Phone: 
+1 206 543-7888

Speech & Hearing Sciences
1417 NE 42nd St, Seattle, WA 98105
Office: 
Eagleson 253
Box: 
354875

CURRENTLY ACCEPTING PHD STUDENTS
CURRENTLY ACCEPTING CORESLP STUDENTS

Sara
 
Kover
,
Ph.D.

Associate Professor
Director, SPHSC Master of Science Program
Education: 
Ph.D., Educational Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison
M.S., Educational Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Academic Expertise: 
Language development in neurodevelopmental disorders
Fragile X syndrome
Autism

Sara Kover joined the Speech and Hearing Sciences faculty as an Assistant Professor in 2014. She completed her postdoctoral training in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and received her doctorate in Educational Psychology there as well.

Dr. Kover’s research focus is on the development of language abilities in children and adolescents with a variety of developmental pathways, especially neurodevelopmental disorders. Her research has included individuals with fragile X syndrome, which is the leading inherited cause of intellectual disability, as well as Down syndrome and autism. The overarching goal of this research is to understand how cognitive processes and learning mechanisms interact with the learning opportunities afforded by the environment over the course of development. Ultimately, this work informs what is known about language development in a wide variety of children and will help guide intervention. Dr. Kover's most recent research addresses the experiences of practitioners who serve children with communication challenges of a range of backgrounds in early intervention and school settings, with the goal of informing how future clinicians are prepared and how to best meet families' needs. 

Recent Publications
Executive and Social Functioning in Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders: Comparison to Autism. (2025 May 1) Am J Intellect Dev Disabil 130(3): 209-227 Stagnone NH, Thorne JC, Mattson JT, Kover ST

First Steps Toward a Participatory Research Program: Early Intervention Perspectives on SLP Services for Children of Diverse Backgrounds. (2024 Nov) Semin Speech Lang 45(5): 475-499 Kover S, Arora N, Barton H, Roberts C

Social and Linguistic Correlates of Vocabulary Size in Autism: Overlapping Vocalization and Phonological Memory. (2024 May 26) J Autism Dev Disord Choi EA, Kover ST

Toward Equity in Research on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. (2023 Sep 1) Am J Intellect Dev Disabil 128(5): 350-370 Kover ST, Abbeduto L

The Work Ahead for Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research. (2023 Sep 1) Am J Intellect Dev Disabil 128(5): 388-392 Kover ST, Abbeduto L