Audiology Team

Hello, from the Audiology Team at the Center for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Education! Currently, our team consists of Michelle Wagner Escobar and Dana Ramsey; two audiologists who aspire to improve the lives of children who are deaf and hard of hearing in Indiana. Our team has the pleasure of serving Indiana families in a variety of ways throughout their childhood and educational journey.

Infants: The audiologists of the Center for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Education work with the Indiana Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) program by offering follow up Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR) assessments to families of infants who refer on the newborn hearing screening after birth and provide initial screening for some infants who did not receive their initial screen at birth.

Birth-3 years: We are proud to provide hearing evaluations and hearing aid services to support families of children who are eligible to receive those services through Indiana First Steps. As members of the CDHHE Network, our team collaborates with a number of other service providers who are experienced and passionate about working with kids who are Deaf and Hard of Hearing.

3 years-school exit: Our audiologists provide comprehensive hearing evaluations for school-aged children who need them. These evaluations may be necessary to prepare for their transition from First Steps to the local education system, identify a suspected hearing loss, or evaluate auditory skills at a given time to support the Multi-disciplinary Assessment Team in providing appropriate assessments and recommendations for children who are enrolled in schools across the state. 

Although the Center for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Education serves families throughout the calendar year, here are some tips to keep in mind for a good school year:

• Provide copies of the most recent audiogram for school staff
• Make sure that everyone on the educational team is aware of any changes made to the child’s technology (hearing aids and/or cochlear implants) especially if your child is wearing a loaner or backup device.
• If your educational team does not have a current signed consent to communicate directly with the child’s audiologist, ask for one. Collaboration among providers can make the school year a lot easier!
• Attend Back to School or Meet the Teacher events, if at all possible, to meet your child’s  teachers. Remind them of who your child is and establish the best means of parent-teacher communication throughout the year
• Ensure that your child has extra batteries and establish the best place to store them with school staff.