Rachel Corsetti is an Audiology Doctoral student working as a Graduate Assistant in the lab and studying blood-based biomarkers of hearing loss and its associated conditions. Before joining the team at UConn, she worked as a Research Technician within the Antimicrobial Discovery Center at Northeastern University, developing high-throughput droplet microfluidics screening platforms to discover novel natural products. Rachel graduated from Emmanuel College with a Bachelor’s Degree in Biology: Health Science and Chemistry.

Janet Desmarais is the current lab manager for the ABR Lab and studies the effects of bilingualism and musicianship on the auditory system. Janet formerly taught physics and Spanish in the US and English in Peru. She also previously worked as a program coordinator and office manager in a Hartford-based non-profit and in higher education settings including Wesleyan University and the Yale School of Medicine. Janet holds a bachelor’s degree in physics from the University of Rochester and completed a master’s degree in speech language pathology at UConn in 2023. Her personal and clinical interests include singing, cultural and linguistic diversity, speech science, and gender-affirming voice and communication.

Emma Forbes is currently working as a Graduate Assistant in the lab. Her role in the lab is primarily focused on understanding the medial olivocochlear reflex (MOCR) and its measurement as it relates to aging musicians. Emma graduated from Luther College in northeastern Iowa in December of 2022 with a neuroscience degree and is now pursuing her Doctorate of Audiology at UConn.

Annalise Kieley works in the ABR Lab supporting projects that examine the effects of aging and musicianship on cognitive and auditory functioning. She is a graduate student at Emerson College’s Speech@Emerson online program, working towards her master’s degree in Communication Disorders with plans to practice as a licensed speech-language pathologist.

Ashley Lombardi is a research assistant in the Auditory Brain Research Lab and Language and the Brain Lab and is interested in better understanding the brain in monolingual and bilingual speakers. Her research interests include individual differences in speech perception and native and non-native language acquisition. Ashley graduated from UConn in the fall of 2020 with a BA in Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences & Spanish. After working for a year in Zaragoza, Spain, she has returned to UConn to pursue her research interests while completing a master’s degree in Speech-Language Pathology, with a bilingual emphasis.

Lauren Rosado is a research assistant in the Auditory Brain Research Lab, where her main focus is on studying the effect of bilingualism on the auditory system. Lauren graduated from UConn in the spring of 2021 with a BA in Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences with a minor in Human Development and Family Studies. After working for the University of South Florida’s Hearing and Balance Center as well as the Auditory Rehabilitation and Clinical Trials Lab, she returned to UConn to pursue her Doctorate of Audiology in the fall of 2024. Through her time in the ABR lab, Lauren hopes to expand on her knowledge and passions in the field of audiology through research endeavors.

Dr. Luan Tonelli is a neuroscientist interested in developing cutting-edge research and screening processes to improve brain health outcomes using several different tools (EEG, FFRs, MRI) that combine translational medicine and exercise science.

As a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the ABR LAB in the Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences at UConn, Dr. Tonelli investigates the neural representation of bilingualism in the auditory system and the interplay between bilingualism and auditory system aging.

Previously, as a post-doctoral associate in the Department of Psychological Sciences, Dr. Tonelli used neuromodulation techniques – a brain-computer interface through EEG – to shape and change brain states. This technique uses auditory brain stimulation to modulate the brain’s activation frequency.

Dr. Tonelli completed a degree in Exercise Science in his native country of Brazil and a masters’ degree in Exercise Physiology in Portugal, after which he received his Ph.D. training in Neurobiology and Behavior from the Philipps University of Marburg in Germany. His dissertation examined how auditory stimuli can alter motor function in a preclinical animal model of Parkinson’s disease.

Alexa is a sophomore at UConn and an undergrad research assistant in the lab. She is studying speech, language, and hearing sciences, with a minor in music. Alexa is excited to learn about the cognitive mechanisms involved in the aging process, music perception, and bilingualism.

Christopher is a first-year student at UConn with a physiology and neurobiology major. In addition to being accepted in the Honors Program at the University, he is pursuing the pre-med track. Joining the lab in an independent study, Christopher hopes to further refine his STEM skills and knowledge in neuroscience. The interactions between music and the brain fascinate him, spurring his desire to delve more deeply into the topic.

Caleb Buestan is a junior at East Hampton High School, in East Hampton, NY. He is enrolled in a Science Research program affiliated with the University at Albany. He is interested in the differences in cerebral structure between musicians and non-musicians, as well as bilinguals and monolinguals. He is now focusing specifically on the Corpus Callosum and, with the help of Dr. Skoe, has begun to segment it using an anatomical segmentation software. He is very excited to continue to work with Dr. Skoe.

Nina Mori is a junior at Ossining High School in Ossining, NY, and is enrolled in the Science Research program. She is studying noise exposure levels in adolescent musicians and non-musicians within her high school. She will focus on discovering if students are at risk for developing noise induced hearing losses. She plans to administer hearing tests and track noise exposure levels with equipment that her mentor, Dr. Skoe, has provided for her. Nina is excited to be working with Dr. Skoe and learning more about audiology.