She investigates how morphological patterns evolve across dialects and influence language pedagogy, notably through music-based learning methodologies. Her work bridges theoretical linguistics with practical applications in translation and language teaching. Recent publications reveal consistent focus on morphological derivation and cross-linguistic comparison, with increasing attention to contemporary language change and innovative pedagogical approaches. Her 2020-2022 works specifically address urban dialect evolution and multisensory learning techniques. D'Angelis supervises doctoral candidates in philological research, including Francisco Núñez-Román's 2008 thesis on Sicilian verbal periphrases. She leads the LEC:TELL research group (Lenguas en contacto: Traducción, Enseñanza, Lingüística y Literatura), which investigates language contact phenomena, translation methodologies, and linguistic pedagogy. Her scholarly activities include participation in the PROGETTO PINOCCHIO research initiative as Investigator.

• Italian Philology
• Linguistics
• Translation Studies
• +2 more

Gert Foget Hansen serves as an External Lecturer in the Department of Nordic Studies and Linguistics at the University of Copenhagen's Faculty of Humanities. His academic work centers on phonetic and acoustic-phonetic methodologies, with a specialization in heritage Danish spoken in the Americas. He leads research initiatives such as "Danske stemmer i USA og Argentina," which examines optimal conditions for phonetic studies using archival recordings and explores forced alignment techniques for transcription and audio. Hansen's research interests encompass phonetics, acoustic phonetics, prosody (particularly stød), linguistic variation, and method development for phonetic analysis. He employs quantitative and corpus-based approaches to investigate heritage language speakers of Danish in Argentina and North America, focusing on acoustic properties of the voice source and stress patterns in Copenhagen Danish, including the multiethnolect. His recent publications (2018-2025) reveal a consistent emphasis on heritage Danish in the Americas, utilizing corpus linguistics to study code-switching, linguistic proficiency, stress variation, and resource development (e.g., the Corpus of American Danish). This work bridges phonetics, sociolinguistics, and heritage language studies, contributing to real-time language change research. Hansen actively collaborates with scholars like Kühl, K., Thøgersen, J., and Heegård, J. on projects related to immigrant and heritage Danish. His involvement in the Corpus of American Danish (CoAmDa) project provides a valuable resource for spoken Danish in the Americas, supporting ongoing research into linguistic variation and change.

• Phonetics
• Acoustic Phonetics
• Prosody
• +2 more

Carmen Fought serves as Professor of Linguistics at Pitzer College, a member institution of The Claremont Colleges consortium in Claremont, California. Her research spans core areas of linguistics with emphasis on: Sociolinguistics: examining language in social contexts Language Variation: studying regional and social dialects Language and Society: analyzing power dynamics in communication Language and Gender: investigating gendered speech patterns Her work focuses on how linguistic choices reflect and construct social identities across diverse communities. Professor Fought maintains active engagement with the academic community through her departmental affiliation and professional correspondence.

• Linguistics
• Sociolinguistics
• Language Variation
• +2 more

Prof. Jonathan Harrington is a Professor of Phonetics and Digital Speech Processing and Director of the Institute of Phonetics and Speech Processing (IPS) at the University of Munich. He joined LMU in 2006 and specializes in experimental phonetics, laboratory phonology, and sound change. His work integrates real-time MRI studies, computational modeling, and large-scale speech databases. Current projects include SoundAct (ERC Advanced Grant, 2023–2028) exploring the actuation of sound change and InterAccent (ERC Advanced Grant, 2017–2023) investigating accent evolution in interaction. Notable past projects include studies on nasal coarticulation, speech impairment diagnostics via web-based tools, and the phonetics of Albanian, Mandarin, and German dialects. Research interests span articulatory phonetics, the phonetic basis of sound change, and computational models of linguistic dynamics. He develops tools like the EMU-SDMS R package for speech database management and soundChangeR for agent-based modeling. His work bridges laboratory and field studies, addressing questions of speech production, perception, and historical change. Recent studies examine velum movement in Mandarin, vowel nasalization in German, and compensatory lengthening in Albanian dialects. Grants include multiple ERC awards and German Research Council funding. His publications (over 100 articles) focus on articulatory MRI analysis, sociophonetic methods, and the interplay between phonetic detail and linguistic structure. He collaborates internationally, mentoring researchers in speech technology and dialectology.

• Experimental Phonetics
• Laboratory Phonology
• Speech Database Development
• +4 more

David Jurgens is an Associate Professor jointly appointed at the School of Information and the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the University of Michigan. His research bridges Natural Language Processing (NLP), social psychology, and data science to study human behavior within social systems. He holds a PhD from UCLA and has held postdoctoral positions at Stanford University and McGill University. Education: PhD in Computer Science, University of California, Los Angeles Postdoctoral Scholar, Stanford University (with Dan Jurafsky and Jure Leskovec) Postdoctoral Scholar, McGill University (Network Dynamics Group) Research Interests: Focuses on sociolinguistics, computational social science, and ethical AI. Key themes include demographic inference from text, social relationship modeling, online behavior impacts, and mitigating incivility in digital spaces. His work has been published in venues like PNAS, WWW, ACL, and EMNLP. Publications: Recent work spans AI ethics frameworks, LLM fine-tuning for subjective perception, citation fidelity analysis, and multilingual moral reasoning. His research emphasizes interdisciplinary applications of NLP to societal challenges. Awards: Cozzarelli Prize (National Academy of Sciences) Cialdini Prize (Society for Personality and Social Psychology) Best Paper Awards at ICWSM and W-NUT Advising & Grants: Mentors students in NLP and computational social science. Teaches courses on NLP, information retrieval, and data mining. Active in conference organization (e.g., ACL, EMNLP) and journal editing (Frontiers special issue on Computational Sociolinguistics). Labs & Teams: Leads the Blablablab research group, focusing on interdisciplinary projects in NLP and social science. Collaborates with experts in psychology, linguistics, and sociology to advance data-driven methodologies.

• Natural Language Processing
• Computational Social Science
• Social Psychology
• +4 more

Professor Elinor Payne is a Professor of Phonetics and Phonology at the University of Oxford's Faculty of Linguistics, Philology, and Phonetics, and a member of the Phonetics Lab. She holds additional roles as a Governing Body Fellow at St Hilda’s College and a Lecturer at Oriel College. Her research focuses on cross-linguistic speech variation, prosody, and the interplay between prosody and gesture in communication. Current projects include studies on Cypriot prosody, Indian English variation, Venetan dialect prosody, and multimodal communication in Russian media. She has been on research leave since 2021 and supervises doctoral students in phonetics, phonology, and contact phonetics. Her research themes encompass speech acquisition, multilingual phonetics, prosody, and sociolinguistic variation. She has led projects funded by institutions like the Leverhulme Trust and the AHRC, investigating topics such as speech timing, intonation, and the effects of language contact. Teaching includes phonetics and phonology modules for undergraduate and postgraduate programs in Linguistics, Modern Languages, and Psychology. Professor Payne’s work bridges experimental phonetics, computational methods, and interdisciplinary approaches, with a focus on endangered languages and sociolinguistic dynamics. Her lab, the Phonetics Lab, collaborates on projects like digital mapping of prosodic patterns and multimodal dataset analysis.

• Phonetics
• Phonology
• Prosody
• +3 more

Dr. Chenzi Xu is a Leverhulme Early Career Fellow at the Clarendon Institute within the Faculty of Linguistics, Philology and Phonetics at the University of Oxford. Their research focuses on prosody, speech production/perception, and the intersection of speech processing with forensic linguistics. Dr. Xu's work employs quantitative methods to analyze voice quality, pitch variation, and sociolinguistic identity markers in Mandarin dialects, particularly 'Plastic Mandarin.' Education: Their doctoral (DPhil) research investigated prosodic patterns in unstressed syllables of regional Mandarin accents, combining acoustic analysis with sociolinguistic factors. This work emphasizes structured variation in pitch and voice quality across linguistic contexts and social identities. Research Interests: Dr. Xu explores automatic speech recognition systems' sensitivity to vocal variation, forensic speaker recognition, and cross-linguistic tonal phenomena. Their work bridges computational modeling and experimental psychology, as seen in studies on mismatch negativity (MMN) responses to consonant durations and ERP evidence of Mandarin sibilant perception. Key Research Themes: Their publications address prosodic analysis in Bengali question intonation, vocal quality in telephony speech, and methodological improvements in citation tone studies. Recent work (2023-2024) emphasizes forensic applications of speaker recognition systems and acoustic feature mismatches in ASR. Awards: Recipient of the prestigious Leverhulme Early Career Fellowship supporting innovative research in linguistics and phonetics. Labs & Affiliations: Active in the Phonetics Lab and Language & Brain Lab, collaborating on projects at the intersection of speech processing and cognitive science.

• Automatic Speech Recognition
• Prosody
• Psycholinguistics
• +3 more

Jacques Koreman is a Professor at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), affiliated with the Department of Language and Literature. His research focuses on experimental phonetics, speech technology, and applied linguistics. He leads projects like the Computer-Assisted Listening and Speaking Tutor (CALST), a multilingual platform for pronunciation training, and collaborates in EU initiatives such as the easyRights project to support language acquisition for migrants. His work spans cross-linguistic analysis, speech therapy tools, and digital education systems. Research Interests: Experimental phonetics and speech technology Development of multilingual pronunciation training tools (CALST, L1-L2map) Prosody analysis in Scandinavian languages and Bulgarian Speech therapy and clinical linguistics (e.g., digital phoneme tests) Cross-linguistic corpus studies and language acquisition Key Projects: easyRights: EU-funded platform for multilingual pronunciation training in European migrant languages CALST: Adaptive platform for L2 learners, supporting Norwegian dialects, Spanish, Greek, and Italian Scandinavian Prosody research (e.g., tonal variation in Norwegian, Swedish, and Danish) Articles Trends: His recent work emphasizes multilingual education systems, cross-linguistic phonetic analysis, and the application of technology in speech therapy and language learning. Key themes include prosodic features, consonant clusters in L2 teaching, and corpus-based studies of vowel systems. Advising & Grants: Project leader for CALST and easyRights Collaborations with institutions like the University of Valencia and Walter de Gruyter Labs/Teams: Involved in digital tool development teams at NTNU, including the L1-L2map database and CALST platform.

• Experimental Phonetics
• Speech Technology
• Applied Linguistics
• +3 more

Zev Handel is a Professor and Department Chair in the Department of Asian Languages and Literature at the University of Washington, affiliated with the College of Arts & Sciences. He also serves as the Chinese Program Coordinator and holds an Adjunct Professor position in the Department of Linguistics. His research focuses on historical phonology , Chinese dialectology , Tibeto-Burman languages , and sinographic writing systems . Education: PhD in Chinese Language (UC Berkeley, 1998), MA in East Asian Languages (UC Berkeley, 1992), AB in Mathematics (Harvard, 1988). Key research projects include studies on the development of sinographic writing systems in Asia, the history of Northern Min dialects in Fujian Province, and the comparative analysis of Sino-Tibetan linguistic features. His work bridges historical linguistics , textual analysis , and cognitive approaches to writing systems . Prominent publications include Sinography: The borrowing and adaptation of the Chinese script (Brill, 2019) and contributions to the Encyclopedia of Chinese Language and Linguistics . He has held visiting roles at institutions like the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and frequently presents at international conferences on Sino-Tibetan and East Asian linguistic studies. Teaching and advising: While no student names are listed, his roles include mentoring graduate students in Chinese linguistics and related fields. He is involved in research initiatives such as the Early Buddhist Manuscript Project and the Bilingual and Biliteracy Research Lab .

• Historical Phonology
• Chinese Language
• Chinese Dialectology
• +4 more

Michael Tjalve is an Affiliate Assistant Professor in the Department of Linguistics at the University of Washington , within the College of Arts & Sciences . He holds a PhD in Linguistics from University College London (2007). His research focuses on speech processing technologies, computational linguistics, and the analysis of speech production in populations such as children and elderly speakers. He has contributed to advancements in accent adaptation for automatic speech recognition (ASR), conversational agent design, and the evaluation of speech technologies using crowdsourcing methods. Education: PhD in Linguistics, University College London, 2007 Research Interests: His work bridges theoretical linguistics and applied speech technology. Key areas include: - Speech Recognition Systems (accent adaptation, age-specific models) - Child Language Development (disfluency detection, reading performance) - Conversational Agents (voice UI design, distributed development) - Sociolinguistics (accent variation, dialect documentation) Publications Trends: Recent work emphasizes practical applications of speech technology, including improving ASR accuracy for non-native speakers, analyzing developmental speech patterns in children, and designing cooperative voice user interfaces. His contributions highlight interdisciplinary methods combining corpus-based linguistics with machine learning. Labs & Teams: Affiliated with the University of Washington Linguistics Department research groups, contributing to projects in computational linguistics and speech technology. Collaborates with industry partners on applied speech systems and crowdsourced evaluation frameworks.

• Speech Recognition
• Computational Linguistics
• Child Language Development
• +3 more

John Baugh is a distinguished Professor holding appointments in Psychology, Anthropology, Education, English, Linguistics, and African & African-American Studies at Washington University in St. Louis. As the Margaret Bush Wilson Professor in Arts & Sciences, he is renowned for interdisciplinary research on linguistic discrimination, sociolinguistics, and policy applications. His work addresses linguistic profiling, legal implications of speech discrimination, and advocacy for linguistic diversity. He directs the African and African American Studies program, fostering scholarship across disciplines related to the African Diaspora. Baugh’s research integrates anthropology, sociology, and ethnography, with practical applications in education, healthcare, and law enforcement. Notable recognitions include AAAS Fellowship and membership in the American Academy of Arts & Sciences. He also chairs the Linguistic Society of America and contributed to the Oxford Dictionary of African American English advisory board. Educations: PhD, MSSH, University of Pennsylvania BA, Temple University Research Focus: Explores how language variation reflects social stratification, particularly among marginalized groups. Studies include telephone-based linguistic profiling, deaf communities, and dialectal inequities. Recent work emphasizes legal frameworks to combat linguistic discrimination in housing and services. Leadership & Awards: AAAS Fellow (2020) American Academy of Arts & Sciences Member (2021) Linguistic Society of America President (2021–2024) Rockefeller Foundation Fellowship (2016) Grants & Advocacy: Collaborates with scholars globally to advance linguistics in HBCUs and community colleges. His work bridges sociolinguistics with social justice, aiming to institutionalize linguistic equity policies.

• Linguistics
• Sociolinguistics
• Linguistic Discrimination
• +7 more

Sarah Moeller is an Assistant Professor in Computational Language Science at the University of Florida. Her research bridges computer science and linguistics to advance minority language documentation and revitalization through NLP innovations. She focuses on creating accessible computational tools for linguists and language communities, particularly in low-resource settings. Her work addresses challenges in endangered languages documentation, leveraging modern AI while maintaining traditional field methods. Education includes a PhD in Linguistics and Cognitive Science from the University of Colorado Boulder, an MA in Applied Linguistics from Dallas International University, and a B.A. in History from Thomas Edison State College. Prior to academia, she taught English, worked as a Russian-English interpreter, and contributed to the NLP industry. Key projects include 'Breaking Bottlenecks in Documentation and Description' and 'Reanimating African American Histories.' She actively develops tools like the FLExMorphSegmenter and IMDI2UNTL converter. Her research emphasizes ethical AI applications and training non-technical linguists in computational methods.

• Computational Linguistics
• Language Documentation
• Natural Language Processing (NLP)
• +3 more

Theresa A Antes is an Associate Professor in French and Linguistics at the University of Florida, serving as Undergraduate Coordinator for French & Francophone Studies. She holds a PhD in French Linguistics from Cornell University (1993), with a focus on Second Language Acquisition. Her research emphasizes vocabulary acquisition, technology in language teaching, and pedagogical approaches to French syntax and grammar. Education: PhD in French Linguistics (Cornell University, 1993), MA in French Linguistics (Cornell, 1992), MA in French Language & Literature (University of Kentucky, 1989), and BA in French (Millersville University, 1986). Research interests include second language acquisition, French linguistics, and pedagogy, with recent work focusing on vocabulary instruction strategies and the role of technology. Notable contributions include studies on Parisian French lexical variation, verb acquisition, and binomial expressions in L2 classrooms. Teaching includes courses like French Grammar & Composition, Language Teaching Methodology, and Semiotics. She has directed 3 MA theses and served on numerous thesis committees. Active in professional service, she chairs CLAS Faculty Council and serves on University Senate, while reviewing for journals like French Review and TESL-EJ . Grants: Secured $10,718 from the Humanities Scholarship Enhancement Fund for research on vocabulary’s role in textual interpretation. Recent presentations include AAAL and ACTFL conferences on topics like cognate instruction and authentic materials in language learning. Professional affiliations include AATF, ACTFL, and TESOL. She has advised AP French Language and Culture curricula and led workshops on modern language pedagogy.

• Second Language Acquisition
• French Linguistics
• Vocabulary Acquisition
• +3 more