Joe received his bachelor's degree in communicative disorders in 1999 from West Chester University in West Chester, PA. He went on to receive his master's degree in speech and hearing sciences in 2001 from the University of North Carolina (UNC) in Chapel Hill, NC. Joe is a certified member of the American Speech-Language Hearing Association (ASHA) and is licensed by the state of California in speech-language pathology.

At UNC, Joe received specialized training in autism through a training grant sponsored by the US Department of Education. He combines his knowledge and experience with various forms of interventions including Floor Time, Applied Behavior Analysis, TEACCH, Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS), sensory integration, and traditional speech-language therapy when working with children who have autism and/or other Pervasive Developmental Disorders.

In addition, Joe was trained in “PROMPT,” an innovative therapy technique used to help patients form sounds and words through direct and indirect manipulation of the speech structures (e.g., lips, tongue, jaw). The PROMPT method is a well-regarded treatment technique particularly for children who have apraxia of speech.

Joe is also a musician with specialized training in music education for young children. He combined his skills as a musician and music educator with his expertise as a speech-language pathologist to create Power Tunes, a children’s music CD designed to help toddlers and young children learn vocabulary, speech sounds, and early academic concepts.