Past Award for Clinical Achievement Recipients

Krista Scruggs received the 2014 Louis M. DiCarlo Award for Clinical Achievement for her development of an adult aural rehabilitation program, expansion of a summer camp for teens with hearing loss, and provision of auditory-based intervention with Spanish-speaking families. Krista is a key member of the Adult Cochlear Implant Program, which is a joint venture with Arkansas Children’s Hospital and the University at Arkansas for Medical Sciences. Krista has been a pioneer in the development of auditory performance testing as well as aural rehabilitation for our program. These developments have been sought after by other programs across the nation. In serving this population, Krista has also mastered the ability to facilitate improved auditory skills for patients suffering from dementia and other degenerative cognitive disorders.

Dr. Donna Fisher-Smiley received the Louis M. DiCarlo for Clinical Achievement Award in 2011 for years of service in collaborating with the Arkansas Department of Education Special Education Office on issues and initiatives surrounding the design, availability and implementation of quality services for children and youth with hearing impairments/deafness; specifically in regard to educational audiology services. As a result of her efforts and leadership, the EARS (Educational Audiology Resource Services) program was created. It is an outreach program through the Arkansas Children’s Hospital and is designed to provide educational audiology for school districts, educational cooperatives, preschool programs, and other educational settings in order to meet the requirements of IDEA. Dr. Fisher-Smiley is highly relational, compassionate, and task oriented, moving toward her vision of the needs of children and youth with hearing impairment/deafness, and being a champion for the development of the array of necessary services to address those needs.