Speech Language Pathologists
Cynthia Core, Ph.D, CCC-SLP – Dr. Cynthia Core is a Speech Language Pathologist with over 16 years experience providing services to infants, toddlers, preschoolers and school age children. She specializes in working with children who have hearing loss, expressive and receptive language delays, articulation challenges, as well as dual language learners. Cynthia provides services to children within the early intervention program and she co-leads our therapist teaming group.
Cynthia is also an Associate Professor of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences at George Washington University in Washington DC where she focuses her research on speech and language development in bilingual children, children with cochlear implants, and children with speech and language needs.
Andrea Burns, MS, CCC-SLP
Andrea received her Master of Science degree in Speech Pathology from James Madison University and has been practicing as a Pediatric Speech Language Pathologist over the past 20 years within various settings. She has a passion for and extensive experience working with children who have feeding and swallowing needs and works closely with other team members including our Dietitian to provide comprehensive care to families. Andrea is also skilled at working with children who have expressive/receptive delays, articulation challenges, stuttering as well as apraxia and she has received training in PROMPT.
Currently, Andrea provides services to children within the early intervention program within Arlington and Alexandria City.
Kathi Shute, MS, CCC-SLP – Kathi obtained her Bachelor of Science degree in communication disorders from Appalachian State University in Boone, NC and her Master of Science in speech language pathology from Gallaudet University in Washington, DC. She has been a practicing speech language pathologist since 2003. Kathi has extensive experience in the area of fluency/stuttering and has presented at local, state and national conferences on the subject, as well as teaching a graduate level course in stuttering. In addition to fluency, she works with pediatric and adolescent clients with a variety of speech and language diagnoses including expressive/receptive language delay, articulation disorders, pragmatic language differences and executive functioning difficulties. Kathi has worked as a graduate school clinic supervisor and has provided mentorship and supervision to recent speech language pathology graduates and externship students in the outpatient clinic setting. Her clinical experience also includes program development and coordination, training, administration and management. Kathi serves children in our clinic-based program as the Lead Speech Language Pathologist.
In her personal time, Kathi enjoys camping and music festivals, paddle boarding, skiing and snow shoeing.
Lea Hay, MA, CCC-SLP – Lea grew up in Tennessee and received her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and her Master of Arts in Speech-Language Pathology from the University of Memphis in Memphis, Tennessee. She works in the outpatient program at PPTS and specializes in working with children with Autism Spectrum Disorder and children who are minimally verbal. Lea is formally trained in the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) and has experience working with children who use Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) devices, ranging from low to high tech.
Before moving to Virginia, Lea co-taught a class with a special education teacher for preschoolers with Autism in the Denver, Colorado area. She worked primarily with the preschool population and worked with children with a variety of diagnoses, including receptive/expressive language delays, articulation disorders, and childhood apraxia of speech.
In her free time, Lea enjoys hiking, reading, cooking, and spending time with her husband and dog.
Occupational Therapists
Amanda Kelley, MS, OTR/L, ATP – Amanda received her Master’s of Science degree in Occupational Therapy from Shenandoah University and has been practicing as a Pediatric Occupational Therapist for over 20 years. She has worked in a variety of settings including outpatient, schools and early intervention and has a passion for working with the birth to 3 population. She has extensive experience working with children who have feeding and swallowing challenges and she also holds a certification in Assistive Technology. At PPTS, Amanda provides services to children within our early intervention program and co-leads our therapist teaming group.
Christine LaPorte, MOT, OTR/L – Christine grew up in Texas and received her Bachelor of Science degree in Health and Exercise Science with a minor in Psychology from the University of Oklahoma. She returned to Texas to receive her Master of Occupational Therapy from the University of Texas Medical Branch. She works with children in the outpatient program at PPTS and specializes in helping children develop their Activities of Daily Living (self-care) skills.
Before moving to Virginia and joining the PPTS team, Christine worked at a bilingual outpatient pediatric therapy clinic in Oklahoma City. She worked primarily with Spanish-speaking children and low income families, where she gained experience with feeding therapy, infant development, sensory integration therapy, handwriting, and ADLs.
Besides working with children, Christine is passionate about exercising, walking, reading, cooking, volunteering at her church, doing puzzles, and watching movies with her husband.
Physical Therapists
Joan Elliott, PT, DPT – Dr. Joan Elliott, PT, DPT, has had clinical practice in many physical therapy settings, including acute care, home care, rehabilitation hospitals, outpatient physical therapy and the National Institutes of Health Department of Rehabilitation Medicine. She has extensive clinical experience in the school setting and has specialized in pediatrics for seventeen years. At PPTS Joan works with families within our Outpatient Program and is passionate about helping children improve and/or restore function within their daily activities.
Joan is an Adjunct Clinical Faculty member at Marymount University in Arlington, VA. She received her BS in Kinesiological Sciences at the University of Maryland and her MPT in physical therapy from Shenandoah University in 1994. Joan graduated in August 2015 from Rocky Mountain University of Health Professions t-DPT curriculum with a Pediatric Science track.
For ten years, Joan served as head swim coach for a Division 1 team in the Northern Virginia Swim League. She served as a volunteer swim coach at Walter Reed National Medical Center in Bethesda, MD with the Army Wounded Warriors for the Warrior Games of 2012. She enjoys the outdoors, especially swimming, biking and running. In her free time Joan enjoys traveling and spending time with her husband and adult children.
Registered Dietitian
Renee McGrew, RD – Renee is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist who has been serving children, teenagers and adults in Alexandria, VA since 2014. She received her Bachelor of Science degree in Food, Nutrition and Exercise Science from Florida State University and completed her Dietetic Internship with Oakwood University in Huntsville, AL. Renee is a second-career Dietitian who has always focused on working with children. She served as a Speech Language Therapist in Osceola County Public Schools in central Florida for several years prior to making her transition to dietetics. Renee has a passion for serving children and families especially in the areas of feeding dynamics, growth concerns, allergies and intolerances.
Administration
Tahanee Karim, MBA – Tahanee joined Premier Pediatric Therapy Source in June of 2019 as the practice’s Operations Coordinator. She is a visionary and dynamic leader with a proven track record of success and over 15 years of experience within the areas of Team Management, Operations, Sales and Marketing within major corporate environments and small business organizations. Tahanee received her Bachelor’s of Science Degree in the area of Management and Human Capital while living in California. In 2009 she moved to Virginia and went on to receive a Master’s Degree in Business Administration. Tahanee is an ambassador for businesses and has a passion for helping them achieve excellence through her passion for organizational excellence, work flow efficiency and company compliance. Tahanee is excited to bring her talents to Premier Pediatric Therapy Source to help the practice grow to new heights in its compliance and overall operations so that our families and providers are reassured of receiving an exceptional experience.
In her spare time Tahanee enjoys relaxation, traveling and spending time with family and friends.
Sheryl Montejo – Sheryl grew up in the Philippines and moved to the US in 2011. She joined PPTS in November of 2018 as the Practice Administrative Assistant where she enjoys communicating with families, scheduling appointments and easing the process of the insurance world for the families we serve. Prior to joining PPTS, Sheryl worked as a certified nurse assistant and an administrative assistant/physical therapy aide for an outpatient physical therapy rehab facility. She plays an integral role at PPTS in making sure the practice’s front desk operations are running smoothly.
In her spare time, Sheryl enjoys traveling, taking pictures, painting and outdoor activities.
