Adria Leno, MS, CCC-SLP
President / Director of Clinical Services

Adria Leno, MS, CCC-SLP, received a Master's degree in Speech Language Pathology from the University of Wisconsin at Madison in 2005 and is licensed in the state of Illinois. She is an energetic and enthusiastic therapist with clinical experience in a wide variety of settings, including therapeutic schools, hospitals, and clinics. Her experience with clients from birth through geriatrics has given her a true lifespan perspective.

Adria is a diligent and zealous generalist. Unsatisfied with being confined to a box professionally, she has sought training and experience with a multitude of disorders. Adria is skilled in treatment of speech, language, reading, spelling, written expression, auditory processing, fluency, and pragmatic/social delays and deficits. Adria enjoys working with families to build supports at home and find the approaches that best meet the needs of her individual clients.

Adria continues to seek out new therapies and techniques that will benefit her clients. Because of her passion for working with individuals with a wide range of needs, Adria feels strongly that continuing education is necessary to provide optimum care and treatment to each of her clients. She has received five ASHA ACE awards to date – one in 2013, two in 2016, one in 2018, and one in 2019. These awards are formal recognition that she has demonstrated excellence and dedication to lifelong learning by completing more than double the required number of continuing education units.

To date, Adria’s continuing education credits include courses on therapeutic interventions for individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders, feeding and swallowing disorders, literacy (including spelling and reading, text comprehension, and written expression), play, social behaviors, fluency, aphasia, and traumatic brain injury, to name a few. Adria has also completed the basic course on the DIR/Floortime Model.

Adria is a certified SPELL-Links to Reading & Writing™ provider, having completed more than 50 hours of continuing education in SPELL-Links to Reading & Writing™ alone and has been personally mentored and trained by author Dr. Jan Wasowicz. She is also a SPELL-Links to Reading & Writing™ trainer, mentoring professionals in the curriculum and assisting Dr. Wasowicz at educational seminars.

Because of her strong belief in education, Adria has acted as a graduate student site supervisor for a variety of universities since 2008. She has mentored and trained over a dozen beginning clinicians. In 2016, Adria was honored by Governor’s State University as the Site Supervisor of the Year.

In her free time, Adria relishes spending time with her husband and their cats. Her hobbies include reading and travel. She is an avid home cook who loves entertaining. Adria has also been on a gluten-free, dairy-free, and egg-free diet for many years and loves sharing information and recipes with families who are making the difficult transition to restricted diets.

Claudia Stohr, MS, CF-SLP

Claudia Stohr, MS, CF-SLP, is an enthusiastic and devoted therapist. She has a well- rounded background having studied psychology and youth development at Clemson University, obtained certification as an ABA line therapist, and served in leadership roles in professional organizations. Claudia earned her master’s degree in Speech, Language, and Learning at Northwestern University. Her clinical practice – obtained in multiple settings including Northwestern University Center for Audiology, Speech, Language, and Learning, a public school, and outpatient rehabilitation – involved working with clients across the lifespan, from early intervention to geriatrics. Claudia has clinical experience providing treatment and assessment for articulation, language, pragmatics, fluency, cognitive communication, and swallowing. Working with such a broad range of individuals on a wide range of skills served to confirm Claudia’s passion for helping school-aged children.

Claudia has a robust appreciation for communication. For as long as she can remember, she has always been outgoing. Her childhood best friend used to introduce her to others as, “This is my friend Claudia – she likes to talk”. Claudia takes pride in dedicating her life to enhancing others’ overall communication. She is zealous about individualizing treatment so that each of her clients’ unique needs are met.

In her free time, Claudia enjoys cross-training, reading, snowboarding, and spending time with her friends and family.

Chinyere Okoro, MS, CF-SLP

Chinyere is a warmhearted and sincere speech-language pathologist. She received a master's degree in Speech Language Pathology from Northwestern University and is licensed in the state of Illinois. Prior to becoming a speech-language pathologist, she received a BSEd in Youth & Social Innovation and Communication Disorders from the University of Virginia and taught middle and high school English Language Arts and Special Education. During her career, she has worked with a wide range of learners from elementary students to adult English language learners. 

Chinyere has a strong affinity for working with children and school age students individually or in small groups. She is committed to seeing all of her students progress and become confident communicators, readers, and writers. With that end in mind, Chinyere embraces the obligation to the ongoing pursuit of knowledge in the field so that she can affect the greatest outcomes for her clients. 

In her free time, Chinyere enjoys biking by the lake, practicing martial arts, taking Japanese language classes, and checking out way too many books from the library.

Madi Szur, MS, CCC-SLP

Madelynn 'Madi' Szur completed her undergraduate studies in Special Education at Michigan State University and earned her master's degree in Speech-Language Pathology at Rush University where she received a merit-based scholarship. She is licensed in the state of Illinois. Madi has had the opportunity to work with clients of all ages in a variety of settings, including schools, hospitals, and clinics in individual and in group sessions. She has experience providing assessment and intervention for speech sound disorders, oral and written language skills, fluency, pragmatics, and swallowing. She has participated in numerous trainings on a number of topics including literacy, voice, swallowing, diversity and inclusion, and mental health first aid.

Madi is a passion-driven and committed therapist. She enjoys working with children and brings enthusiasm to each treatment session. It is her mission to work with children and their families in order to provide individualized treatment to each of her clients. In her free time, Madi enjoys being outside, reading, doing yoga, and spending time with her friends and family. 

Claire Muller, MS, CCC-SLP

Claire Muller, MS, CCC-SLP, has been passionate about sharing her love of language throughout her academic and professional experiences. While earning her graduate degree in speech language pathology from Rush University, Claire developed a particular interest in working with school age children. She finds great satisfaction and meaning in supporting students’ unique needs and personalities and building meaningful relationships with their families. Prior to joining C&C Therapy, Claire provided evidence-based speech, language, and literacy interventions for CPS students across the Chicagoland area.

Even before pursuing a career in speech language pathology, Claire's love for language and her belief in the power of communication shone through many of her accomplishments. Claire completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she co-founded and served as the editor-in-chief of a street newspaper giving voice to people who were often overlooked. During this time, she tutored individuals experiencing homelessness in writing and published their thoughts in a monthly publication. After moving to Chicago, she worked as a Training, Education, and Development Lead designing and coordinating professional development for ~500 employees. Claire balanced her career with a second job as an English language teacher at the Heartland Alliance Refugee and Immigrant Community Services division.

Ultimately, Claire’s desire for greater academic and intellectual growth led her to the field of speech language pathology. She is a lifelong learner, dedicated to consistently improving her practice according to the most current research. Claire is a voracious reader who relishes the opportunity to share her love of reading with students. Additionally, she has received special training in trauma-informed care through the Lurie Children's Hospital Center for Childhood Resilience, and she has an affinity for providing a safe and compassionate environment for individuals with a history of trauma. Claire extends a warm welcome to children and families seeking support, and she looks forward to meeting you!

Emily Borrelli, MHS, CCC-SLP

Emily is a clinical fellow at Communicate & Connect Therapy. She earned her Master’s degree in Communication Disorders from Governors State University and is licensed in the state of Illinois. During graduate school, Emily had the opportunity to work in the school and hospital settings with clients of all ages with a variety of speech and language disorders. She has experience providing assessment and intervention for articulation, language, fluency, pragmatics, and swallowing.

Emily is an enthusiastic and dedicated therapist who enjoys working with children. She believes in tailoring treatment specifically to the needs of each child, and thrives on seeing progress in her clients. Outside of work, Emily enjoys spending time with her husband, daughter, and son, exploring Chicago, reading, and gardening.

Erin Moody, MA, CCC-SLP

Erin Moody, MA, CCC-SLP, is a speech-language pathologist who earned her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Speech Language Pathology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She holds a Certificate of Clinical Competence from the American Speech and Hearing Association (ASHA) and is licensed to practice in the state of Illinois.

During her professional career, Erin has gained experience working in public schools, private practice, tele-therapy, and home health with children and adults with a variety of speech and language disorders. Within these settings, she has become experienced in assessing and treating speech sound disorders, receptive/expressive language, literacy, fluency, and pragmatic language deficits.

Erin is passionate about working with individuals and their families in a one-to-one therapy setting to promote and achieve social, communication, and academic success. She loves to keep up with the latest research and continually learn new therapy techniques to benefit her clients. This is evidenced by her two consecutive ACE awards presented by ASHA for demonstrated personal effort and dedication to lifelong learning.

In her free time, Erin enjoys being outdoors while engaging in activities such as rock climbing, paddle boarding with her dog, yoga, and travel. She also enjoys volunteering at her local animal shelter and participating in any activity involving animals.

Erin feels privileged to have joined such a great team at Communicate & Connect Therapy and welcomes the opportunity to work with you and your child!

Rena Spiegel, MA, CCC-SLP

Rena Spiegel is a certified speech-language pathologist, licensed in Illinois. She earned a Master of Arts degree in Speech-Language Pathology from Northwestern University in 2000. During her graduate school studies at Northwestern, she facilitated development of a research study, culminating in the published article “Semantic Representation and Naming in Young Children” (Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 2002), with Rena listed as one of the authors. Additionally, she has earned two ASHA ACE awards for earning more than double the required number of continuing education hours from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.

Rena has been an associate at Communicate & Connect Therapy since 2017. In addition to conducting speech-language and literacy assessments and providing therapy to her students at C&C Therapy, she is currently the Chairperson of the Department of Speech and Communication Disorders at Blitstein Institute of Hebrew Theological College. Rena also teaches courses in typical language development and language disorders and advises undergraduate students entering the field of speech-language pathology.

Rena’s career in speech-language pathology, which spans more than two decades, has included a strong focus on literacy, including working with clients with dyslexia and other learning disabilities. In the spring of 2021, she became a Certified SPELL-Links to Reading & Writing Provider, under the mentorship of Adria Leno MS, CCC-SLP, who is a SPELL-Links Certified Trainer. Additionally, Rena enjoys working with clients with language and articulation disorders and takes pleasure in being a part of their success.

During the rare hours that she isn’t hard at work, Rena can be found schlepping her beautiful children to their various activities or relaxing for a few minutes with a good book in hand.

Julie Irons, MA, CCC-SLP

Julie Irons, is a lifelong learner and educator who has found her home in pediatric speech-language pathology. Julie thrives on analyzing the unique puzzle represented by each new client and she tailors her therapy to their needs and interests. She has a special interest in literacy-based intervention and bilingual development and disorders. Julie values the personal relationships she builds with students and their families, and she still maintains contact with students she saw more than ten years ago.

Julie received a B.A. in Humanities from Stanford University before moving to Mexico to teach English in language immersion middle and high schools. In Mexico, she experienced her own language immersion, and she believes that her own hard-won acquisition of near-native Spanish gives her a unique perspective on the language learning challenges of her students. While there, Julie pursued an M.A. in Applied Linguistics from the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México in Mexico City—training that eventually opened the door to speech-language pathology.

In 2008, Julie moved back to her home state of Illinois, where she taught middle and high school Spanish in Chicago. Several years later, after fourteen years in the classroom, Julie craved broader professional growth, so she made a career change to speech-language pathology. She received a Master's in Speech-Language Pathology from Indiana University-Bloomington, where she participated in the STEPS Spanish-English bilingual training program. Julie has experience working with children with developmental and genetic disorders and impairments in language, fluency, articulation and phonology, and pragmatics.

Amanda Goldsmith, Admin and Billing

Amanda Goldsmith lives in West Lakeview with her husband and two school-aged children who attend CPS. A DePaul University graduate and a former sommelier, Amanda recently rejoined the workforce after taking time off to raise her family. She is excited to be a part of the Communicate & Connect Therapy LLC team and to work among such passionate and caring SLPs.

Amanda and her family are huge Chicago Blackhawks fans. In her spare time, she enjoys traveling with (and without) kids, cooking, tasting wine, gardening, and woodworking.