معرفی
Cara E. Stepp is a Professor at Boston University, with appointments in the Speech, Language & Hearing Sciences, Biomedical Engineering, and Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery departments under the Sargent College of Health & Rehabilitation Sciences. Her research focuses on applying engineering tools to rehabilitate sensorimotor disorders of voice and speech, aiming to develop novel therapeutic interventions for conditions like Parkinson’s disease and laryngeal dystonia.
- Education: S.B. in Engineering Science from Smith College (2004), S.M. in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from MIT (2008), Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology (2009), and postdoctoral training in Computer Science & Engineering and Rehabilitation Medicine at the University of Washington (2011).
Dr. Stepp’s research spans sensorimotor rehabilitation engineering, speech motor control, and neurotechnology development. She investigates acoustic and kinematic parameters in voice disorders, cortical biomarkers for motor control, and videogame-based rehabilitation tools. Her work integrates disciplines like biomedical instrumentation, signal processing, and neural dynamics.
Key scientific awards include:
- Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (2019)
- Fellow of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (2018)
- NSF CAREER Award (2015)
- Early Career Contributions in Research Award (2012)
- Peter Paul Career Development Professorship (2012)
- AIMBE Fellow (2024)
As director of the STEPP LAB, she mentors PhD and Master’s students in projects involving Parkinson’s disease, gender-affirming voice care, and computational modeling. The lab fosters a multidisciplinary, inclusive environment with collaborators from engineering, neuroscience, and clinical medicine.
