Hi! I am the founder of the Bright Start team. I am passionate about providing quality and timely, evidenced-based care with and alongside our interdisciplinary team. I am a speech-language pathologist by trade and a mama at heart. We are so happy to come together as a team to service a wide range of families through both early steps and private sessions throughout the Greater New Orleans area.

As a speech-language pathologist, I’m here to help your child achieve their feeding, speech and language goals! My favorite part about early intervention is getting to know your family and helping your child thrive in their natural environment. I received my Master’s Degree in Communicative Sciences and Disorders from LSU Health Sciences Center in New Orleans. I have clinical feeding experience (NICU, inpatient, acute care) working with children and their families to achieve their nutrition goals for feeding, as well as working with kiddos who have sensory-motor difficulties. My in-home speech/language experience is with special populations, such as (but not limited to) those with Autism Spectrum Disorder, Anoxia, Down syndrome, Cleft Lip and Palate, and children with Developmental Delays. I’m here to brighten your day and help your family succeed!

My name is Abigail (but my kiddos call me “Abby”) and I received my Masters Degree in Communicative Disorders from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. For the last 2 years I have worked as a dedicated pediatric Speech Language Pathologist servicing children in clinical, daycare, and in home settings across the Acadiana Area. I have experience treating children with a variety of communicative difficulties including expressive and receptive language, articulation, socialization, and alternative and augmentative communication. I am thrilled to provide early intervention services with a focus on cognitive based, child-lead play to target a variety of communicative functions. In my free time, I enjoy family walks with my husband and pup, Bruno, yoga, and reading! I look forward to the opportunity to work with you and your little ones to help them find their “voice”!

Hi! My name is Colleen and I am a Speech-Language Pathologist eager to help you and your child with all of your communication and feeding needs. I received my Master’s Degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders from Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans, and I am proud to call this city my home. After two years of experience in the pediatric hospital setting working with children of all ages, I developed a passion for providing early intervention services. My experience includes working with children that have receptive and expressive language delays, feeding/swallowing disorders, hearing loss, tracheostomies, clefts of the lip/palate and special populations such as Autism Spectrum Disorder and Down Syndrome. I am passionate about working together as a team and look forward to helping your child thrive in his or her everyday environment!

Kristin obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Communicative Sciences and Disorders from Jackson State University. She received her Masters of Science in Speech-Language Pathology from the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. She enjoys expanding utterances and building vocabulary utilizing the use of books and toys to capitalize on incidental learning!

Hello! My name is Savannah and I am a Speech Language Pathologist specializing in pediatric speech and language therapy. I have worked with children who have expressive and receptive language delays, speech sound disorders, feeding disorders and special populations such as Autism Spectrum Disorder and down syndrome. I received my Master's Degree from LSU Health Sciences Center in New Orleans and I am currently in my clinical fellowship. I am passionate about providing early intervention services and I enjoy working with children in their natural environment. Being a part of a child’s success to effectively communicate with their friends and family is very rewarding. I am looking forward to working with not only your child, but with your family as a whole!

Julianne is a Maryland-native but moved to New Orleans for her undergraduate degree at Tulane University and hasn't left since. During college, she spent a lot of time volunteering with Magnolia Community Services, working with adults with developmental disabilities. In 2018, she began working as a behavior technician in the clinical setting, providing ABA therapy with children with autism spectrum disorder. She earned her Master's in Psychology from Purdue University in 2021 and has been working as a BCBA since 2022. She is passionate about providing quality care for children who may need a little extra help! She loves helping develop play, social, and communication skills through behavior analytic principles!

Hi! I’m Emily Grest. I am a Board Certified Behavior Analyst. I received my Master’s in Neuroscience from Tulane University, and Master’s in ABA from Ball State University. Within the field of behavior analysis, I am interested in a family centered model, as well as incorporating Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Mindfulness, and Yoga into my programming. I have worked with ages 1-19 years. My hope is that I can help people feel supported during transitions in life, such as entering school, graduating school, and becoming a young adult.

Hi! My name is Emily and I am a Speech-Language Pathologist eager to help you and your child with all of your communication needs. I received my Master’s Degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders from Jackson State University in Mississippi. I am from Arkansas but love living and working in New Orleans. I have worked in a variety of settings including clinics, schools, and hospitals. My experience includes working with children that have receptive and expressive language delays, and articulation disorders. I look forward to working with you and your child in their everyday environment!

My name is Jenna and I'm a speech language pathologist specializing in pediatric language and articulation. I received my Master's Degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders from LSU Health Sciences Center in New Orleans. I have experience working with school-aged children to address language, articulation, and fluency disorders that negatively impact academic performance within the classroom setting; however, I also enjoy early language intervention through use of literacy and play in the child's natural environment. I enjoy seeing a child make progress and as a result being able to effectively communicate with their family and peers. I think parent/caregiver education is crucial for the child's success, so it's important for me to work just as closely with the family as I do with the child. I'm looking forward to working with you!

Kateri received her undergraduate degree in Psychology from Loyola University New Orleans then went on to obtain her Master of Science in Occupational Therapy at Stony Brook University in New York. She returned home in 2018 and has since worked in pediatrics as well as has had some work experience in hand therapy. She works with children of all ages and variety of diagnoses. She has the most experience working with populations that have a diagnosis of Autism, Sensory Processing, Cerebral Palsy and Fine Motor Delay. She is passionate about improving children and their family’s engagement in daily activities for their optimal success within their environment.ption goes here

Hi there! My name is Shea and I am so excited to be a part of the Bright Start team! I earned my bachelor’s degree in communication disorders from Louisiana State University (Baton Rouge) and my master’s degree from LSU-Health Sciences Center in New Orleans, LA. For the last 2.5 years, I have worked with medically fragile children in the pediatric hospital setting. Throughout this time, I gained experience in treating feeding/swallowing disorders, expressive/receptive language, cognition, voice, and articulation/speech disorders. I thoroughly enjoy collaborating with families to help their children meet their goals! In my free time, I enjoy exercising, reading, and spending time with family/friends! I can’t wait to serve you and your child with your communication and feeding needs!

My name is Erin and I received my Master's Degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders from Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans. I have experience treating children with a variety of communication disorders including expressive/receptive language, articulation, social and cognitive aspects of communication (including intellectual disabilities such as autism spectrum disorder), and augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). I am eager to provide services to the early intervention population with focus on incorporating play and functional activities tailored to meet the needs of each child. I value the importance of family participation and will provide tips, strategies, and resources in order to promote carryover of skills in the home. I look forward to working with you, your family, and other members of the interdisciplinary team in order to meet your child's speech and language goals!

Madison is a Doctor of Physical Therapy with clinical pediatric experience in the acute, inpatient, outpatient, and early intervention settings. Madison earned her bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology at Louisiana State University and went on to earn her doctorate in physical therapy from Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans in 2019. Following graduation, Madison began her career in the outpatient pediatric setting and became a board-certified specialist in pediatrics in 2022. She has since expanded into treating with the early intervention setting over the last two years. She has extensive experience in successfully treating diagnoses including prematurity, developmental delay, torticollis, genetic disorders, neurologic conditions, and orthopedic injuries.

Hello! My name is Hayley, and I am so thrilled to join the Bright Start team! I earned my Master of Arts in Communication Sciences & Disorders from Louisiana State University in 2017. For the last 7 years, I have worked as a dedicated pediatric speech-language pathologist servicing children across the greater New Orleans area within many settings, including preschools, daycare centers, elementary schools, and outpatient facilities. Though I have gained invaluable experience working with a variety of pediatric speech and language disorders, I am most passionate about early childhood development and am a strong advocate within the autism community. I am driven in my provision of neurodiversity-affirming practices, and my therapeutic approaches are child-led, strength-based, and relationship-centered. In addition, I am a Natural Language Acquisition (NLA) trained clinician and am skilled in working with children who use echolalia and scripting to communicate. In my free time, I love doing yoga, listening to live music, reading, crafting, and loving on my cats, Puddin and Theo!

My name is Campbell and I am so excited to join the Bright Start team! I am a licensed and registered occupational therapist here in New Orleans where I earned my Master of Occupational Therapy from the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in 2023. I have experience serving families across the greater New Orleans area in school and outpatient settings with diverse needs ranging from developmental delays and disabilities to various orthopedic/genetic conditions. As an occupational therapist, I am a fine/visual/sensory motor promoter by trade, and my passion is supporting my neurodiverse community within early childhood development. I am a practitioner of evidence-based neurodiversity affirming care, child-led play for functional outcomes, and supporting family participation in the natural setting. In my free time, I enjoy art and hanging out with my wife and our two cats and bunnies! I look forward to working with you!

Hi! My name is Jane Gogreve, and I am excited to help your little one with all of their speech, language, and feeding/swallowing needs! I was born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana and earned my masters degree in Speech-Language Pathology here at LSU Health Sciences Center, New Orleans. I have worked in the outpatient and inpatient pediatric hospital setting for the past two years where I have treated a variety of medically fragile children of all ages with brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, developmental delay, prematurity, and tracheostomy and ventilator dependence. I have gained great experience in speech, language, feeding/swallowing, oral motor, cognition, and voice treatment. I am excited to get to know you and your child and become a part of your little one’s path to success with all of their communication and feeding goals!

Hi! My name is Jenn and I am a Doctor of Physical Therapy with over 13 years of pediatric experience! I am so excited to join the Bright Start team and be a part of you and your child's journey! My work experience is from a hospital-based outpatient pediatric setting where I have gained extensive knowledge and expertise of a wide range of diagnoses including developmental delay, brachial plexus injuries, torticollis, prematurity, cerebral palsy, stroke, cancer, toe walking, various genetic diagnoses as well as many orthopedic and neurologic conditions. I love building therapeutic relationships with my patients and families over our time together and truly value family-centered collaboration and education.

I was born and raised in New Orleans and went to the University of Georgia for college where I graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Kinesiology. After college, I moved back home to attend LSU Health Sciences Center where I earned my doctor of physical therapy degree in 2011. I am married to my husband, Ryan, and we have 3 beautiful children that keep us very busy! I look forward to working with you and your child to help them succeed!

Hi! I am an occupational therapist with an advanced certification in hand therapy and 12 years of pediatric experience. I have had the opportunity to practice in a variety of settings treating a vast range of diagnoses, and my extensive experience has shaped my skills as a therapist today. I value collaboration, and I am passionate about educating and empowering families as we embark on this journey together! I have a unique specialty in the treatment of children with congenital upper limb malformations, skeletal dysplasia, and trauma, with advanced skill in custom orthosis fabrication, bracing, taping and other musculoskeletal treatments. However, I have continued to maintain practice and skill in the treatment of children with prematurity, medically complex diagnoses, genetic disorders, various syndromes, neurological conditions and neurological trauma, developmental delay, autism, visual-motor and fine motor delays, handwriting difficulties, delays in independence with self-care skills and more! Above all, I strive to create a positive experience with focus on FUN while maintaining at the core of my practice: integrity, trust, teamwork, evidence, and client satisfaction.

I am a Louisiana native with a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Louisiana State University, and I earned my master’s degree in occupational therapy from The University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences in St. Augustine, Florida. After years of living and working in other states, I found my way back home to Louisiana, and truly “know what it means to miss New Orleans”. I have a beautiful son with a triumphant spirit and the sweetest dog, Olive. I am passionate about fostering learning opportunities through experience and exploration. I love helping children succeed and watching them radiate with pride when they’ve accomplished something new. I look forward to sharing in those experiences with you and your little one!

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