Castro honored for advancing aphasia research

Nichol Castro, assistant professor in the Department of Communicative Disorders and Sciences, was named a Distinguished Scholar by the Tavistock Trust for Aphasia for her expertise in aphasia, a language disorder that impacts a person’s ability to understand and express language.

The purpose of the Tavistock Trust for Aphasia Distinguished Scholar Award is to help increase research capacity and promote research that improves the quality of life for people living with aphasia. The 2026 award winners were selected by leading internationally renowned aphasiologists and announced at the Clinical Aphasiology Conference in May.

The award is given in recognition of scholarly excellence in advancing research that improves the lives of people with aphasia, mentoring students conducting research and securing funding to address the needs of people living with aphasia.

“Receiving this award affirms that I am holding true to my belief that the work I do should be rooted in helping real people address real problems faced today,” says Castro. “I am actually a cognitive psychologist by training, but chose to pursue a career in communication science and disorders because I could see ways in which my research could extend far beyond publishing papers to advance theory.”

Castro’s Adult Language Network (ALN) Lab focuses on researching word retrieval in aging adults and adults with aphasia, studying how words are organized in memory. She aims to improve treatment outcomes for people with aphasia by considering the uniqueness of each person’s mental dictionary so that treatment can be individually tailored.

Her research uses behavioral studies and computational modeling to map mental dictionaries and predict treatment outcomes. Castro’s research includes an ongoing NIH grant to develop a complexity model of aphasia that integrates the linguistic, cognitive, psychological, and social impacts of aphasia, with other research studies focused on how we can better individualize aphasia treatment to each client.

Castro teaches CDS 564, a graduate course required for master’s students in the CDS Speech-Language Pathology program, providing education on aphasia and cognitive-communication disorders. She also teaches CDS 450/650, an elective for undergraduate and graduate students to learn more about what is typical age-related changes in communication (speech, language, hearing, cognition) and swallowing, and what is an early indicator or symptom of a communication or swallowing disorder in older adults.

In spring 2027, she will debut a new book club-style special topics course for undergraduate students, focused on the role of cognition in communication disorders. This heavy discussion-based class will read memoirs of individuals who are navigating cognitive-communication disorder due to stroke, brain injury, or dementia.

In addition to her teaching and research efforts in CDS and ALN Lab, Castro organizes the annual UB Aphasia Health Fair alongside her students during the month of June to recognize National Aphasia Awareness Month, a campaign dedicated to educating the public about the communication disorder that affects a person's ability to speak, write, and understand language. Earlier this month marked the event, bringing together campus and community partners.

The funds Castro receives from the award will be used to continue the mission of the Tavistock Trust in Western New York, supporting continuation of the annual Aphasia Health Fair, purchasing materials for clients receiving individualized therapy through the CDS Comprehensive Aphasia Program and supporting outings or other activities for members of the Communication Recovery Collective to practice conversation skills in real-world settings.

Castro was previously recognized with the UB Exceptional Scholar Young Investigator Award, the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association Early Career Research Award, the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association Lessons for Success Fellow, a fellow of the Psychonomic Society and a Pathways Fellow for the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.

“I love that I get to use cool models of language to solve real-world problems experienced by speech-language pathologists and people with aphasia,” says Castro. “I also get to train the next generation of speech-language pathologists who will, I hope, carry on my teachings of person-centered health care. In this way, my work extends far beyond what I have done and am currently doing, but will also continue to positively impact people with aphasia for decades to come.”