Current Lab Members

Benjamin W.Y. Hornsby directs the Hearing and Communication Research Lab. He is an Associate Professor of Audiology in the Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. Dr. Hornsby received his master’s and PhD degrees in audiology from Vanderbilt University School of Medicine and currently teaches AuD, and PhD students within the department. Dr. Hornsby’s research focuses on the perceptual consequences of hearing loss, and how these consequences affect speech recognition, communication and benefit from hearing aids and cochlear implants. His current work examines relationships between speech processing deficits, cognitive processing demands and listening-related fatigue in adults and children with hearing loss.

For a list of publications see:

Research Gate

NCBI Bibliography

Google Scholar

Hilary Davis is a pediatric research and clinical audiologist in the Vanderbilt Bill Wilkerson Center.  She completed her B.S. in Communication Sciences and Disorders at the University of Texas at Austin and her Doctorate of Audiology from Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. She sees patients in the clinic setting for hearing evaluations and hearing aid appointments, serves as an educational audiologist consultant for local school districts, and works in the Listening and Learning Laboratory as well as in the Hearing and Communication Research laboratory. Her interests include fatigue in school-age children with hearing loss and working with educators for successful academic outcomes for their students.

Kjersten Branscome is a Research Audiologist in the Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. She received her master’s degree in audiology from Vanderbilt University School of Medicine and her Au.D. from the University of Florida. Kjersten worked as a clinical audiologist before joining the research team at Vanderbilt in October 2018. She is responsible for managing research studies in the Dan Maddox Hearing Aid Research Laboratory and assists on projects for the Hearing and Communication Research Laboratory.

Samantha Sekator is a Doctor of Audiology student at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. Currently she is a research assistant in both the Hearing and Communication Research Laboratory and the Listening and Learning Laboratory at Vanderbilt.  She completed her B.S. in Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences at the University of Arizona in 2017.

Melissa Henry is a Doctor of Audiology student at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. She is a research assistant in the Hearing and Communication Research Laboratory and the Listening and Learning Laboratory at Vanderbilt as well as works as a newborn hearing screener. She completed her B.A. in Communicative Sciences & Disorders and Psychology at Saint Mary’s College in 2018.

Megan Lee is a Doctor of Audiology student at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. Currently, she is a research assistant in the Hearing and Communication Research Laboratory at Vanderbilt. She completed her B.A. in English with a concentration in Linguistics at Louisiana State University in 2016 and her B.S. in Communication Disorders at Southern Connecticut State University in 2019.

Previous Lab Members

Ronan McGarrigle

Virginia Rich

Claire Umeda

Caitlin Dold