Little Eaters & Talkers

Jean Hawney is a pediatric bilingual speech language pathologist with over 13 years of experience working with infants, children and adults with swallowing and communication impairments. Jean graduated with her master’s degree from Queens College in Jamaica, N.Y. and has her advanced degree in Bilingual Speech Language Pathology from Columbia University. Prior to completing her master’s degree, Jean was a Peace Corps volunteer in Peru and worked with families to promote health and environmental initiatives. She is fluent in Spanish. As a speech language pathologist, Jean has worked in a variety of settings across the lifespan, including early childhood intervention, outpatient and private clinics, public schools, adult and pediatric inpatient rehabilitation units, skilled nursing facilities and pediatric acute care. Currently, Jean primarily focuses on supporting parents of breastfed and bottle fed infants, as well as infants and toddlers who have difficulty transitioning to solids and learning to talk. Jean also works closely with medically fragile infants and children who have tracheostomy tubes and weaning of feeding tubes. When Jean works with her patients, her goal is for them to feel empowered to advocate for their needs and to have an active role in their therapy. Jean holds the following certifications: Certified Brain Injury Specialist (CBIS), Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) Level 1, and Certified Lactation Counselor (CLC). Jean has completed trainings with a focus on Tethered Oral Tissues (TOTS), Breastfeeding, SOS Approach to feeding, SOFFI Method ™, Passy Muir Valve, Tracheostomy and Ventilator dependent patients, and Videofluoroscopic Swallow Studies. Jean has presented twice at the Texas Speech-Language-Hearing Association (TSHA) on cognitive rehabilitation and feeding/swallowing among the infant with cardiac heart defect. She has published articles on children with brain injury and dysphagia in infants with Cerebral Palsy and infants with congenital heart defects.