Ruth Grossman

Ruth Grossman serves as Professor and FACE Lab Director in Emerson College's Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, pioneering research on verbal/nonverbal communication dynamics between autistic and neurotypical individuals through the double-empathy lens.

Her academic foundation includes:

• B.S. from Boston University
• M.S. from Boston University
• Ph.D. in neuro-linguistics from Boston University (as Andrew W. Mellon Teaching Fellow for Nobel laureate Elie Wiesel)
• Postdoctoral fellowship at Boston University School of Medicine

Her groundbreaking work challenges autism's 4:1 male-to-female diagnostic ratio, advocating for inclusive frameworks that center autistic females' experiences. Research examines how prosody, facial expressions, and vocal nuances impact cross-neurotype understanding—revealing critical empathy gaps in clinical and social contexts.

Major funding from NIH, NSF, and ASHA sustains her investigations into communication disorders across developmental stages.

Accolades include Emerson College's highest honors: the Norman and Irma Mann Stearns Distinguished Faculty Award and Helaine and Stanley Miller Award for Outstanding Teaching, alongside her prestigious Harvard Radcliffe Fellowship.

She mentors students through FACE Lab research projects while teaching courses spanning autism spectrum disorders, neuro-anatomy, and neurogenic communication pathologies.