Akaiya Bryant is a young person who stutters and has been a part of Friends for 7 years. While being a part of this organization, she has enjoyed being able to connect and interact with other teens who stutter. She has had many significant people who have impacted her life in a positive way through FRIENDS. This has created a desire to mentor other young stutterers. Akaiya will be a senior in high school this fall. After high school, she is planning to study Deaf education. Email Akaiya

David Roney is a person who stutters and has been a part of FRIENDS for 8 years. He has loved coming to conferences every year and meeting new people who stutter along the way! FRIENDS has had an incredibly positive impact on his life and how he thinks about stuttering. David will be pursuing a master’s degree in Speech-Language Pathology starting in the fall of 2021. Email David

Naomi Rodgers is an assistant professor at the University of Iowa where she researchers the social, emotional, and cognitive aspects of stuttering and also teaches students who are on their way to becoming speech-language pathologists. Her journey as a person who stutters and engagement in the stuttering support community over the past 15 years have been a continual source of inspiration for her, both personally and professionally. Naomi lives in Iowa City, IA with her husband, young daughter, and two goldendoodles. Email Naomi