TEAM AND ADVISORS
Our team of professionals have come together to bring user experience to our game.
We are here to help you along your journey.
Check out the map below of where our global team is working from.
Meet Our Team
David Sonnenschein
Chief Executive Officer
Neuroscientist, musician, filmmaker, sound designer and educator, David puts together these experiences towards musical games for children that will enhance their cognitive, social and creative skills. Author of “Sound Design: The Expressive Power of Music, Voice and Sound Effects in Cinema” and audio consultant for EA’s Mass Effect 3, Nickelodeon TV, and countless film productions, he has taught in dozens of universities and professional centers throughout the world. His musical career began as a symphony clarinetist, then adding jazz, world music and didgeridoo sound healing.
Annie de la Bouillerie Goeke
Chief Marketing Officer
Annie has 25 years of leadership in planning, developing, and maintaining programs using sustainable, holistic approaches for social enterprises and community building worldwide. She is co-Founder of Earth Rights Institute, a non-profit that assists communities to empower themselves, providing programs and education that promote, create and teach sustainable development and well-being initiatives.
Rob Arbittier
Chief Technology Officer
Rob is an internationally recognized Grammy Award-winning leader in both the music and technology industries, inventing the first music creation software for the blind for Stevie Wonder. He has composed, produced, engineered and performed on numerous Gold & Platinum records, with artists including Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston and J Lo, and worked with Microsoft, Apple, EA Games, Disney, Universal, MTV, and Sony.
Hayoung Lim, PhD
Director of Science
Hayoung is Professor of Music Therapy and Director of Music Therapy Clinic at Oral Roberts University (ORU). She is also the CEO of ELim Music Therapy. Hayoung is a board-certified, neurologic music therapist (NMT Fellow) and current member of the American Music Therapy Association (AMTA). Her Ph.D. degree in Music Education from the University of Miami is based on her dissertation“The Effect of Developmental Speech-Language Training through Music in Speech Production in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders,”published by Jessica Kingsley Publishers, London, UK.
Daniel Dye
Senior Developer
Daniel Dye, IT and Web Development, joins us from his U.K. base, after many years living and working in Thailand. As a full stack developer, his skill set encompasses the full range of SS4Kids current and future planned technology. He’s detail oriented, quick to adapt and a great communicator, all very important traits for our program to prosper.
Katelyn Miller
Marketing & Outreach Director
Katelyn is a leader in Marketing Communications and Brand development, education and youth development. She uses her experience to formulate and implement strategic marketing initiatives that help Sing and Speak 4 Kids grow as a company, as an industry leader, and as an advocate for education and health.
Alesia Alexander
Marketing Specialist
Alesia has Master of Arts degrees in English and African American Studies from the University of Wisconsin Madison. She is invested in using writing to share knowledge with others in digital spaces, which has brought her to the Marketing Team at iQsonics. Alesia lives in Maryland and spends her free time baking for friends and family and being an avid gamer.
Xandria Jaravata
Customer Care Specialist
Xandria holds a BA in Sociology with double minors in Anthropology and Global Health from UCLA. She champions causes related to health, wellness, culture, and education and has a robust background in customer support and leadership within the healthcare tech industry. In her spare time, she also teaches ESL virtually to students all over the globe. She is excited to bring her expertise to help the children and families of Sing and Speak 4 Kids receive the best care and support possible.
Andrew Mendoza
Bookkepper
Andrew has 7 years of Accounting, Tax, and Bookkeeping experience across several non-profits. He enjoys managing all accounting processes from processing payroll to tracking grant activity and providing easy to understand financials for all. Andrew began his accounting journey as a contractor and eventually owned his own business, providing accounting and bookkeeping services to a wide net of clients. He is a licensed CPA and holds a degree in Political Science, and most recently a double major in Accounting and Finance from San Jose State University. When he is not working, he spends time with his family and enjoys playing video games.
Jahna Perricone
Vocal Talent
Singer, voice teacher and Certified Mindfulness Facilitator through UCLA’s Mindful Awareness Research Center at Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Jahna is also Director of Mindfulness Programs at C3, Center for Conscious Creatives.
Kyle Hillbrand
Game Programmer & Music Composer
Kyle trained at NYU, Manhattan School of Music, and Universität der Kunste Berlin, had compositions presented in U.S. and Europe., and performed piano, guitar, and drums with ensembles and bands including Red Light New Music and Mighty Five. Currently, he is designing and programming video games with music-based content.
Joel Anderson
Animation Artist
Animator and published cartoonist diagnosed with autism at age 3, Joel is a valued spokesperson for Autism Awareness to thousands in schools, universities, corporations, radio shows and conferences alongside Temple Grandin.
Meet Our Interns
Esil Empig
Intern Coordinator
Esil just graduated UNC Chapel Hill with a double major in Music and Linguistics with a speech and hearing sciences minor. She will attend Northwestern’s Speech, Language, and Learning Master’s program in the fall. Esil loves working with children and hopes her passion for music and language will help her as an Intern for Sing and Speak 4 Kids. Esil has been with Sing and Speak 4 Kids since 2022 and has learned so much in leading professional and paraprofessional focus groups, research, and connecting with other professionals in the field of music and speech.
Andrea Chavez
Intern
Andrea is an Honors Carolina student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill majoring in Linguistics and minoring in Speech and Hearing Sciences. She is also an undergraduate research assistant at the UNC Language Development Lab. Andrea enjoys working with children and finds joy in contributing to the progression of Sing and Speak 4 Kids, whether it be through research, creating social media posts, strengthening the relationship between SS4Kids and the Spanish speaking community through translating, and more!
Lydia Runyambo
Intern
Lydia is a student at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She works as a DSP at a group home for intellectual and developmental disabilities. Lydia is involved with SS4Kids because it perfectly aligns with her passion for making a difference in the lives of children. As an aspiring speech pathologist, Lydia believes in the power of innovative tools like SS4Kids. She’s been fortunate to find a program like SS4Kids that harnesses the drive to spark change through the universal language of music!
Olivia Haines
Intern
Olivia is a senior at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill pursuing a major in Linguistics, with minors in Speech and Hearing Sciences and Spanish Language. She is also a volunteer at UNC’s Center for Aphasia and Related Disorders, where she assists individuals with speaking impairments. Olivia is passionate about helping children develop and improve their language capabilities through innovative programs, and increasing access to speech tools and therapies for underserved communities.
Anna Wohlberg
Intern
Anna is a senior at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a major in Psychology, and a minor in Speech and Hearing Sciences. She volunteers with Gigi’s Playhouse, is a nanny, and cares for a girl with Down Syndrome. Anna loves working with kids and hopes to become an SLP in order to help kids with developmental disabilities improve their communication skills. She is excited to be working with SS4Kids and learning about the impact music can have on speech and language development!
Abbey Shanahan
Intern
Abbey is a senior at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, majoring in Psychology with a minor in Speech and Hearing Sciences. She volunteers for the National Association of Young People Who Stutter, is a group leader for StrongHER TogetHER, and is a nanny. Abbey is aiming to become a Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP) with a focus on helping individuals who stutter. Abbey is passionate about music and helping children improve their communication skills, making SS4K a perfect opportunity to combine both interests.
Julianna Winfree
Intern
Julianna is an undergraduate student at UNC-Chapel Hill double majoring in Linguistics and Human Development with a minor in Speech and Hearing Sciences. After graduation, she plans to pursue a degree in clinical audiology with a focus on pediatrics. Outside of school, Julianna is a research assistant in the ALLears lab in the UNC School of Medicine, Co-President of the UNC American Sign Language Club, and work part-time at a preschool. The reason she joined SS4Kids is because it combines her interests of working with kids, assistive technology, and speech and hearing related work.
Meet Our Advisory Board
Laura Jana, MD
Pediatrics
Specializing in the areas of maternal child health, parenting and health communication, early nutrition and obesity prevention and early childhood development, Dr. Jana has authored two parenting books for the American Academy of Pediatrics and The Toddler Brain: Nurture the Skills Today that Will Shape Your Child’s Tomorrow.
Christopher Harz, EdD
Marketing and Technology Development
Specializing in collaborative learning, international technology marketing and cognitive psychology, Dr. Harz has worked with RAND Corporation, Teledyne and Virtual Agility. His expertise focuses on technology to improve cognitive and affective aspects of learning, including wearable sensors, virtual reality, artificial intelligence, and telemedicine.
Chip Donohue
Early Learning and Technology
Founding Director of Technology in Early Childhood (TEC) Center at Erikson Institute, and Senior Fellow and Advisor at Fred Rogers Institute, Chip is editor of Family Engagement in the Digital Age: Early Childhood Educators as Media Mentors and Technology and Digital Media in the Early Years: Tools for Teaching and Learning.
Kathleen Howland
Speech Language Pathologist & Music Therapist
Professor at Berklee School of Music, TEDx presenter “How music can heal our brain and heart”, and passionate advocate for the power of music to empower and transform individuals and groups in meaningful ways, Kathleen specializes in using neuroscience as the lens through which to view and validate music based practices.
Lynn Crandall
Health & Arts Consultant
Director of USC Institute of Genetic Medicine Art Gallery, linking science, arts, technology and community on local, national and global levels. Lynn is a State of California Master Teacher and participates in artAngels.org, SoCal Sister Cities International, L.A./Nagoya Sister Cities Association and Society for the Arts in Healthcare.
Erica Ellis, PhD
Communication Disorders
Erica Ellis is an assistant professor at California State University, Los Angeles in the Department of Communication Disorders. She earned her PhD from UC San Diego and San Diego State University’s Joint Doctoral Program in Language and Communicative Disorders. Her research focuses on examining lexical and cognitive processing skills in children with language disorders.
Elaine Hall
Autism Consultant
Elaine is director of The Miracle Project, a pioneer in the use of inclusive music and theatre as transformation for children and adults with autism. Writer, motivational speaker and educator appearing on CNN, CBS, Oprah Radio and NPR, her memoir Now I See the Moon was the official selection for the United Nations World Autism Awareness Day.
Alix Generous
Mental Health Advocate and App Developer
Alix’s childhood was hindered with undiagnosed Autism until she learned to harness her gifts. Now at 23, she has spoken at the United Nations, given three TED talks, and has over 3 years of experience working in neuroscience research at Tufts University School of Medicine and Medical University of South Carolina. She co-founded the social impact and technology company Podium (formerly AutismSees) and developed their first product“Podium”, an iOS Application that teaches vocational and presentation skills to autistic youth.
Stuart Fordyce
Autism Advocate & Educator
Filmmaker, musician and composer, Stuart has taught and advocated for students with autism for 30 years. He built an inclusive arts program in a public middle school and is a founding member of Boston Film/Video Foundation, funded by NEA and WGBH, supporting film and video artists including Dance for the Camera, Frames of Reference and Nam June Paik.
HyeKyeung Seung, PhD
Communication Disorders
CCC-SLP, ASHA member, HyeKyeung serves as Chair of the Dept. of Communication Sciences and Disorders, CSU Fullerton. Her research focuses on how best to help nonverbal children with autism to develop verbal communication skills, and is disseminated in prestigious publications such as the Journal of Speech, Hearing, and Language Research. Since 2007, she has hosted a monthly parent support group that empowers Korean-American mothers who have children with autism.
Shelley P. Cox
Early Childhood Education
Shelley founded Step by Step Early Childhood Development Program in 1998 which continues to provide comprehensive services for children with and without developmental delays, emphasizing therapies including “Floortime”, Play Therapy, and Applied Behavior Analysis.
Appreciation for former Advisors and Team Members
Joanne Manzella (Developer & Graphics)
Chakrit Prasatwattana (Web Developer)
Anthony Salgado (Web Developer)
Courtney Pitman (Marketing)
Donna Ayers (Executive Administration)
Abdi Bazleh (Marketing & Finance)
Jacquie Beaubien EdD (Learning & Motivation)
Anthoula Poulakos PhD (Developmental Psychology)
Brooke Ingersoll PhD (Psychology)
Laura Dilley PhD (Speech & Hearing Bioscience and Technology)
Joseph Khan (Marketing & Analytics)
Dina Hernandez (Research Assistant)
(Brenna Redpath (Operations & Outreach)
Michael Knueppel (IT & Web Development)
Kelly Yates (Social Media Manager)
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