Ohio audiologist Maryann Heider is the Audiology Foundation of America's (AFA) latest Au.D. scholarship winner. Heider won an AFA scholarship for $1,000, sponsored by Starkey, to pursue her Au.D. degree via distance education.Heider is an audiologist with Hillcrest Hearing Aids. She recently celebrated her 25th anniversary with the company, which has five Dayton-area offices. She was instrumental in the development of Hillcrest Hearing Aids' nationally recognized aural rehabilitation program, "The Kooser Program, the Hidden Impact of Hearing Loss" now in its tenth year, and actively promotes hearing healthcare awareness in her community via monthly radio spots and a monthly consumer interest column on hearing loss related topics.
Heider is an active member of the American Speech Language Hearing Association, International Hearing Society, Ohio Speech Hearing Association, American Tinnitus Association, Hearing Loss Association, and the American Academy of Audiology, and will pursue her Au.D. via A.T. Still University's Arizona School of Health Sciences distance education program.
"My passion as an audiologist has been in rehabilitative audiology, working with individuals to improve their hearing abilities and thus their quality of life," said Heider. "I believe that by elevating our audiology profession to the doctoral level, it will result in more people seeking help for their hearing and balance issues. Our profession needs to make hearing loss an issue of national concern and be the professional specialty ready to address those concerns," said Heider.
