For inquiries, contact us at [info AT somestutterluh DOT ca]
Greg O’Grady
Greg is host of the Some Stutter, Luh podcast and is also a person who stutters. Greg was born in Gander, NL but relocated to Toronto, ON for work. After retirement, Greg returned to his home province. While in Toronto, Greg created the ‘A million things I need to say 1K/ 5K Walk, Run and Roll for Stuttering Awareness’, which is now held in Newfoundland once he returned.
With help from dedicated volunteers, Greg co-founded the Newfoundland and Labrador Stuttering Association in 2018. This association is dedicated to bringing support and information to the stuttering community of Newfoundland and Labrador. The NLSA and its amazing team work towards helping people who stutter develop and maintain a positive self-image while also helping their families, professionals, and allies become more knowledgeable about stuttering.
Paul De Decker
Dr. Paul De Decker is a sociolinguist in the Department of Linguistics at Memorial University. His research includes SSHRC-funded, qualitative and quantitative studies of linguistic variation and language change in varieties of English spoken in Newfoundland and Labrador, including differences across region and time. His interests in sociolinguistic practices (i.e. patterns of language behaviour, attitudes, and ideologies) that emerge with non-standard and stigmatized speech styles led him to partner with the Newfoundland and Labrador Stuttering Association (NLSA) to investigate the sociolinguistics of stuttering and speech disfluency under the Communication Collaborative.
Luca Dinu
Luca is a linguistics student at Memorial University of Newfoundland. He is a producer of the Some Stutter, Luh! podcast, and has transcribed for a number of linguistics-related podcasts, including Field Notes and The History and Philosophy of the Language Sciences Podcast. He is also the co-author (with Paul De Decker) of the open textbook Digital Media Essays for Research and Communication, available on Pressbooks.com
Aleisha Meggison
Aleisha is a current student at Memorial University of Newfoundland, where she majors in Linguistics and Psychology. She has recently been accepted into the M.A. in Communication Sciences and Disorders program at the University of Maine where she will pursue a career in Speech Language Pathology. Her goal is to help people become confident and comfortable in themselves and in their speech/language abilities. Aleisha feels strongly that everyone should have confidence to express themselves, and in their ability to do so.
Liz Fagan
Liz (they/them) is a multilingual singer-songwriter from St John’s, Newfoundland. They have committed their life to the exploration of expression in different languages, with French as their primary language, followed by Moroccan Darija. A linguist and journalist, Liz’s relationship with writing and song came very naturally to them. As a person who stutters, Liz incorporates themes of miscommunication and identity into their music.
Liz Fagan (iel/leur) est un auteur-compositeur.trice interprète multilingue de St John’s, Terre-Neuve. Iel a consacré leur vie à l’exploration de l’expression dans différentes langues, le français étant leur langue principale, suivie de la darija marocaine. Linguist.e et journaliste, la relation de Liz avec l’écriture et la chanson leur est venue très naturellement. En tant que personne qui bégaie, Liz intègre les thèmes de la mauvaise communication et de l’identité dans leur musique.
Maryam Shoghi
Maryam obtained her MA in Linguistics from the Institute for Humanities and Cultural Studies in Iran. She is interested in how culture impacts the experience of stuttering. Maryam hopes to shed light on the social and cultural dimensions of stuttering, providing valuable insights for people who stutter, their families, and the broader community. She believes that a better understanding of stuttering from a socio-cultural perspective can help to reduce stigma, increase awareness, and create a more inclusive society for all.
Amanda Tiller-Hackett
Amanda is the Humanities Collection Development Librarian in the Collection Strategies Division at the Queen Elizabeth II Library, Memorial University of Newfoundland. She’s also a wife and mother of two. Amanda did some coursework in Linguistics during her undergraduate degree, and currently manages collections in Linguistics as part of her professional duties. Amanda is also a person who stutters. While her stutter has become managed in adulthood, fluidity will probably always be something she has to work for. Being a member of this team allows Amanda to become part of a conversation that holds great personal significance to her, and also part of an admirable effort to normalize stuttering, and to create a deeper understanding of stuttering in our province and beyond.