Jacqueline Cummine is a Professor in the Communication Sciences & Disorders department within the Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine at the University of Alberta. Her research focuses on understanding reading and writing processes, particularly examining how skilled readers adapt their approaches, how reading breaks down, and how sensory systems contribute to reading proficiency. She employs behavioral measurements and brain-based methodologies including fMRI and DTI to investigate these phenomena. Her educational background includes a B.A. Honours in Psychology from the University of Saskatchewan (2005) and a Ph.D. in Cognitive Neuropsychology from the same institution (2009). Cummine is affiliated with several research groups including the Alberta Cognitive Neuroscience Group, the Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute at the University of Alberta, and serves as a Research Affiliate at the Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital Research. Dr. Cummine's research interests center on literacy skills as critical communication tools across all aspects of life. She investigates the skills that facilitate skilled reading, what happens when reading breaks down, and resources that may benefit individuals with reading impairments. Her current projects include 'Behavioural and Neurobiological Correlates of Basic Reading Processes: The Print-to-Speech Network' (NSERC funded, 2018-2023) and 'Auditory-Visual Integration for Individuals with Impairments in Reading, Hearing and/or Speech.' Her publication record shows a consistent focus on the neural underpinnings of reading processes, with recent work examining cortical thickness relationships, white matter pathways, and structural brain asymmetry in relation to reading abilities. Her research demonstrates an increasing sophistication in neuroimaging techniques and a growing recognition of the complex interactions between motor systems, sensory processing, and reading proficiency. Dr. Cummine teaches several courses including Research Methods and Design (CSD 501), Advanced Univariate Statistics (REHAB 699), and Readings on Selected Topics in Neuroscience (NEURO 450). Her teaching spans both the Rehabilitation Science and Neuroscience programs, reflecting the interdisciplinary nature of her research.






