Faculty/Staff Detail
Denise A. Finneran
Denise Finneran joined SUNY Cortland in the fall of 2024. Dr. Finneran is a certified speech language pathologist who worked with children and adults in a variety of clinical settings. Dr. Finneran completed her doctoral degree at Purdue University with Dr. Laurence B. Leonard. Her research interests include child language development and disorders with an emphasis on grammar and related factors across variations of American English including African American English.
Education
PhD, Purdue University
MA, University of Massachusetts Amherst
BA, University of Massachusetts Amherst
Teaching
SHH 270 Introduction to Communication Disorders
SHH 300 Normal Language Development
SHH 473 Neuropathologies of Language & Speech
SHH 641 Multiculturalism
SHH 669 Language Disorders-School Age Speech Pathology
SHH 670 Phonology & Articulation Disorders
Publications
Finneran, D., & Hutchins, T. L. (in press 2025). Test review of Receptive-Expressive Emergent Language Test–Fourth Edition. In J. F. Carlson, K. F. Geisinger, J. L. Jonson, & N. A. Anderson (Eds.), The Twenty-Second Mental Measurements Yearbook. https://www.nebraskapress.unl.edu/buros-center-for-testing/9780910674713/the-twenty-second-mental-measurements-yearbook/. Retrieved from https://marketplace.unl.edu/buros/
Williams, B., Sisson, S., Dev, D., Lowery, B., Campbell, J., Finneran, D., Graef-Downard, J., Horm, D., & Whaley, L. (2021). Associations between community-built environments with early care and education classroom physical activity practices and barriers. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(12), 6524. doi:10.3390/ijerph18126524
Finneran, D., Heilmann, J., Moyle, M., & Chen, S. (2020, published online 2019). An examination of cultural-linguistic influences on PPVT-4 performance in African American and Hispanic preschoolers from low-income communities. Journal of Clinical Linguistics and Phonetics, 34(3), 242-255. doi: 10.1080/02699206.2019.1628811 Publication featured in The Informed SLP (2019), Is the PPVT-4 a good choice for culturally and linguistically diverse preschoolers?
Finneran, D. (2020). Test review of Test of Language Development-Primary-Fifth Edition. In J. F. Carlson, K. F. Geisinger, & J. L. Jonson (Eds.), The twenty-first mental measurements yearbook. Buros Center for Testing, Lincoln, NE.
Moyle, M., Heilmann, J., & Finneran, D. (2014). What is the NRT measuring? An examination with at-risk African American preschool children. Journal of Clinical Linguistics and Phonetics, 28, 682-696. doi:10.3109/02699206.2014.882990
Finneran, D., & Leonard, L. (2010). The role of linguistic input in third person singular –s use in the speech of young children. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 53, 1065-1074. doi:10.1044/1092-4388(2009/09-0056)
Finneran, D., Francis, A., & Leonard, L. (2009). Sustained attention in preschool-age children with specific language impairment. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 52, 915-929. doi:10.1044/1092-4388(2009/07-0053)
Finneran, D., Leonard, L., & Miller, C. (2009). Speech disruptions in the sentence formulation of school-age children with specific language impairment. International Journal of Language and Communication Disorders, 44, 271-286. doi:10.1080/13682820902841385
Leonard, L., Miller, C., & Finneran, D. (2009). Grammatical morpheme effects on sentence processing by school-aged children with specific language impairment. Journal of Language and Cognitive Processes, 24, 450-478. doi:10.1080/01690960802229649
Miller, C., Leonard, L., & Finneran, D. (2008). Grammaticality judgments in adolescents with and without language impairment. International Journal of Language and Communication Disorders, 43, 346-360. doi:10.1080/13682820701546813
Leonard, L., Deevy, P., Kurtz, R., Krantz Chorev, L., Owen, A., Polite, E., Elam, D., & Finneran, D. (2007). Lexical aspect and the use of verb morphology by children with specific language impairment. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 50, 759-777. doi:10.1044/1092-4388(2007/053)
Leonard, L., & Finneran, D. (2003). Grammatical morpheme effects on MLU: “The same can be less” revisited. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 46, 878-888. doi:10.1044/1092-4388(2003/068)
Service
Academic Advisor
Admissions Committee
Green Ambassador (starting August 2025)
Search Committee
School of Professional Studies Curriculum Committee (starting August 2025)