Deryk S. Beal, PhD

University of Toronto

Background:
Dr. Beal is an associate professor in the Department of Speech-Language Pathology at the University of Toronto and a Clinician-Scientist in the Bloorview Research Institute (BRI) at the Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital. He is a full member of the School of Graduate Studies and he is cross-appointed to the Rehabilitation Sciences Institute.

Dr. Beal came to academia after having practiced for several years as a speech-language pathologist with a focus in paediatric neuro communication disorders. He completed both masters and doctoral level training in the area of speech-language pathology at the University of Toronto. His doctoral research was funded by the SickKids Foundation Clinician Scientist Training Program and examined the neural mechanisms of auditory-motor integration in speech production using structural, functional and diffusion magnetic resonance imaging and magnetoencephalography. Dr. Beal secured a prestigious Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Postdoctoral Fellowship to support his advanced study of neural network modeling and neuroimaging of speech production and its disorders at Boston University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Massachusetts General Hospital. He was an assistant professor and the executive director of the Institute for Stuttering Treatment and Research at the University of Alberta from 2012-2015.

Professional Interests:
Dr. Beal ‘s research focuses on improving outcomes and quality of life for children with acquired and developmental neuro communication disorders. He is interested in the neurobiology of communication and its disorders for the express purpose of innovating and evaluating neurorehabilitation treatments for children with communication disorders. He is also interested in the advancement of neuroimaging techniques for the study of the neural network supporting speech and oral motor control.